Key Takeaways
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Give every employee an enterprise-grade AI account where client data stays inside the firm.
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If you don't provide a secure tool, your staff will use personal devices—and client data will flow into public models.
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Thirty minutes a week on prompting is enough to build real proficiency.
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Evaluate technology partners on where they're building, not where they've been.
Most of what's published about artificial intelligence (AI) in financial services is prediction. The question advisors actually need answered is different: what do I do on Monday? Mark Casady—Co-Founder and General Partner of fintech venture firm Vestigo Ventures and Executive Chair at FMG— answered it on a recent episode of the Exceptional Advisor podcast. His advice is specific, low-effort, and repeatable.
How Should Financial Advisors Protect Client Data When Using AI?
The first thing Casady would do at any advisory firm is give every employee an enterprise-grade AI account—one where client data stays inside the firm's environment and doesn't train outside models.
"For some people, that's ChatGPT. For most people today, in business situations, it's Claude from Anthropic. But give them one and then also institutionalize it, so you can protect the data. Because you don't want AI going into the system and being learned by the machine."
The risk of doing nothing matters: your staff will find their own solution. They'll use whatever's on their phone, and client data will go with it.
"The problem is your staff is going to use their phone and they're going to ingest the data you have in order to make their job easier. I've unfortunately seen this over and over again. Give them a safe environment to really practice their AI skills."
An institutional account is not an advanced AI initiative. It is table stakes.
How Long Does It Take to Build AI Proficiency as an Advisor?
Casady's prescription is thirty minutes a week. He's specific about what that time looks like: basic prompting practice, getting better at asking questions, running small experiments. The barrier is not technical.
"Spend a half an hour a week just doing some basic programming on Claude or getting better at prompting for information. A lot of people do it, but I'm often surprised by how few people are willing to try it. It's safe. You can do it. It'll be okay."
Proficiency compounds. Advisors who start now with simple prompts will have a meaningful head start over those who wait for AI to feel more settled.
What Should Financial Advisors Look for in an AI-Ready Technology Partner?
Individual habits matter, but they operate within whatever infrastructure the practice runs on. Casady draws a clear line between technology firms that are building with AI from the start and those that are adding AI features onto legacy systems.
The distinction isn't always visible in product marketing. Casady's guidance: look at the architecture, not the announcement.
"As an advisor, look for partners who are forward thinking and who are really trying to help you in that environment."
The firms that gain the most from AI will be those where the underlying systems were built to support it.
How Should Advisors Think About AI's Long-Term Impact on Wealth Management?
Casady projects five to seven years out and holds those projections loosely. What he's confident about is the mentality of the advisors who will adapt well.
"Learn to be flexible, learn to be in the moment in terms of what might be happening. Don't be scared by it. This is the way humans advance but recognize it is going to be a lot of change."
Curiosity and adaptability are the durable advantage. The advisors who stay close to how AI is actually being used—by their staff, by their peers, and inside the platforms they rely on—will be better positioned to lead through the disruptions that haven't happened yet.
Watch the Episode
Watch the full conversation with Casady on the Exceptional Advisor podcast from the Investments & Wealth Institute. He also covers the advisor shortage, the meaning of money in the advisor-client relationship, and how AI is already helping advisors run leaner, more independent practices.
