A examine by StrategicCFO360 and Vic.ai finds finance leaders wish to improve effectivity and acquire useful insights by accelerating automation.

Automation nation is turning into extra of a actuality with 81% of chief monetary officers (CFOs) recognizing the potential of automation to optimize processes and assets and seize knowledge insights throughout the finance perform, based on a brand new report that surveyed 145 CFOs and different finance leaders throughout all industries in Might 2022.

Additional, practically 60% of CFOs are planning to extend their investments in automation over the subsequent yr in mild of the tight labor market and rising operational prices, based on StrategicCFO360 and accounting platform supplier Vic.ai.

There seems to be a way of urgency to take motion, the report famous. Almost half (43%) of these polled anticipate to realize their objectives throughout the subsequent two years, with a further 10% reporting that that they had already achieved these goals.

The examine additionally discovered {that a} plurality of polled CFOs acknowledge the worth of automating the finance perform, with 61% reporting it has vital worth.

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Prime goals of finance automation

9 CFOs out of 10—and 92% of chief data officers (CIOs)—agreed that their high goal in terms of automating the finance perform is to extend effectivity and productiveness. For the CFO, the opposite high goals are to generate extra actionable insights, scale back errors, enhance forecasting/monetary predictability (47%), and scale back labor prices (36%).

For the CIO, the priorities are barely altered: scale back errors, scale back labor prices, generate extra actionable insights, and scale back infrastructure prices/upkeep.

“The elevated capability AI brings makes corporations extra agile than ever earlier than,” the report mentioned. “Think about a enterprise in an aggressive progress state, the place invoices double yr over yr.

“Historically, that firm must provoke a cumbersome hiring course of for brand new accounts payable clerks, which takes time and could be very pricey. In distinction, AI options can take in that extra workload—no extra personnel required.”

Whereas growing effectivity and productiveness is by far the main goal for CFOs to make use of automation, over half of CFOs are additionally in search of to generate extra insights.

When knowledge assortment particularly, a powerful majority of CFOs (81%) mentioned they’re seeking to optimize processes and assets with operational processing insights, based on the report.

“Finance leaders are able to capitalize on the alternatives provided by AI and automation,” mentioned Vic.ai CEO Alexander Hagerup. “Enterprise finance is at an inflection level, pushed partly by the maturity and reliability of automation applied sciences.

“With rising operational prices and specialised expertise turning into more and more tough to rent, the advantages of automation are clear, and the stress to undertake clever, insightful know-how is mounting. These finance leaders who are actually on a path to full automation will be capable to quickly break free from the pack and place themselves to win.”

What CFOs are automating

1 / 4 of CFOs report having already absolutely automated their payroll and bill administration processes, and roughly 45% mentioned it’s underway in each. Different finance capabilities being automated embody buy order administration, expense administration, provider funds, payroll accounts receivable, and knowledge evaluation.

The most typical problem confronted by CFOs when automating the finance perform is integration with their present methods, based on 61% of CFOs.

SEE: three issues to contemplate earlier than implementing enterprise course of automation (TechRepublic)

What respondents are saying

Enterprise finance is quickly reworking right into a extra strategic perform as stress continues to construct for CFOs to align and drive monetary technique with enterprise technique. As well as, the more and more unstable world economic system has accelerated the necessity for finance to be extra agile and proactive in utilizing knowledge to establish the precise monetary levers to drag at any second, the report mentioned.

“I do imagine that automation is the best way to go,” mentioned one survey respondent from the banking business. “It’s the solely manner that brick-and-mortar monetary establishments will be capable to compete with the fintechs and different digital types of banking. We have to make the most of AI to the fullest.”

“Our agency is embarking on a digitalization journey, making the most of the instruments already out there internally and exploring new ones out there,” reported a respondent from the pharmaceutical business. “Our imaginative and prescient is to turn into a data-driven, modern firm, at all times trying ahead to integrating enterprise processes to market traits and proactively responding to the purchasers’ and customers’ wants.”