
AI has the potential to radically transform the finance function. From automating routine tasks to reducing the risk of data-entry errors, AI can help to reduce time spent on manual processes and allow CFOs and other finance professionals to focus on delivering strategic value for the business.
“It just removes the clutter and cuts down the admin more than anything. It makes things much quicker,” says Nicola Johnson, CFO at Pulse Clean Energy. “We want to be as efficient as possible with the bits that aren’t value adding, and the part that is value-adding is the strategic bit. As much as we can remove all of that clutter, that frees up time for strategic work.”
Advanced AI tools can also help to elevate decision-making by arming CFOs with more timely data and insights, enabling the finance function to be less reactive and instead allowing CFOs to become more pre-emptive in navigating the challenges they face.
“The ability to deliver augmented real-time predictive insights is going to lead to better strategic decision-making and earlier course correction, because you can see the whole picture,” says Raj Dadra, CFO at VCCP, an advertising agency. “Before, you would produce the data two weeks after the end of the month, and you haven’t got time to do anything about it. This allows you to be more proactive.”
While AI capabilities are still being developed, some finance departments are already embedding AI technology into their day-to-day processes. Dadra, for example, says his finance function has adopted AI in four key ways: automation, error detection, analysis and intelligent dashboards.
“We are using automation for credit management, invoice management, cash application and travel and expenses optimisation,” he says. “For error detection, we are using it to identify anomalies, for example, processing expenses and invoices, checking transactions, balance monitoring and contract analysis.”
AI-powered analytics can also support predictive forecasting. This helps to remove management bias when producing manual forecasts, which can sometimes be overly aggressive or conservative depending on the person doing the forecasting.
“AI leads to the creation of better forecasts, which in turn can lead to improved decision-making,” Dadra says.
Using intelligent dashboards also enables workers across the business to access real-time data whenever they need it, rather than having to rely on static reports produced by the finance team that will quickly go out of date. CFOs are also embracing AI in revenue management and quote-to-cash tools.
“AI is able to do a lot of repetitive human tasks, very quickly, and also give us the level of insight that is hard to get without AI,” says Carol Lee, CFO at LogicMonitor.
Many CFOs also see AI adoption as a way to support the long-term commercial success of the business and gain an edge over their competitors.
“The more we embrace the technology, the more we can empower employee productivity and help the organisation grow and stay competitive in the market,” says Lee.
Others believe there is no option but to adopt it, particularly as younger finance professionals will increasingly expect their organisations to provide AI tools.
“The 20-year-olds in the office look at things very differently than the more traditional CFOs. It will be appealing from a recruitment point of view, but also for overall staff motivation, because staff can spend more time on the value-add tasks, not on the churn,” says Johnson. “It’s not only beneficial to me as the CFO, but it’s beneficial to the team and the wider business.”
Ultimately, adopting AI tools can help CFOs and other members of the finance function to work more effectively.
“I don’t want my team crunching reports; I want them analysing the data, I want them working on course-correction plans,” says Dadra. “If they’re just sitting there booking reports all the time, it’s really not a value-adding activity.”
By being open to the possibilities of AI, CFOs can drive efficiency and growth while rewarding early-adopters with a potential competitive advantage over their peers.

AI has the potential to radically transform the finance function. From automating routine tasks to reducing the risk of data-entry errors, AI can help to reduce time spent on manual processes and allow CFOs and other finance professionals to focus on delivering strategic value for the business.
“It just removes the clutter and cuts down the admin more than anything. It makes things much quicker,” says Nicola Johnson, CFO at Pulse Clean Energy. “We want to be as efficient as possible with the bits that aren’t value adding, and the part that is value-adding is the strategic bit. As much as we can remove all of that clutter, that frees up time for strategic work.”
Advanced AI tools can also help to elevate decision-making by arming CFOs with more timely data and insights, enabling the finance function to be less reactive and instead allowing CFOs to become more pre-emptive in navigating the challenges they face.