Finance Leaders and Academics Examine AI's Real Impact on Banking and Accounting
The Johnson Investment Institute held its first AI Symposium in Finance & Accounting on May 8, bringing together executives from JPMorgan Chase, PwC, Fifth Third Bank and BlackRock alongside university researchers to discuss how AI is moving from pilot projects to production systems.
Lori Beer, global chief information officer at JPMorgan Chase, delivered the keynote address. She outlined five skills the bank now expects from new graduates: AI fluency, judgment, domain depth, data fluency and risk discernment.
"We are expecting our new grads to have AI fluency," Beer said. "It's a basic skill for everyone to have."
What's Actually Working
A panel of three finance and accounting leaders addressed a room of students and practitioners at Nippert Stadium. Rob Moeddel from Fifth Third Bank, Ryan Kean from Total Quality Logistics and Doug Torline from PwC discussed which AI use cases produce measurable value today.
The panel tackled six core questions: what moved from interesting to operational in the past year, which use cases save time or reduce costs, how companies validate AI outputs in audit and reporting, who owns AI risk, how operating models are changing and what universities should teach.
Panelists fielded questions on AI regulations within their companies, advice for early-career staff and how to develop soft skills that AI cannot replicate.
Research Meets Practice
The symposium featured presentations from academics at the University of Chicago, University of Florida, Emory University and University of Pennsylvania alongside industry speakers from S&P Global, Clarivate and BlackRock.
Topics ranged from AI and trading strategies to how AI models extrapolate stock returns and whether AI creates systemic risk in financial markets. Speakers also covered practical applications: how Cincinnati Insurance Companies deployed AI and how S&P Global uses AI for market intelligence.
What Finance Professionals Need Now
For finance professionals, the message from JPMorgan's Beer was direct: AI fluency is no longer optional. Mehmet SaΔlam, academic director of the Johnson Investment Institute, said the symposium's goal was to connect theory with what's actually happening in banks and investment firms.
"We want to connect academics and industry, and to connect theory and practice," SaΔlam said.
Professionals looking to build these skills can explore AI for Finance resources or consider the AI Learning Path for CFOs, which covers financial strategy, forecasting and automation.
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