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The wealth management industry faces many of the same AI-in-business questions as others do: Can AI replace human advisors? Will it?
The answer in wealth management is, of course, complicated. Powerful agentic AI tools can manage a great deal of the grunt work to increase advisors’ capacity. These tools can certainly maximize the impact of wealth managers—and the temptation could be to let AI do as much of the work of advisors as technologically possible.
But the human element remains critical. Our industry requires advisor involvement throughout the workflow, from client relationships to ensuring regulatory compliance. No matter how much or how well wealth management firms integrate agentic AI solutions, keeping advisors involved in the process is essential for the continued success of clients and firms alike.
Why advisor involvement matters for AI in wealth management
Our customers report that our agentic AI assistant for financial advisors reduces the time they spend on necessary but menial tasks and optimizes the time they spend developing relationships with clients. This is the ideal use case for AI in wealth management.
But not one of our customers has opted to reduce or eliminate advisor oversight in AI-powered workflows.
And here’s why: accountability and compliance still rest with advisors and the firms they represent.
That’s true for your clients—who expect a person on the other end of a call—and it’s true for every regulatory or compliance concern you have to consider.
AI-driven tools are just that: tools. We cannot pass responsibility for errors and mistakes onto our tools. We have to own them. An AI notetaker is not your CYA.
This isn’t just our opinion, either. The SEC and FINRA hold that rules for supervision and recordkeeping apply to AI-powered tools the same as they apply to advisors.
So why does “advisor-in-the-loop” matter for your firm?
- The official record is official, no matter who writes it. AI-powered notetakers are continually improving. Yet they still contain transcription errors, misinterpretations, misattributions, and factual inaccuracies. If these errors make their way into the CRM (or are stored anywhere else), they become part of the official record—and your firm is responsible for them. Advisors review and mitigate these concerns.
- The regulatory landscape is complex—and it will get more complex as AI tools become the standard. Advisor's eyes on your firm’s official record will help keep everything above board and in compliance with applicable regulations. The use of AI-powered tools in wealth management is likely to lead to a different sort of scrutiny in the industry, and advisor involvement adds a failsafe against regulatory exposure.
- Your clients count on you for privacy, security, and ethical wealth management. They appreciate knowing that their advisors are using every tactical advantage to manage their wealth—and they also require assurance that a trusted advisor is providing the final say on complex decisions. Imagine explaining to a client that a transcription error led to a mismanaged portfolio. No, thank you.
What “advisor-in-the-loop” AI looks like in practice
Of course, one of the primary drivers of increased AI integration in wealth management is that it saves advisors time and effort. It frees them up for the more value-driven and human-centric parts of the work.
So advisor involvement in a firm’s AI tools must be optimized.
What, then, does “advisor-in-the-loop” AI look like in practice for a wealth management firm?
- Advisors review all materials. Any AI-powered transcript or AI-composed email is subject to the official record. Firms can require advisor review of any such file for accuracy and completeness before approving it for sharing with clients, sending it to the CRM, or storing it in any other system.
- Workflow parameters create transparency and accountability. Firms can, in essence, create an auditable paper trail. AI inaccuracies will happen and should be corrected rather than hidden. A workflow that tracks changes, edits, and approvals completed by advisors maintains a complete record of documentation.
- AI tools become central to training the team. Every current wealth manager and future hire needs to complete training on how to utilize a firm’s AI-powered tools. Even more importantly, that training needs to include where and how advisor involvement is necessary. Advisors and team members need to understand both the capabilities and limitations of the AI tools in use, as well as the risks and repercussions of removing themselves from the workflow.
- A firm’s policies codify advisor involvement. How is advisor involvement integral to the firm’s workflow? How are advisors responsible for ensuring regulatory compliance and meeting legal obligations? How will advisors interact with AI to best serve clients? Articulating the central role of advisors in using AI-powered tools sets expectations for the firm.
How leading firms keep advisors in the AI workflows
AI-powered tools are revolutionizing wealth management. Integrating a platform such as Zeplyn is proving impressively simple—yet even so, how a firm chooses to keep advisors central to its workflow requires intentionality.
We’ve observed that leading firms establish their updated processes through partnerships among firm leaders, advisors, and tech leaders. With their joint perspectives, they’re able to:
- Determine where to best implement AI (and where not to).
- Identify and codify how wealth managers can best utilize AI tools.
- Prioritize regulatory compliance.
- Maintain—and often enhance—client relationships.
- Develop and implement effective training.
- Create opportunities for regular review.
- Better select vendors.
- Identify growth opportunities and competitive advantages.
Perhaps most importantly, our customers at leading firms have come to realize that a well-implemented AI tool actually improves the advisor element, rather than undermining it.
Jennifer Bromberg, an advisor at Financial Reserve, shares how our agentic AI assistant has allowed her to show up more fully with clients—to be more present and more human, not less.
“It’s improved the relationship in ways I wouldn’t have predicted,” she says. “Where your competitive edge comes in is your ability to be a better advisor because of the tools you use. If AI is helping us be more of ourselves, I haven’t seen it take anything away, at least not in our industry.”
Ready to see Zeplyn in action and how it supports the advisor-in-the-loop model for wealth management firms? Book a demo.
