Two things to settle before an AI touches client files

sweetmelon team · Finance

The management report you'd like an AI to draft is built out of a client's books. Before any of that goes near a chat window, two questions need answers, and neither of them is about prompts. Find out where the material ends up. Does what you type get used to train the model, who at the vendor can read it, and how long is it kept? The account your firm pays for and the free one you signed up for at home often answer those differently, so check the terms that apply to the one you'll actually use. If you can't get a straight answer on all three, client files stay out of it. Then tell your clients, in writing. Some firms add a line to the engagement letter; others send a short note saying which steps involve an AI and what never gets uploaded. Either way it exists on paper before the first file goes in, rather than in a conversation after someone asks you about it. With that settled, the ordinary rules carry the rest: check the arithmetic, trace every conclusion back to a source document, and have a person approve anything that reaches a client.