Smart Planning with AI: Real-World Strategies with Chris Benson
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Release Date: 11/14/2025
Why Bob Keebler Makes the Section 645 Election Almost Every Time
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
The months immediately following a client's death create one of the most important income tax planning windows in estate administration. While many practitioners focus on basis step-ups and beneficiary distributions, one election can fundamentally change how post-death income is managed: the Section 645 election. In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with nationally recognized tax expert Bob Keebler to explore how electing to treat a revocable trust and estate as a single taxable entity can create valuable planning opportunities through fiscal year flexibility, income deferral, charitable...
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The IUL Experiment with Andy Panko
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Indexed Universal Life (IUL) insurance is often marketed as a “tax-free retirement income” solution, but how do these policies really work over time? To cut through the noise, financial planner Andy Panko, CFP®, RICP®, EA, decided to run his own real-time experiment. He bought an IUL, fully documented the structure, costs, and performance, and is openly sharing the results year after year. In this episode, Andy joins us to explain what IULs are, why he launched The IUL Experiment, and what every financial planner should know before considering them in retirement planning conversations....
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Your Clients Can Afford to Retire. Will They Enjoy It?
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Most retirement plans answer one question: Can I afford to retire? But far fewer answer the question that often matters just as much: What am I retiring to? In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with renowned researcher and Harvard Business School professor emerita Teresa Amabile to explore the hidden psychological transition that accompanies retirement. Drawing from more than a decade of research and interviews with retirees, she explains why many successful professionals fear retirement, why those fears are often misplaced, and how financial planners can help clients prepare for life...
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Bob Keebler on Avoiding Costly Estate Planning Mistakes
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Some of the biggest planning opportunities in trust and estate taxation are also the easiest to miss. In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with nationally recognized estate planning authority Bob Keebler to explore three highly technical areas that can dramatically impact client outcomes: portability elections, fiduciary income taxation during periods of market volatility, and the often-misunderstood Kenan doctrine. Bob explains where advisors commonly overlook opportunities, how missed elections may still be salvaged, and why funding decisions inside trusts and estates can create...
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Why the Future of Financial Planning Runs Through the CPA
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
What does the future of the CPA profession look like as advisory, financial planning, and AI reshape client expectations? In this episode of the AICPA Personal Financial Planning Podcast, Cary Sinnett sits down with Sue Coffey, CEO of Public Accounting at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, to discuss the profession’s transformation from compliance-focused work to holistic trusted advisory. Sue shares why trust has become one of the profession’s greatest competitive advantages, how technology and complexity are accelerating change, and why CPA financial planners are...
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Andrea Millar, From Financial Expert to Trusted Guide
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
What if the biggest barrier to client action is not the quality of the financial plan, but the lack of purpose behind it? In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with Andrea Millar to explore how life planning helps financial planners move beyond technical recommendations and uncover what truly matters most to clients. Andrea shares how deeper conversations around purpose, relationships, fulfillment, and meaning can lead to stronger engagement, clearer decision-making, and more intentional financial behavior. Together, Cary and Andrea discuss how CPA financial planners can integrate life...
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Small Planning Conversations That Lead to Bigger Engagements
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Sometimes the biggest client wins start with a simple question. In this episode, Cary Sinnett and Jackie Cummings Koski share five fast, high-impact planning ideas that can instantly deepen client conversations and uncover bigger opportunities. From forgotten 401(k)s and Roth-funded 529 strategies to overlooked HSA and charitable planning moves, these are the kinds of insights that make clients stop and say, “Wait… I didn’t know that.” If you want practical ideas you can use immediately to create value, strengthen relationships, and spark more meaningful planning engagements,...
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The Ripple Effect: How Financial Literacy Shapes Generations
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Cary Sinnett sits down with Jackie Koski to challenge a core assumption in financial planning: strategy isn’t the starting point—literacy is. They explore how foundational knowledge shapes better decisions, why behavior often overrides logic, and how financial professionals can expand their impact beyond client engagements. Questions Answered How does financial literacy change a client’s path to financial independence? Why do money beliefs derail sound financial decisions? How can advisors scale their impact beyond their client base? Key Themes Literacy as the...
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Transform Tax Season into Year-Round Client Value with Dr. Brianne Smith
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with Dr. Brianne Smith to explore how CPAs can turn tax work into fully integrated personal financial planning. Drawing on decades of experience leading both a CPA firm and an advisory practice, Brianne breaks down what really changes when you move beyond compliance and step into ongoing client relationships. They unpack the real barriers holding professionals back, how the PFS credential accelerates the shift, and why the future belongs to advisors who can connect tax and planning into one seamless client experience. Key answers you’ll get: How can...
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The Inflection Point for CPA Financial Planners: Why Now Matters
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
This is a pivotal moment for CPA financial planners. In this episode, Leonard Wright joins Cary to break down why the convergence of tax, technology, and client expectations is accelerating the shift toward integrated financial planning. They explore how AI is reshaping compliance, why tax is the natural gateway to deeper planning conversations, and what the PFP movement means for firms of all sizes. Leonard also shares the work happening behind the scenes at the AICPA, from global fiduciary standards to the evolution of financial planning frameworks and offers a clear call to action for CPAs...
info_outlineArtificial intelligence is transforming how CPA financial planners approach research, analysis, and communication. In this episode, Chris Benson shares how he moved from curiosity to confident integration of AI in his daily practice.
He explains how AI helps him generate first drafts of client communication, brainstorm planning strategies, and reduce research time from hours to minutes. Chris also provides a balanced perspective on data privacy, compliance risks, and how planners should evaluate new tools without getting distracted by every new release.
Whether you are just beginning to explore AI or already incorporating it into your workflows, Chris’s insights will help you find practical, responsible ways to harness the power of AI in your practice.
Topics Covered
- How to begin experimenting with AI as a CPA financial planner
- The role of AI as a research assistant, communication partner, and brainstorming tool
- Time-saving examples from client questions, financial modeling, and planning scenarios
- Risks related to privacy, cybersecurity, and client impersonation
- Cautious evaluation of emerging AI tools and what to look for in early demos
- A realistic forecast for how AI may be embedded in future tax and planning software
AICPA Resources:
Upcoming webcast: AI & Technology updates for PFP
Resources: AI Tax Resource Center
Empowering tax professionals with AI
Getting started with generative AI/ChatGPT
This episode is brought to you by the AICPA’s Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program.
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