Demographics, the aging baby boomer generation and the great wealth transfer are shaping trends in wealth technology as much as they are in any other segment of financial services. The endless rise of technology across society has also created a wider sense of tech fatigue, which firms like Broadridge are keeping in mind as the industry seeks to scale while personalizing service.
From a tech firm’s standpoint, personalization of service to the next generation is key. A survey conducted by Broadridge of US advisors found that 85 per cent said younger advisors would require different products, different services, and a different service experience. Only 34 per cent of firms, the study found, had pivoted to a consideration of what that might mean for them. Kirkwood says that Broadridge is now working closely with their clients on that very issue.
That is not to say an advisor now needs to reach their millennial and gen Z clients with emojis and snapchats. In fact, Kirkwood cautions against leaning too heavily on these aspects of social media even for digital-native generations. She says, instead, that these investors still require a personalized touch and human advice that they expect from an advisor. Technology can help the advisors provide that personalized service and a more digitally savvy generation should be more receptive to those tech supplements, so long as they remain supplementary to a core human experience.
Generative AI, Kirkwood says, can help advisors scale and personalize all at once, if executed correctly. Generative AI has been the technology story of the year and it’s something that Kirkwood believes may enable advisors to better prepare for their own futures.
“AI can be encapsulated in that simple way, doing more with less effort, proving higher value to investors with less effort,” Kirkwood says. “Doing more in the advisor’s front office and doing it with less back-office requirements has become an overarching theme.”
