As AI gains agency, the role of the planner shifts from expert to orchestrator — from authority to conscience. Introduction Artificial intelligence is evolving faster than any technology in living memory. The latest frontier—agentic AI—can not only generate ideas but act upon them, executing complex, multistep tasks once thought uniquely human. For CEOs, this shift … Continue reading Holistic Wealth Planners in the Age of Agentic AI: How to Lead with Wisdom When Machines Can Think
Tag: business
When “Compliance” Becomes Control — and How Ethical Oversight Restores Trust
By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life PlanningOctober 2025 – 5 min read When financial “compliance” is used well, it protects clients.When it’s misused, it protects power. That was the lesson behind our recent case study, “When Compliance Goes Wrong — How the Academy of Life Planning Stepped In to Restore Fairness and Professional Standards.” … Continue reading When “Compliance” Becomes Control — and How Ethical Oversight Restores Trust
From Fee-for-No-Service to Empowered Planning: A New Chapter for Ongoing Advice
In recent years, one of the most striking stories in UK wealth management has centred on SJP. What started as the promise of ongoing advice, review and service has instead, for many clients, become a worrying case-study of paying for something not delivered. The SJP story: When “ongoing advice” became a contested charge SJP has … Continue reading From Fee-for-No-Service to Empowered Planning: A New Chapter for Ongoing Advice
Case Study: When Compliance Goes Wrong — How the Academy of Life Planning Stepped In to Restore Fairness and Professional Standards
A true story (with identifiers removed) illustrating why conduct supervision and mentorship matter — both inside and outside the FCA perimeter. 1. The Background: From Adviser to Empowered Planner After years working in a traditional financial-advice firm, one planner decided to take a bold step: to leave the world of product intermediation and build a … Continue reading Case Study: When Compliance Goes Wrong — How the Academy of Life Planning Stepped In to Restore Fairness and Professional Standards
Targeted Support or Targeted Sales? Who Really Benefits from the FCA’s ‘Radical’ Reform?
By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning When Sarah Pritchard, Deputy CEO at the Financial Conduct Authority, called targeted support “revolutionary and quite radical,” she wasn’t wrong — but the revolution may not be the one consumers need. The FCA’s new targeted support framework promises to close the advice gap by allowing firms to … Continue reading Targeted Support or Targeted Sales? Who Really Benefits from the FCA’s ‘Radical’ Reform?
🌍 Beyond Robo-Advice: How Life-First AI Can Redefine Wealth for Humanity
“If we train AI on product pipelines, it will entrench dependency.If we train it on human purpose, it will amplify sovereignty.” Artificial intelligence is transforming finance — but so far, it’s been trained to think like a salesperson, not a human being. Recent moves by big tech into financial advice (see below) signal a powerful … Continue reading 🌍 Beyond Robo-Advice: How Life-First AI Can Redefine Wealth for Humanity
⚖️ Synthesis: The Subtle Convergence of AI Adoption and Industry Capture in Financial Planning
AI adoption in financial services is being celebrated as a breakthrough in efficiency, compliance, and client experience. However, beneath the optimism lies a quieter, more consequential transformation: the fusion of automation with legacy industry assumptions. At face value, these discussions appear progressive — focused on productivity, human-AI collaboration, and ethical awareness. The rhetoric emphasises safety, … Continue reading ⚖️ Synthesis: The Subtle Convergence of AI Adoption and Industry Capture in Financial Planning
⚖️ Why We Still Need Claims Management Companies: Protecting the Public in a Captured System
By Steve Conley, Founder – Academy of Life Planning The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced a new multi-agency crackdown on “misleading” advertising by claims management companies (CMCs) and certain law firms handling motor-finance cases. The initiative, coordinated with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), is … Continue reading ⚖️ Why We Still Need Claims Management Companies: Protecting the Public in a Captured System
The Birth of the Holistic Wealth Planner
The Birth of the Holistic Wealth Planner How a conversation with Don MacIntyre helped name a movement. A Profession at a Crossroads In the autumn of 2024, I reconnected with Don MacIntyre, then Chief Executive of the Personal Finance Society (PFS). The profession was in flux. Questions were rising about integrity, independence, and identity. Was … Continue reading The Birth of the Holistic Wealth Planner
FCA Opens Door to Adviser Charging for Targeted Support – But Who Will Pay?
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has on Friday published its latest consultation paper (CP25/26), opening the door for adviser firms to charge consumers for “targeted support”. This new category of regulated activity is pitched as a middle ground between full financial advice and generic guidance, aimed at helping millions of people who may not be … Continue reading FCA Opens Door to Adviser Charging for Targeted Support – But Who Will Pay?
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