Mint Blue Consulting celebrates its 8^th anniversary this month and I’ve been very fortunate to be involved with great innovative projects, propositions and events, working with many fantastic people across the industry again in 2025.

It’s been quite the whirlwind at times as innovation and change have proved to be the perfect storm in the sector throughout this year.  It’s been the busiest December ever with increased focus on tech development and business efficiencies ahead of looming economic changes next year and the increasingly shifting Adviser market.

With change comes opportunity and we’re starting to see the emergence of new propositions to meet the requirements of all generations as communication methods and needs evolve. From a tech perspective AI is still very much the top buzz word going in 2026 although there ongoing predictions of market corrections for AI investment in the coming months and one that continues be under careful watch. 

Regardless of that outcome though, it’s clear AI is already a key part of our daily lives and it’s here to stay.  My own business has been transformed through automated meeting notes and document creation, saving so much time and freeing up time to more effectively support my clients.  CoPilot has become a good friend, embedded in Teams, creating high-quality summaries and requirements documents from meeting transcripts in less than a minute, picking up details that would otherwise be missed through hand-transcribing.  For someone who has spent most of their working life creating meeting notes and actions, this has is a game-changer in the last year or so!

Working with multiple clients is also so much easier, such as smoothly switching between different instances of Microsoft Teams for online meetings, chats and documents.  It’s a reminder of how fast this tech has evolved since 2020 when tech was racing to adapt to everyone working remotely, although people are still regularly told ‘you’re on mute!’ leading to resigned smiles rather than a panic to find the correct button.

One of the great gifts of working with different clients is the opportunity to use and view their technology.  This year I’ve used Monday.com (I usually use Smartsheet) for Plans and RAID logs, Hubwise, Confluence, JIRA, meeting notes tools, CRMs and in-house Power Apps.   There is always something new to learn! This has also extended to design input for some great new tech coming to market next year which has been very exciting.

People are of course the key to all this innovation and change and it’s been good to get out and about on a regular basis.  Networking and industry events are great to expand knowledge and exchange ideas with others and I always encourage people to get involved where time allows.  For example, facilitating for Owen James recently highlighted the growing importance of Cyber Security protection which is fast becoming a Governance requirement for all firms.  Hand in hand are the Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) checks for new technology adoption as firms strive to protect their data sources and handling in response to high-profile cyber attacks in past months.  No-one can afford to be complacent as many companies have found to their cost.

2026 will be the Year of the Horse in the Chinese Zodiac which is said to bring dynamic, passionate, and action-oriented energy associated with freedom, ambition, progress and innovation.  So if we think this year has been fast-paced, it’s not letting up any time soon and with it, opportunity for everyone.

With many thanks to all my clients, industry colleagues for a fantastic year! Wishing you all the very best for the festive season and 2026.