The AI at work dialogue

00:00:03: Welcome to the Alfie NextGen Finance Podcast, where we talk about key developments and insights in Luxembourg's fund industry.

00:00:09: In today's special episode, we have not just two, but three next-geners who will be talking about how AI is impacting their work.

00:00:16: I'm your host, Natalie Gerhardstein, and joining me today are our next-geners, Helena Bernard from Mundi, Marc Garcia from One Group Solutions, and Lisa Beckers from Linklators.

00:00:26: Welcome.

00:00:28: Hello.

00:00:29: Morning.

00:00:29: Good

00:00:29: morning.

00:00:31: So warm.

00:00:31: welcome because it's cold today in our office.

00:00:33: It's a bit warm in our room.

00:00:35: But before we get started, I wanted to ask you each to introduce yourselves.

00:00:39: Tell me a little bit more about your professional roles and how you're working along the value chain.

00:00:43: I'll start with you, Helena.

00:00:45: Hello.

00:00:45: Thank you for having me here.

00:00:47: So I'm Global Support Relationship Manager at M&D Luxembourg.

00:00:52: So I cover fund distributors in the UK and the US.

00:00:56: Basically it means that I sit between our clients and internal teams to make sure that we serve the clients in the best way possible.

00:01:03: Perfect, Mark.

00:01:05: Morning, thanks for having us.

00:01:06: I'm Group PMO at One Group Solutions, been with the firm for over four years in our growth journey and I'm basically dealing with all the group strategic projects, growth expansion and all those different interesting projects.

00:01:19: Okay, thank you and Lisa.

00:01:21: I'm a lawyer at Linkliters.

00:01:24: I've been there for four years, but I've been really a Linkliters baby, as we say, because I've been there since my very beginnings.

00:01:35: And I've been also part of the Funds Forward Sinkers group at Linkliters, which is an internal group.

00:01:42: within our investment funds team where we actually try to think about what can we do better in terms of AI and innovation to develop better our team.

00:01:53: Okay, perfect.

00:01:54: So we have people from all across the value chain and it'll be very interesting to see your insights on AI today.

00:01:58: So we'll jump right in.

00:02:00: How has AI already changed the way you're working day to day and has it made your work more efficient or just different?

00:02:05: And I'll start with you Mark.

00:02:07: Yeah, it has definitely had a positive impact on our day-to-day operations, especially if I talk about my role.

00:02:14: I would describe it as it has really augmented our role, saying that we can perform work that was... being done by a group of two or three people now being done by a group much much smaller and much more enhanced.

00:02:29: There's different areas right where we see a huge increase in efficiency for the teams which is you can have a more agile day-to-day so work that used to take six, ten hours, a couple days of work can be done in the background while you're focusing on other stuff than the fact that the AI has the context of your company, makes any search, any document, any information sharing substantially easier.

00:02:56: And then one thing that is usually forgotten is about creativity.

00:03:00: You can have a ten minute creativity spur, put everything in there, whatever tool you prefer, especially if it's controlled by the company and this ten minute job.

00:03:10: then will be polished, will be refined by the AI.

00:03:13: You don't have to spend the next two, three hours writing it properly, having much more, less value at work than you used to do in the past.

00:03:22: OK.

00:03:23: Did you want to answer that, Alina?

00:03:24: Yes, well, I totally agree with Mark.

00:03:26: Of course, it has changed the way we work.

00:03:29: I use it daily, for example, on easy tasks, such as preparing meetings, agenda, drafting minutes, or just summarizing some documentation.

00:03:39: But I give you another example of a bigger task in where AI has helped me.

00:03:46: We also have an AI internal tool, so I'm confident to put any data in.

00:03:52: in there confidentially.

00:03:54: So I added about twenty Excel files that I did to combine and I fed them into our AI tool and it has produced one merged spreadsheet very instantaneously and with all the data I needed.

00:04:08: So this is a very good example of where it of course requires controls and checks but the burden of going through each dataset was already done.

00:04:18: So I spent more time thinking thinking out of the box and enriching the content more than just producing the data.

00:04:27: Okay, all good points.

00:04:28: Thank you.

00:04:28: When you first heard about AI tools entering your field, what was your initial reaction and sort of how has that evolved?

00:04:33: And maybe Lisa, you want to talk to that?

00:04:35: Yeah, sure.

00:04:36: So it's actually really funny, because I think when we first started to talk about AI, it was a bit when the rise of chat GPT, which was like about like two years ago.

00:04:45: And then for obvious confidential reasons, as a lawyer, we cannot use an opening at AI such as chat GPT.

00:04:53: So we actually decided to create our own chat GPT.

00:04:56: internal with confidentiality set up and that was two years ago and we started to have trainings and all that kind of stuff to how to best use it.

00:05:08: Then I was sent on clients again and actually then was a bit cut off from AI because the clients in question did not really have that technology.

00:05:18: then I came back to linkletters to see that actually like everyone was using AI, using everything, and I felt a bit off.

00:05:27: I was like, oh, maybe I missed the train.

00:05:29: So that's actually how and when I decided to join our innovation team because I really wanted to join the AI train because I thought it was going to develop quite a lot.

00:05:43: So it's clear to say that now it's a big trend and I see that it was not the train to miss, for sure.

00:05:51: And how about you, Marc?

00:05:52: Yeah, so definitely a train not to be missed.

00:05:55: For me, it was actually quite interesting because it's a technology that as Lisa was saying, we started using outside of work.

00:06:02: And I think all of us realized, yeah, it has so much potential for work while at the same time, We're not really yet able to use it back in in twenty twenty two for work purposes for confidentiality and obvious reasons.

00:06:15: So when it started, we were so familiar with it that it was not a substantial change yet.

00:06:20: It changed how it worked, how we worked.

00:06:22: But it was not the mindset change for at least for the new generations like us.

00:06:26: Okay, good points.

00:06:27: Thank you.

00:06:28: What new skills do you think professionals under thirty five need to thrive in an AI driven environment?

00:06:33: Helena, do you have some ideas there?

00:06:35: Yes.

00:06:35: Well, as I just said, Mark, indeed, I think this is something for the new generation that is quite easier to approach.

00:06:42: But in general, I think a mindset of continuous learning is definitely a skill that is needed to to get used to new technologies and young professionals in general should be curious and flexible because the landscape indeed keeps changing.

00:07:00: Lisa, you had something to add?

00:07:01: Yeah, of course.

00:07:02: I definitely agree with that.

00:07:03: On top of that, I would say that one skill that people actually need to learn how to prompt.

00:07:09: Because AI is actually not a tool.

00:07:12: you can write just like you were chatting with your friends.

00:07:15: You actually need clear guidance, clear answers.

00:07:17: And so you actually need to learn how to properly prompt and also to know the limits of the tool.

00:07:23: So for example, in LinkedIn, we have three different AI tools.

00:07:28: And each of them are better for different purposes.

00:07:31: So it's very important for a new generation to not only learn how to problem, to have the correct answers, but also to kind of have a critical thinking how.

00:07:41: What tool can be best used for what use case here?

00:07:46: Okay, good point.

00:07:47: Thank you.

00:07:47: And do you feel like your organizations are adapting fast enough in terms of mindset or training or the leadership approach?

00:07:53: And have you noticed sort of any shifts in culture or the ways in which teams are interacting with each other?

00:07:58: And maybe Helena, you want to talk to that?

00:08:00: So in Asset Management, I would say the question is not will we use AI, but how do we use it responsibly?

00:08:08: There is a general and growing recognition that AI is not a trend, but a capability we must embed in processes.

00:08:15: So in our company, they have rolled out Alto Studio, which is a secure AI environment that combines internal data with the language models.

00:08:26: And it's already used regularly by thousands of employees with the ambition to extend it further to clients.

00:08:34: And AMD has also released its new strategic plan for twenty twenty eight and they they highlighted that technology is one of the top strategic priorities for them.

00:08:46: So, yeah, with the with the ambition that eighty percent of its staff become regular users.

00:08:50: So that's I think, yeah, one of the

00:08:54: one

00:08:55: I mean, definitely an organization that moves forward.

00:08:58: Okay, and how about linkliters?

00:09:00: As I said a bit before, I think in two years only, we went from zero to three AI tools.

00:09:07: So I would definitely think that we are developing fast enough.

00:09:12: And also, it's not only at the Luxembourg level.

00:09:15: Linkliters being a global firm, we are really globally aligning, having coal.

00:09:19: In that sense, we are having really a three-layer approach.

00:09:23: We are having internal trainings where We really have chats with each other because AI is really in the development phase at this stage where people are actually using AI in a way that other people are doing it in another way and it's by talking to each other that you realize how you can actually use the tools because some people... will make you think out of the box and give you other views on how to use the tool.

00:09:53: Then on a second layer, we also do external trainings when we ask the developer of the AI to come in.

00:10:01: tell us how to better use the tool because it's not actually like rocket science for us, right?

00:10:07: It's like a new skill we have to develop.

00:10:09: And on the third layer, we're actually doing client trainings to be transparent on how we're actually using AI and how this can help them and us in our... Day-to-day work.

00:10:20: Particularly important for a law firm, obviously.

00:10:22: Of course.

00:10:23: Okay, let's talk about the role of NextGen.

00:10:26: As the next generation of leaders, do you believe your familiarity with AI will give you a structural advantage over the current leaders when you move into management positions?

00:10:34: I'll start with you, Mark.

00:10:36: So on this one, I might have a bit of a controversial opinion because on a way, yes, but also on the other side, no, I would describe it as a necessary but not sufficient condition.

00:10:49: for the next generation, we will need to understand how AI works, what are the positives, what are the negatives, how to use it for enhanced performance.

00:10:59: But that doesn't make you a good manager, that doesn't make you a good leader, right?

00:11:03: So there's all these soft skills, and we'll talk about this a bit later, but people, management, clients, relationship, these will not go away, especially in an industry like ours.

00:11:13: And I don't think necessarily knowing about AI will make you a better leader for the future.

00:11:20: Okay, yeah, the human touch.

00:11:21: Go ahead.

00:11:22: Yes, well AI fluency is, as you said, a differentiator, but not a substitute for leadership skills in general.

00:11:32: Okay, thank you.

00:11:33: Do you think your generation is more aware of the ethical side of using AI?

00:11:37: And do you perceive more resistance?

00:11:38: learning to use AI from... different colleagues, let's say, maybe of a different generation.

00:11:43: And how are you managing that?

00:11:44: Lisa, I'll start with you.

00:11:46: Yeah, sure.

00:11:46: So as I mentioned, like part of our journey with AI is trainings.

00:11:52: And one major training that needs to be emphasized is the critical thinking.

00:11:58: So it's not because we ask AI to do something that we do not review.

00:12:04: So one golden rule we have at linkletters like you need to review everything and for that we have like the what we call the foresee method.

00:12:13: We have coherence, credibility, completeness and compliance because in the end we have to understand that at this stage AI is limited to up-to-date information.

00:12:25: so we need to ensure that we have the full ability to understand the overall picture.

00:12:34: And so that's something very important.

00:12:36: when you are using AI.

00:12:37: You need to really think about the headaches and how you actually keep your critical mindset in doing so.

00:12:45: And I would say that's part of our older generation.

00:12:49: Now it is like when you are using AI and you are presenting a work that's like, did you use AI?

00:12:57: maybe it's coming with an angle.

00:13:00: It has used AI, but I think it's good to have this kind of sentence at this early stage because this ensures that you keep a critical eye when using these kind of tools.

00:13:16: Absolutely.

00:13:17: Marc?

00:13:17: Yeah, I tend to agree.

00:13:19: I'm a bit conflicted on this because I think theoretically the next generation is aware of all the biases that AI can have, all the conflicts that there is if we go backwards in time, right?

00:13:32: And Lisa will know about this even more.

00:13:35: The conflicts with the IP when you're training the AI, ethically, it's a bit, can get a bit murky.

00:13:42: But at the same time, We are theoretically aware, but we use it or people are using it without paying that much attention.

00:13:50: Whereas on the other side, the older generation is potentially less aware of these ethical conflicts, but yet it's more resistant because at one, we're sitting in between the regulator and the end client, and it's a completely regulated position.

00:14:04: You want to make sure that everything that you do has been done reviewed, re-reviewed by a human, which we do, of course, but it's how we integrate the AI to enhance the quality of the work while still keeping the human touch in the review as well.

00:14:21: Okay, all good points.

00:14:22: Thank you.

00:14:23: Lisa, you want to add?

00:14:24: Yeah, if I can add on what Marc has been saying, it's actually funny because once there is like a most senior person that's actually told me, yeah, but when I started working, it wasn't a computer.

00:14:35: And then when I... was working than there was telefax.

00:14:38: So at some point I think like the older generation is actually aware that changes are there.

00:14:44: And even though they may be reluctant, they are not close to change.

00:14:48: That's what is important to note.

00:14:50: That's a fair point, yes.

00:14:51: Thank

00:14:52: you.

00:14:53: We talked a little bit around it already, but the human touch, is it irreplaceable in the job?

00:14:58: You did already touch this a little bit, but do you think it could ever be fully replaceable?

00:15:03: No, the the short answer is no for me, especially in our industry, right?

00:15:08: We all in the financial services We're all dealing with clients and more especially their money.

00:15:14: people are very concerned about what's happening with their money What's happening with their investments and it's a relationship world.

00:15:22: so keeping well Elena will talk about it a bit more in detail but keeping relationships knowing that you can take up the phone call someone and say, OK, what's going on with this?

00:15:32: Where are we with that?

00:15:33: That will never go away.

00:15:35: Of course, the AI will be part of it.

00:15:37: And I think we're getting at the point that everyone is expecting AI to be used to give them a better service.

00:15:44: But at the end of the day, they want to know if someone is there.

00:15:49: Yeah, well, I think as a client service, indeed, it's not fully replaceable.

00:15:54: What will AI do?

00:15:56: I believe it's replace some tasks and part of our jobs, but not a hundred percent of our job.

00:16:02: So it means that we need to get used to it and use it as a tool and that will make us more performant.

00:16:11: And if I can add legal perspective, clients ask us to be in compliance with the law, but they also ask us to look forward.

00:16:23: They want us not only to tell them what they're doing is legal, like from a legal perspective, but they also want us to have a look, see what's the... the EU Commission is doing, what's the Parliament in Luxembourg is doing, what is coming up because clients want to anticipate.

00:16:41: And that's something AI cannot do because they are only working with what they have as a data, but they are not able to look forward.

00:16:49: And another thing that human ability is really key is the subjective element.

00:16:56: So AI will not be able to tell you what's their market trend, for example.

00:17:01: They will be able to say, oh, this is what your competitors are doing, but they will not be able to give you that subjective element.

00:17:08: And I think that's where we are still very important.

00:17:11: OK, thank you all.

00:17:13: We just have one last question and switching

00:17:15: gears to

00:17:16: a lighter note.

00:17:17: What's one AI tool or habit you really couldn't live without anymore and one that maybe you secretly hate?

00:17:24: Who wants to start?

00:17:26: Yeah, well I can start on this one.

00:17:27: and of course I will mention AI Studio, which is our internal AI tool.

00:17:32: Because it's as we mentioned at the beginning.

00:17:35: when ChargeGPT was released we were very frustrated I think not to be able to use it at work even though we could already see the potential of using it in our day-to-day work.

00:17:49: So yeah, I think it's very good to have an Amundi internal.

00:17:52: tool and which is a safe environment and linked to our data because it's very powerful.

00:18:02: So one that I secretly hate but I cannot live with it.

00:18:05: so both in the same one is basically email writing.

00:18:11: when you give them a very short short prompt saying okay answer this email.

00:18:16: blah blah blah, and then you have a perfectly drafted email, which you could have drafted in five, ten minutes, but it saved you these five, ten minutes, which is great.

00:18:24: At the same time, you look at the results and say, yeah, I could have done that.

00:18:29: And on my side, I think the one I secretly hate is a bit what I've mentioned before.

00:18:33: It's like, now people are challenging every piece of work you are giving.

00:18:37: So it's like, did you use AI?

00:18:39: And sometimes you have not.

00:18:40: And it's like, should I?

00:18:42: Should I have used AI?

00:18:43: Because maybe you would have given a better work, or maybe my work is not enough.

00:18:47: But at the same time, I think it's good that people are challenging the use at this stage, as I mentioned earlier.

00:18:53: And the one I actually cannot live.

00:18:56: without is because, you know, as a lawyer, we've been very formatted during our studies to speak law.

00:19:02: So sometimes we have legal terms, but the thing is like our clients, they speak commercial.

00:19:07: So sometimes it's a bit like hard to reconcile like the two language.

00:19:14: language skills of the client and us, and actually AI is very good to provide working examples that reconcile the legal and the commercial aspects and help us create an even better relationship and understanding with our clients.

00:19:29: Okay, wonderful.

00:19:31: I love this topic because there's so much overlap.

00:19:33: I know a lot about the AI media and what it's doing to journalism, but do you hear about it from the financial services perspective?

00:19:39: There are a lot of overlaps, and I think this is a very interesting topic.

00:19:42: Thank you for sharing your perspectives on the topic today.

00:19:45: A big thanks to our listeners as well.

00:19:46: As a gentle reminder, the Alfie Finance Next Gen podcast series is available on both the Alfie website at alfie.lu and on paperjam.lu.

00:19:55: Alfie Next Gen Finance, connecting today's talent with tomorrow's investment fund leaders.