Can Agents Work?

Jobs / Finance and accounting / 13-2052.00

Personal Financial Advisors

Advise clients on financial plans using knowledge of tax and investment strategies, securities, insurance, pension plans, and real estate. Duties include assessing clients' assets, liabilities, cash flow, insurance coverage, tax status, and financial objectives. May also buy and sell financial assets for clients.

US jobs
266,800
Median wage
$105,070 a year
Job family
Finance and accounting

Can agents do the work of personal financial advisors?

We read the evidence at the level of the job family, Finance and accounting:

  • Task levelPartialOn Vals AI's Finance Agent benchmark, where agents research SEC filings to answer an analyst's questions, the best model scores 64.4%. Adjacent spreadsheet tasks score higher (83.1% on SpreadsheetBench). No task-level benchmark in our collection tests bookkeeping or audit work inside accounting systems.
  • Project levelPartialOn APEX-Agents, which includes investment-banking tasks written by professionals, the best agent passes 73.5% of tasks on the first try (all domains). OpenAI reports that GPT-5.5's GDPval deliverables, from occupations that include accountants and financial managers, won or tied against professionals' work in 84.9% of comparisons.

Benchmarks for the job family

These cover work in finance and accounting, not always this occupation's tasks.

Typical tasks

From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.

  • Interview clients to determine their current income, expenses, insurance coverage, tax status, financial objectives, risk tolerance, or other information needed to develop a financial plan.
  • Analyze financial information obtained from clients to determine strategies for meeting clients' financial objectives.
  • Answer clients' questions about the purposes and details of financial plans and strategies.
  • Review clients' accounts and plans regularly to determine whether life changes, economic changes, environmental concerns, or financial performance indicate a need for plan reassessment.
  • Manage client portfolios, keeping client plans up-to-date.
  • Recommend to clients strategies in cash management, insurance coverage, investment planning, or other areas to help them achieve their financial goals.
  • Recommend financial products, such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or insurance.
  • Implement financial planning recommendations, or refer clients to someone who can assist them with plan implementation.
  • Contact clients periodically to determine any changes in their financial status.
  • Prepare or interpret for clients information, such as investment performance reports, financial document summaries, or income projections.
  • Explain to clients the personal financial advisor's responsibilities and the types of services to be provided.
  • Investigate available investment opportunities to determine compatibility with client financial plans.
Other job titles for this occupation (55)

Certified Financial Planner (CFP) · Financial Advisor · Financial Consultant · Financial Counselor · Financial Life Planner · Financial Planner · Investment Advisor · Portfolio Manager · Wealth Advisor · Wealth Manager · Account Manager · Asset Analyst · Asset Manager · Budget Counselor · Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) · Client Advisor · Credit Counselor · Debt Counselor · Estate Planner · Estate Planning Counselor · Estate Trustee · Finance Consultant · Financial Advisor Associate · Financial Agent · Financial Coordinator · Financial Investment Adviser · Financial Investment Advisor · Financial Relationship Consultant · Financial Retirement Plan Specialist · Financial Solutions Advisor · Fiscal Specialist · Individual Pension Adviser · Individual Pension Consultant · Insurance Advisor · Insurance Consultant · Investment Consultant · Investment Counselor · Investment Representative (Investment Rep) · Money Manager · Patient Financial Counselor · Pension Advisor · Pension Consultant · Personal Banker · Personal Financial Advisor · Personal Financial Counselor · Personal Financial Planner · Personal Investment Advisor · Private Client Advisor · Private Wealth Management Associate (PWM Associate) · Securities Consultant · Securities Counselor · Socially Responsible Investment Advisor (SRI Advisor) · Strategist · Wealth Management Advisor · Wealth Management Associate