AI advancement faced with impediments due to insufficient talent pools preventing extensive development
Financial services are set to reap a significant benefit from artificial intelligence (AI) by 2030, with an expected addition of £26bn in value, according to a new report titled 'Unlocking AI's potential: The skills that matter'. The report, released by the Financial Services Skills Commission, highlights the impact of AI on the sector and underscores the need for a more holistic and effective AI reskilling strategy.
The demand for AI skills has surged, with the demand for conversational AI skills increasing 17-fold since 2021. However, the report shows that while AI specialists are essential, they make up a small share of the workforce (up to 1.5% of workers). Instead, it is the human-centered capabilities that are in high demand.
Nathan Sasto, Partner at EY, emphasizes the importance of human-centered capabilities in AI adoption. He highlights that while technical expertise is important, human-centered capabilities such as empathy, adaptability, and relationship management will deliver the greatest value in AI adoption. John Guy, CEO at Simply Get Results, echoes this sentiment, stressing the importance of complementary human skills in AI transformation.
The report identifies several human-centered capabilities that are in high demand due to AI adoption. These include strategic decision-making and complex judgment, managing and collaborating with AI agents, continuous learning and upskilling, soft skills such as communication, empathy, and trust-building, and risk management and oversight.
As AI excels at data processing and automation, humans are needed for nuanced strategic decisions that require context, ethics, and intuition. Future financial roles will involve managing AI 'digital workers', requiring skills in how to effectively prompt, train, and trust AI systems to complement human work. As AI evolves rapidly, financial professionals must engage in ongoing education to improve their skills and adapt to changing tools and processes.
The report also identifies the roles most impacted by AI in financial services. These include financial analysts, directors, account managers, and project managers. HR managers and HR administrative roles are most likely to be impacted by large language models.
Claire Tunley, the Chief Executive of the Financial Services Skills Commission, states that AI will help financial services produce better products, improve data analytics, and enhance customer service. The report underscores the need for firms to address skills gaps by assessing their needs, building targeted training programs, and collaborating to develop collective knowledge of key trends.
The report was unveiled at the Future Skills Conference in London, an event held in partnership between the Financial Services Skills Commission and TheCityUK. The report is available for further data and analysis at the provided link. In summary, financial services increasingly require professionals who blend technical understanding of AI with uniquely human capabilities in judgment, management, and interpersonal interaction to maximize AI’s benefits while addressing its limitations.
- The financial services sector is preparing to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to a significant extent by 2030, with an anticipated £26bn increase in value, as highlighted in a new report titled 'Unlocking AI's potential: The skills that matter'.
- According to the report, while technical expertise is important, there is a high demand for human-centered capabilities such as strategic decision-making, managing and collaborating with AI agents, continuous learning and upskilling, soft skills like communication, empathy, and trust-building, and risk management and oversight.
- The financial roles most likely to be impacted by AI in the future include financial analysts, directors, account managers, and project managers, while HR managers and HR administrative roles may be affected by large language models.
