Putting people first: Kaufman Rossin’s AI adoption approach
Editor’s note: This piece is part of a series on Kaufman Rossin’s approach to AI. Read Chief Innovation Officer Albert Primo’s perspective on what AI actually makes possible for our clients and for our firm Why AI Alone Isn’t a Competitive Edge.
The noise around AI in professional services right now is loud, and a lot of it is misdirected. Firms are racing to announce investments, issue mandates, and cut headcount, all in the name of transformation. We’ve watched it play out, and we’ve made a deliberate choice to do something different.
Not slower. Different.
Kaufman Rossin has been building and executing our AI strategy for several years. We didn’t wait for a headline to prompt us. We started with a question that too many firms skipped: how do we deploy AI in a way that makes our people better at what they do and makes the experience of working with us better for our clients, without compromising what’s made us who we are? That question changed how we built everything.
Why rushed AI adoption fails
Research from global change management firm Prosci, drawn from over 1,100 professionals across industries, found that 63% of AI implementation challenges trace back to human factors, not the technology itself. At its core, digital transformation is about people and always has been.
The rush to integrate new AI capabilities often stems from external pressure. Investors want immediate returns. This sets off a frantic quest for short-term cost reductions where AI becomes a tactical mandate rather than a strategic tool.
AI can automate many tasks, but the complex business decisions we help our clients make require sharp human insight. It’s the kind of insight that grasps the intricate operational challenges of a growing company, the unique needs of a family enterprise, or the regulatory demands that shape an industry. Our professionals bring decades of experience to that work, and AI makes them better at it.
Our people are the differentiator
Firms that issue mandates (e.g., adopt AI immediately or you have no future here) get compliance, not capability. A professional operating from fear doesn’t explore, question, or push back on what the technology gets wrong. And when that happens, the client feels it. At Kaufman Rossin, we chose a different path: curiosity over coercion, investment over ultimatum. Our professionals develop genuine AI fluency and bring that fluency to every client engagement.
Our people aren’t a problem to be managed around. They are the differentiator in an increasingly digital world. Every decision we make about technology either aligns with our people-first values or doesn’t make the cut.
When our team feels valued and supported, they deliver the best possible outcomes for our clients.
Every decision we make about technology either aligns with our people-first values or doesn’t make the cut.
How independent ownership shapes our AI strategy
Many firms making the most noise about AI right now are PE-backed. They answer to investors. Their AI timelines are set by return targets, not necessarily by what’s right for their workforce or their clients.
Kaufman Rossin is partner-owned. We answer to our clients and to our people. That independence shapes every technology decision we make. No external board. No exit timeline. No investor mandate telling us how fast to move or what to cut. We evaluate each tool on one standard: does it make our people better at serving our clients?
Your data. Your trust. Non-negotiable.
AI adoption in professional services raises a question every client should be asking their firm: what happens to my data? We take that question seriously.
We do not enter into agreements with any AI provider where our client data is used to train models — period. The security and confidentiality standards that govern our client relationships govern our AI programs too.
Trust is the foundation everything else is built on, and in the age of AI, that foundation is more important than ever.
What this means for you
AI is moving faster than any organization’s ability to fully evaluate it. The expertise we’ve honed by helping businesses through these changes, as well as what we’ve learned building and deploying AI inside our own firm transfers to every client relationship we have. Our professionals have helped organizations in several industries leverage AI and other technology to gain a competitive edge through digital transformation.
We are not consultants who theorize about AI transformation. We are practitioners and advisors living it, and we’re governed by the same independence, values, and accountability that have defined this firm for more than six decades.
The role of a trusted advisor has always been to see around corners on behalf of the people you serve. For decades, that meant tax law, regulatory shifts, and market cycles. Today it means knowing which AI tools are ready, which aren’t, and what the difference costs you. It means understanding what creates risk and what creates real value — and having the independence to tell you the truth about it. It’s what being a trusted advisor has always meant: getting to the corner before you need us there. And this is one of those corners.
About our approach
What is Kaufman Rossin’s approach to AI adoption?
We plan strategically, build deliberately, and deploy responsibly. That means evaluating tools against our own standards before they touch any workflow, confirming our professionals are properly trained (not just licensed) and maintaining the same data security and confidentiality obligations our clients have always expected from us. We do not work with any provider where client or firm data is used to train AI models.
How does being independently owned affect how you adopt AI?
As an independent firm, we aren’t optimizing for an investor’s timeline. Our decisions about technology are made by firm partners who have built their careers serving clients, not by a board focused on a liquidity event. That gives us the freedom to move at the pace that’s right for our people and our clients, and to hold a higher standard for how AI is implemented within our firm.
What does a people-first approach to AI actually look like?
Kaufman Rossin’s people-first approach to AI adoption means our professionals understand the tools they use, are supported in developing AI fluency, and are never pressured to adopt something before they’re ready. It also means clients experience the benefit of AI — faster turnaround, sharper analysis, more proactive guidance — without bearing the risk of it. Their data stays protected. Their relationship stays with a professional who is knowledgeable and accountable.
How do you help clients navigate AI adoption in their own organizations?
Our dedicated professionals have experience helping businesses in a variety of industries leverage technology to improve business performance, create new products or services, and gain a competitive edge through digital transformation.
Further, what we’ve learned building and deploying AI inside Kaufman Rossin transfers to every client relationship we have. We help our clients develop thoughtful AI strategies for their own organizations, grounded in what we’ve tested, refined, and validated ourselves. Strategic innovation empowers us to focus on providing insights that matter most, amplifying expertise to drive long-term growth and value for our clients. We’re practitioners and advisors first, and that’s exactly what the moment calls for.
Marc Feigelson, CPA, is the Chief Executive Officer at Kaufman Rossin, one of the Top 50 CPA and advisory firms in the U.S.
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