Financial Services, Trends & Insights, Enablement
How a modern and unified approach to enablement is a catalyst for growth in financial services
By Tony Smith — On September 16, 2025
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Financial Services, Trends & Insights, Enablement
By Tony Smith — On September 16, 2025
Across the financial services industry, success hinges on trusted client relationships. But firms are struggling to ensure their client-facing teams are equipped to deliver those high-impact interactions.
The survey of 315 global revenue enablement decision makers from the Harvard Business Review audience found significant gaps between what respondents say is important and how effective their organizations actually are:
In an industry where client trust and strong relationships are essential, this disconnect poses a serious risk — not just to performance, but to reputation.
Legacy enablement models generally fall short in financial services. Static playbooks and outdated onboarding approaches can't keep pace with evolving client expectations, increasingly complex product offerings, and the need for timely, compliant expertise at every interaction.
What's needed is a modern approach to sales training and coaching — one that enables client-facing teams to:
Yet, most firms are not equipped to deliver, challenging growth and revenue predictability. The report shows that 70% of respondents believe current economic conditions make it hard to forecast their organization's revenue accurately. Additionally, 62% agree that, at their organization, current economic conditions have had a negative impact on achieving their revenue goals.
The message is clear: to stay competitive, firms must empower their teams with more than product knowledge. They need strategic, real-time support.
AI is rapidly transforming how the financial services industry operates, presenting many opportunities for firms to drive more impact and increase productivity. AI-powered enablement unlocks:
With the right technology in place, firms can create a seamless experience for teams to engage with clients in an efficient and personalized way. As Cheryl Delany, Senior Vice President of Digital Marketing Client Experience and Analytics at Franklin Templeton, states in the report, "We want to make it really easy for the individual to view the information and then do something with it. AI can do something as simple as generating a list of clients you should follow up with every day, then you can follow through by sending a preformatted email and get recommended materials to attach to those communications."
Seismic's research shows that 92% of organizations are investing in enablement tech because of AI — and 88% believe AI can boost revenue growth by 27% over the next five years.
In Financial Services, AI isn't replacing the human touch. It's enhancing it.
To deliver measurable growth, firms must align their enablement programs to specific business goals like client acquisition, wallet share expansion, and AUM growth. The best firms do this by:
In an industry where trust is currency, enablement isn't a luxury — it's a strategic imperative. The organizations that will win in this environment are those that invest in their people, prioritize readiness, and harness the power of AI to deliver measurable outcomes.
With the right tools and approach, leaders can ensure that every client-facing team member is ready to deliver — not just once, but every time.
Download the Harvard Business Review Analytic Services report to explore the financial services findings in full — and learn how leading firms across industries are reimagining enablement to achieve top business outcomes.
