John O’Connell Quoted in Advisor Perspectives: AI Washing and the Advisor Shortage: Why Getting Technology Decisions Right Has Never Mattered More
John O’Connell, CEO of The Oasis Group, wrote this piece for Advisor Perspectives on why AI washing is now more than a marketing nuisance. It’s become a real threat to the industry’s ability to weather the coming advisor shortage. McKinsey’s January 2026 analysis projected that nearly 40% of current financial advisors will retire within the next decade, creating a shortfall of roughly 100,000 advisors, and firms are counting on AI tools to close that gap. But the real cost of AI washing isn’t the wasted subscription, a firm that loses 12 to 18 months on an under-performing AI tool ends up that much closer to the demographic cliff without the productivity gains it needed, often wrongly concluding AI itself doesn’t work.
