As is the case across many industries, AI has changed the way the financial industry operates. Data processing and lower-level analysis can be completed with greater efficiency and accuracy than ever before. This has made areas like high-frequency trading more accessible to the general public while also lowering operational costs for businesses. Forecasting and process automation save time that can then be used for higher level analysis.
While there are some definite benefits to AI in the financial industry, the impact that it is having on the job market, particularly with entry level jobs, cannot be ignored. Entry level positions can be largely automated with AI, leaving many people without a place to land once they’ve finished their education. AI is changing what sort of skills are valuable in the workforce. To an extent, data entry and processing are becoming less valued.
The rise of AI in the finance industry has prompted individuals to acquire greater skill in high-level interpretation and analysis. All the data anyone could possibly want is at our fingertips, so the ability to stand out now relies on what we can make of the data. There is something to be said about the benefit of prompting employees to engage in deeper critical thinking and problem solving, but there is also something to be said about removing entry level positions where people can learn and grow.
As we keep moving forward in the rise and success of AI, we may see a shift in the structure of jobs and workforce education. To use an example, a large portion of the work that a bookkeeper does can be automated using AI (which has already begun to occur). Over the next decade or so there will likely be a shift away from companies hiring bookkeepers. Instead, they will seek someone who can interpret the data their AI bookkeeping software generates and provide strategic recommendations. This of course goes far beyond what would be taught in introductory accounting, so prospective employees will have to find other ways to develop such skills.
The finance industry is simultaneously more accessible than ever due to the amount of data readily available and less accessible than ever due to the heightened skill requirements for what used to be entry level positions. This is one of the heavier impacts that AI has had on the financial industry, and as AI is ever evolving by nature the industries it affects are sure to follow suit. The traditional pipeline of post secondary education to entry level position is slowly but surely being radically changed.
