Technology and innovation outlook: Impacts on professional servicesk in global real estate
Global Technology & Advisory Services Leader Jim Burke sits down with Mark Little, an entrepreneur with experience in big tech, for a session on how innovation and AI impacts professional services.
Transforming legacy profession: AI as a partner, not a replacement
The role of AI has been steadily growing, even in traditionally conservative sectors such as the professional services industry, where resistance to change is often a challenge.
While it is widely accepted that embracing AI is becoming a norm, the challenge to balance automation with human judgment remains.
According to Little, AI is reshaping, not replacing, the roles of professionals like accountants and lawyers. "I have three generations of accountants in my family, and what they're doing now because they're liberated from some of the things that really were formulaic, they've now got to the point where they can start being much more creative about the strategic advice they offer and forward-looking as well rather than just looking backwards," he explained.
Accountants will shift from just reporting past transactions to becoming forward-looking advisors who help businesses predict and plan for the future by interpreting data insights.
Little offers analogies with the music industry, where the role of technology is not to replace creativity but to enhance it. The human element is still essential for creating original work rather than just copying existing styles.
The same applies in business: technology is necessary, but its value comes from solving real customer problems, not just adopting new tools for their own sake. Understanding what customers truly need and delivering tailored solutions to solve their problems is key to building strong, trusting relationships with the help of technology.
New talent, new mindsets
The profession is changing as legacy workers retire and a new generation enters the workforce. Having grown up with AI, this new generation is not impressed by it; they see it as table stakes. What matters more to them is a company's purpose: its mission or north star.
"Reid Hoffman from LinkedIn always talks about this idea that a business is not a family; it's like a bunch of allies in battle. And I find, in my working with younger people, they sign on to go in a battle with a north star," Little explains.
Younger workers also expect a decentralised workplace where they can actively contribute, not just follow orders. "It used to be we had vertical trust. We believed in our boss. We listened to what was said in the New York Times. They were journalists; they were experts. They have this horizontal trust. They look to each other to find ways to trust people, influencers. They trust their peers, they trust their influencers," Little says.
The profession is coming full circle in many ways, prioritising strong client relationships and service. "In our profession, the seniors, the partners that came before me, they taught me it was all about customer service. So, we were that way many years ago. I think, as a profession, we've gotten away from it over the years", Little says and continues, "And to your point, though, this generation is back to that, right? It's back to being concerned about how that customer or client feels about me, and their mission is to make sure they're really happy," he concludes.
While younger workers are adaptable and open to change, many lack resilience—the ability to handle setbacks and stress over time. There is also a concern about work-life balance and burnout, especially within startups or high-pressure environments.
Building an innovative culture: When structure meets creativity
Companies can build an innovation culture by democratising ideation and balancing that openness with structured vetting and planning processes.
"It's this absolute contradiction—democratic idea-making paired with a rigorous process that looks an awful lot like the old structures of well-established companies", Little continues, pointing to Spotify's "bet" system, where any employee can submit an idea that might be selected for future development.
In this process, strong leaders guide innovation with a vision of the future and an understanding of the past. “I’ve had really good experiences with people like the CTO of Spotify. Their strength is internal—they’re true thought leaders. You want to be in a room listening to them talk about the future,” Little says.
Lessons learned
AI is a tool, not a strategy. Just as computing became standard, so will AI. The key for businesses is identifying what they already do well and using AI to scale or enhance it.
"AI cannot give you a competitive advantage you don't already have. But if you have identified something where you're beating your competition, I think that's where I would be paying a lot of attention: how can we do something we already do really well?" concludes Little.
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