AI is everywhere right now, and it can be tempting to treat it like just another buzzword. While much of the conversation focuses on the future of AI, what interests us at Pittenger & Anderson is how we can use it right now to become better at what we do.
The core value of financial advice remains very human. It’s the judgment to interpret complexity, the experience to guide clients through uncertainty, and the relationship that helps people make good decisions, especially when markets are volatile or life changes quickly.
AI can’t replace that. But it can make us better and more efficient at delivering it.
Here are five ways we’re currently using AI at P&A.
1. Company Research: Faster Deep Dives
We use AI to assist in gathering stock research material. AI can quickly dig through and synthesize large amounts of information that our investment team has historically gathered manually. That means less time searching for information and more time analyzing what matters, asking better questions, and evaluating investment opportunities.
AI doesn’t make the investment decision. Our team does. It simply gives us another powerful research tool.
2. AI Inside Our Existing Software
Many of the technology platforms we already use have begun integrating AI into their systems, including tools we use for financial planning, tax planning, and client relationship management. These capabilities help our team organize information, identify opportunities, and streamline routine work.
The result is simple: less time spent on administrative tasks and more time spent thinking about and working with our clients.
3. Clearer Client Communication
Financial planning and investing can get complicated quickly. Clients don’t just need information. They need to understand what it means for them.
That’s where we’ve started using AI as a tool to help. It allows us to take complex, layered analysis and organize it into a clearer narrative. One that makes the reasoning behind a recommendation easy to follow and easy to act on.
The thinking and advice remain ours. AI simply helps us communicate with them more effectively.
4. Better Internal Meetings
We’re also using AI notetaking during internal planning and analysis meetings. These are internal working sessions that do not include client-specific information requiring archiving, so the team can use the tool freely to support the conversation. Rather than having people focused on typing notes, our team stays engaged in the discussion while AI helps capture meeting minutes, organize discussion points, and identify action items.
That leads to better conversations during the meeting and better follow-through afterward.
5. A Really Good Brainstorming Partner
This may be one of our favorite uses. AI is pretty smart. Give it good information, ask good questions, and it can generate some surprisingly good ideas, whether we’re looking for ways to better serve clients, improve a process, research a topic, or solve a problem.
We still have to apply judgment. We challenge its answers with independent research, ask follow-up questions, and determine what makes sense.
But instead of always starting with a blank sheet of paper, AI can give us a very good starting point, and sometimes introduce an idea we hadn’t considered.
The Bottom Line
Our goal at P&A isn’t to use AI simply because it’s the latest technology. We want to use it where it helps us do our jobs better. That means using AI to research faster, reduce busywork, communicate more clearly, generate ideas, and improve follow-through while keeping our people firmly in the driver’s seat.
You can probably use AI in much the same way in your own life. Think of something that takes too much time, something you’re trying to understand, a trip you’re planning, a decision you’re wrestling with, or even a project you’ve been putting off.
Not sure where to start?
Ask AI: “How could you help me with this?”
You might be surprised by the answer.
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Pittenger & Anderson, Inc. makes no representation, and it should not be assumed, that past investment performance is an indication of future results. Moreover, wherever there is the potential for profit there is also the possibility of loss.
Pittenger & Anderson, Inc. does not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for, tax, legal, or accounting advice. You should consult your own tax, legal, and accounting advisors before engaging in any transaction. Additionally, the information presented here is not intended to be a recommendation to buy or sell any specific security. To learn more about our firm and investment approach, check out our Form ADV.
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