Amalgamated Bank CTO Adrian Glace focuses on bank’s social mission as he sets tech policy

Amalgamated Bank is not just any financial institution. The bank was founded in 1923, the vision of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America leaders, to give their union members, mostly immigrant women, access to banking services. Its history and mission don't just drive business strategy, they create a culture that's unique in the financial sector. 

Today, as the largest union-owned bank in the United States, the bank’s history remains front and center on its About page: “Founded on the tenets of affordability and accessibility in banking, Amalgamated aims to serve the greater good to this day. As America’s socially responsible bank, we have grown to support thousands of people, organizations, causes and businesses committed to improving the world we live in.”

As one of the technology leaders at such a bank, chief technology officer Adrian Glace, has to keep that mission in mind as he implements any solution, but especially when it comes to AI. When you are implementing something that has the potential to replace employees, it is critical to keep that front of mind, and it’s something that Glace takes extremely seriously.

At the same time, Amalgamated is a bank, and like any financial institution, it is subject to strict regulatory scrutiny and all that entails. And as a bank whose size is a fraction of the country’s biggest banks, it needs to find ways to run efficiently as possible, while continuing to meet the needs of its customers.

The mission is critical

It’s impossible to set tech policy at Amalgamated without looking at it through the lens of the bank's social mission. Glace says that the bank’s founders had the courage to build an institution like this, and it remains a cultural touchstone to this day. “Every organization is different, but my role is going to be more invested in the mission,” Glace told FastForward. And that comes into play as he executes tech policy inside the bank.

“I need to look at how I use technology to differentiate based on the mission and values going forward,” he said. That comes in the form of how they serve their customers. Those customers include unions and non-profit organizations with a philanthropic focus, and Glace says they have different requirements from traditional banking customers. 

That means finding technology solutions that align with the needs and desires of their unique customer base. “We always need to look at how we explore fintech or some technology in a way that's going to allow us to be mission-aligned to those customers, and that's where the differentiation line is for us,” he said.

Aligning AI with company values

When you look at that mission, and look at where AI and AI agents could go in terms of replacing human workers, it would seem to be a less than perfect fit. Yet the bank still needs to find ways to use AI to operate more efficiently and Glace recognizes that. He says it’s about doing more with the employees they have, rather than replacing them.

“The whole objective is not to replace people. It's not to eliminate jobs. The idea is to, as you grow, to reduce the rate at which you need to incur expenses,” he said. His point is that AI can help make the employees you have more productive. “We're using AI to allow us to have a multiplier effect, and I think that's the best way to stay in line with our mission because we're valuing our employees,” he said. 

One area where that has come into play is in customer service, where they have had a lot of staffing turnover. That makes it a good area to look where AI can help. “We said that we need to find a better solution than just hiring people. And so we explored the use of AI in that area, and it's helping tremendously to serve up insights for our customers.” This could address the staffing shortage faced in this area.

Exploring Agentic AI

As companies begin exploring the use of AI agents, software that can perform a series of tasks independently, Glace sees the potential, but he is inclined to move more carefully than a counterpart at a more conventional business. That involves having human oversight over agents. “We want to make sure we have a person in the middle,” he said. So they look for areas where they can leverage agentic automation, but in a careful, measured way.

He has also formed a committee around AI with key stakeholders in the bank. The goal is to keep AI projects focused in a way that is aligned with the company values. “We're not doing this in a vacuum. We're trying to do this as an organization where we have the support from members on my level, as well as trying to get a grassroots approach to understanding what AI use cases we want to explore,” he said.

Sometimes startups can help push innovation, whether it’s AI, security or any other area. He says he is always looking at companies that can help them innovate, while doing careful due diligence on the companies to make sure they align with the mission, as well as looking at security, governance and financial viability. “We are a very innovation-driven organization, but we also want to be careful because we know we don't have the funds to make a mistake,” he said. 

Whether it’s startups or any other tech choice, Glace is always looking for ways to improve how they do business, while looking for ways to build in efficiencies – but always within the context of the bank’s unique history and calling. In other words, they aren’t buying tech for tech’s sake. It has to always be in line with the mission.

Photo courtesy of Amalgamated Bank