Summary
What this article covers in 30 seconds
- Some roles are more exposed to automation, but financial services is also creating specialist roles.
- AI and human intelligence should not be treated as mutually exclusive in RegTech.
- Speech analytics can reduce monitoring workloads while increasing spans of control.
- Human oversight, controls and customisation determine whether AI delivers its potential.
For a while, the rise of artificial intelligence has been accompanied by fear of a “Robopocalypse”: a new order in which machines take over and automation cuts many jobs. Technology and AI have had, and will continue to have, a profound effect on the financial services industry. Innovation still relies on people, which makes the practical effect of AI on the financial services job market important.
The shifting job market
Some financial services jobs are more exposed to automation, such as bookkeepers. However, financial services is also one of the most dynamic industries, and some estimates suggest that the number of new jobs created is roughly equal to those destroyed. Areas where recruitment has grown include software development, project management, marketing and compliance.
Harmonising AI with human intelligence
Within RegTech, there can be an assumption that artificial intelligence and human intelligence are mutually exclusive. Recordsure does not see it that way. Firms should never be 100% reliant on technology for compliance or any other critical part of their operation.
Financial services often produces scenarios that cannot be neatly boxed into categories, as well as customers who do not fit a standard model. Emotional intelligence and sound judgement from staff will therefore remain necessary.
Creating efficiencies and improving standards
AI has reduced some tasks carried out by humans. Speech analytics technologies, for example, can reduce the burden of time-consuming monitoring activity. But many RegTech solutions are designed to enhance human capability by increasing spans of control and offering a more complete view of customer interactions.
Solutions can flag what bad looks like and what good looks like, but it is for an organisation to decide how that insight is used to reduce risk and improve customer experience outcomes.
Human experience and insight are also essential if firms want to use RegTech effectively. Off-the-shelf solutions may reduce operating costs, but technological systems are only as good as the human oversight and controls placed on them. Firms that want the true potential of AI to be realised need to look beyond cost reduction and keep customising solutions for their businesses, adapting to future change as needed.
Using human expertise to steer technology in the right direction will remain key to success. As the RegTech revolution develops, the human workforce will be bolstered by AI, leading to better customer outcomes. More widely, financial services job categories will shift towards more specialist, technology-enabled roles, with AI opening opportunity in specific fields.
Frequently asked questions
No. It says AI changes tasks and roles, but emotional intelligence, judgement, oversight and expertise remain essential.
Recruitment has grown in software development, project management, marketing and compliance roles.
It can reduce time-consuming monitoring, increase spans of control and provide a more complete view of customer interactions.