Client Stories

What RIA Firms Achieve with a Clear AI Roadmap

Three illustrative examples of how SEC-registered RIA firms have used the AI Growth Roadmap Intensive to reclaim capacity, build governance, and scale with confidence.

Note: The following are composite case studies based on common patterns observed across RIA firms. Identifying details have been changed or omitted to protect client confidentiality.

Capacity & Growth

A Boston RIA Reclaimed 12+ Hours Per Week in Advisor Time

$850M AUM · 22 Employees · Boston, MA

!The Challenge

The firm's senior advisors were spending 8–12 hours per week on client prep, meeting summaries, and portfolio commentary — work that was necessary but not client-facing. The founder had tried two AI tools independently, but without a governance framework, compliance flagged both as unapproved. The firm was stuck: too busy to evaluate AI properly, too exposed to ignore it.

→The Process

1Completed the AI Readiness Assessment to baseline current AI posture across 5 dimensions

2Identified 3 high-priority use cases: meeting prep automation, portfolio commentary drafting, and CRM note generation

3Built a governance framework that compliance approved in the first review cycle

4Ran a 6-week pilot on meeting prep with 4 advisors, with clear KPIs and rollback criteria

5Documented the workflow and trained the full team during the final two sessions

Outcomes

Advisors recovered 10–14 hours per week previously spent on prep and documentation

Compliance approved the AI governance framework with no material changes

The firm added 2 new client relationships in the quarter following the pilot — capacity that previously didn't exist

The founder now has a clear 12-month AI roadmap with defined owners and milestones

"We'd been talking about AI for two years. In six weeks, we went from scattered experiments to a framework our compliance team actually signed off on."
— Founder & CEO, Boston RIA

Compliance & Governance

A Chicago Wealth Manager Built an AI Governance Framework Before the SEC Asked

$1.4B AUM · 38 Employees · Chicago, IL

!The Challenge

The firm's CCO had been tracking SEC guidance on AI and knew an examination was likely within 18 months. Advisors were already using ChatGPT and other tools informally — but there was no policy, no documentation, and no oversight process. The firm needed a defensible governance framework before regulators arrived, not after.

→The Process

1Mapped all current AI tool usage across the firm — 7 tools identified, none formally approved

2Built a risk-tiered AI governance policy aligned with SEC examination priorities

3Created a vendor vetting process and evaluated all 7 existing tools against it

4Established an AI oversight committee with defined roles for compliance, operations, and leadership

5Developed a staff training program covering appropriate use, documentation requirements, and escalation paths

Outcomes

All 7 AI tools were formally evaluated; 5 were approved, 2 were sunset with compliant alternatives identified

The governance framework was completed 4 months before a scheduled SEC examination

The examination resulted in no AI-related findings

The firm's CCO now presents the AI governance framework as a competitive differentiator in RFPs

"Our examiner actually complimented the framework. That's not something we expected to say about an AI policy."
— Chief Compliance Officer, Chicago Wealth Management Firm

Scale & Efficiency

A Dallas RIA Scaled AUM Without Adding Headcount

$2.1B AUM · 54 Employees · Dallas, TX

!The Challenge

The firm had grown from $1.2B to $2.1B AUM in three years — but headcount had grown proportionally. The managing partner knew the next growth phase required a different model: more capacity per advisor, not more advisors. AI was the obvious lever, but the firm had no framework for evaluating, approving, or deploying AI tools at scale.

→The Process

1Conducted a capacity analysis to identify where advisor time was being consumed by non-client-facing work

2Prioritized 4 AI use cases with the highest capacity-to-effort ratio

3Built a phased 90/180/365-day roadmap with clear milestones and ownership

4Piloted AI-assisted client reporting and portfolio rebalancing commentary with a 6-advisor cohort

5Trained the full team using the learn-while-building model — skills built during the pilot, not after

Outcomes

The pilot cohort reduced time-per-client-report by approximately 60%

The firm onboarded 18 new client relationships in the 6 months following the pilot — without adding advisors

The 365-day roadmap is now in execution, with 3 of 4 priority use cases live

The managing partner presented the AI strategy to the board with full confidence and a clear ROI narrative

"We stopped asking 'should we use AI?' and started asking 'how do we use it well?' That shift changed everything."
— Managing Partner, Dallas RIA

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