Episode summary
Finding Real Uses For AI To Create Custom Value- Christopher Haigh | Financial Advisor Success Ep477
Financial Advisor Success (Kitces)
· · Hosts: Michael Kitces, Adam Van Deusen · Guests: Christopher Haigh
Summary
Christopher Haigh describes using AI less as a generic efficiency tool and more as a way to reshape how his firm operates and presents itself. At Iconoclastic Capital, a Rochester-based RIA with about $60 million in AUM and 120 client households, the biggest immediate wins have been in meeting notes, case preparation, and data extraction. He moved from Fireflies to Jump and then to Hazel, mainly to reduce handoffs, improve CRM syncing, and pull custodial data directly into prep workflows. He also uses AI to move information between Right Capital and Income Lab, and to scan statements and portfolios in tools like Y Charts and YourStake.
The more distinctive use case is client-facing deliverables. Haigh says AI lets him create interactive proposal pages and presentations that better express his brand than static PDFs, while also handling onboarding links, invoices, and other next steps inside a live digital experience. He frames this not just as time savings but as a way to make the firm’s value more tangible, more memorable, and easier to buy.
Haigh also explains how the firm’s pricing has evolved into a combination of planning fees and asset-based fees. Most newer clients either buy project-based planning or a guided wealth management package, with planning fees from $4,500 to $12,000 and ongoing planning plus AUM pricing layered on top. He says the real goal is to build a differentiated, independent enterprise that keeps improving the client experience without sacrificing consistency or control.
Key takeaways
- Haigh says the biggest AI gains so far are in meeting notes, case prep, and data movement, not just saving typing time.
- He moved from Fireflies to Jump to Hazel because each step reduced manual handoffs and improved integrations with Wealthbox and Altruist.
- Haigh uses Right Capital, Income Lab, Y Charts, and YourStake to avoid double data entry and speed up plan, portfolio, and statement analysis.
- He is using AI to build interactive, branded proposal pages that replace static PDFs and help prospects understand the firm’s value proposition.
- Iconoclastic Capital charges both planning fees and AUM fees, with project-based plans ranging from $4,500 to $12,000 and guided wealth management starting at $4,500 annually.
Notable quotes
“we're currently using Hazel. We've tried Fireflies and Jump. um they were okay but we Altruist is our primary custodian and that integrates um with Hazel really well”
“the outputs were just much better because”
“we can ask our AI noteaker for those details around like the assets under management uh rate of returns and things like that”
“I want to feed this into VO and have it produce a visually appealing interactive proposal”
How the episode opens
Welcome to the Financial Advisor Success Podcast, where you go behind the scenes with financial planner, speaker, and consultant Michael Kitsus to hear stories of how leading financial adviserss navigated the inevitable challenges that arise on the path to success and get insight from leading industry consultants about how to break through to the next level in your advisory business. And now, here's your host, Michael Kitsus.
Welcome everyone. Welcome to the 477th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast. My guest on today's podcast is Christopher HG.
Christopher is the CEO of Iconoclastic Capital, an RAIA based in Rochester, New York, that oversees approximately $60 million in assets under management for 120 client households. What's unique about Christopher though is how he is using artificial intelligence tools not only to gain greater efficiency, for example, by taking notes during client meetings and scanning data from client documents, but also to create highquality deliverables that convert prospects and wow clients. In this episode, we talk in depth about how Christopher was an early adopter of AI powered note takingaking software, starting with a generalist tool before transitioning to one designed for financial adviserss and now using one integrated with his custodial platform.
how Christopher leverages the AI capabilities of his financial planning, investment analysis, and tax planning software to save time on data entry that allows him to provide better planning analyses for clients. And how Christopher uses more generalist AI tools to generate and refine dynamic presentations that give prospects and clients a richer understanding of his firm and its value proposition than more static formats. We also talk about how Christopher started his RAA after leaving a successful practice in the insurance channel in order to provide fee only comprehensive planning to his clients and to have the freedom to create his own unique brand.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- ai in financial planning
- client experience storytelling
- ai workflow automation
- investment analysis tools
- tax software automation
Companies and tickers mentioned
- Iconoclastic Capital
Watch the episode
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
More from Financial Advisor Success (Kitces)
-
Helping Clients Who Want A Retirement They Can't Afford - Kitces & Carl Ep 203 -
The Top Factors To Consider When A Client Plans To Move Abroad, With Ashley Murphy -
Ep 515: Crafting Deeper Client Relationships To Drive Loyalty, Referrals, And Gain Career Flexibi... -
Key Rules And Pitfalls To Execute Qualified Disclaimers Successfully, With Dave Haughton -
Ep 514: Optimizing A $160M AUM Solo Practice For Client Impact Over Scale with Nick Ibello -
Value-Based Pricing And Charging As Much As The Market Will Bear - Kitces & Carl Ep 202
Financial Advisor Success (Kitces), this episode and its artwork belong to Michael Kitces. Octagon is not affiliated with the show; this page is an independent summary.
