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Teaching computers how to analyze data, identify patterns, and forecast outcomes is the new norm for the online business landscape. This new norm is encapsulated by the term “artificial intelligence,” which is currently being used in new ways by the world’s top CFOs who have adopted it in reshaping their business models. Every financial leader in an organization needs to start seeing AI beyond just a tool for increasing productivity, as its implementation in a business function can also bring about dramatic all-around growth.

From originally just leveraging AI to replace repetitive and labor-intensive tasks, CFOs have begun to take note that AI has the capability to not just understand large datasets but also to improve the accuracy of predictions based on past data, which can boost budgeting, forecasting and most importantly, enhance the overall decision making process in moving organizations forward. 

This article is centered around discussing the most innovative AI technologies that every financial leader in an organization can use to transform their role and take their organization to the next level.

 

Why do CFO’s need AI-based Technology?

The finance function of a company needs an AI-based technology approach because finance functions depend on large and complex volumes of data for powering many of its processes financially and operationally. The importance of integrating AI into businesses can’t be overemphasized - CFOs use it to eliminate human errors and bias by using it to automate tasks that ought to be done manually. Not only this, they need AI for optimizing, transforming and increasing the accuracy of business processes. 

With the flexibility, agility, and responsiveness that AI-based technologies offer, CFOs can boast of better planning and forecasting abilities while at the same time enhancing their decision-making ability dramatically.  

Other Reasons why CFOs need to look toward AI-based technology for better business outcomes:

  • Cost-Saving and Error-free: Unlike humans, AI tools are more efficient and less error-prone. There won’t be the need to engage external service providers given that data and transactions are easier to audit in a system that has AI integrated. 


 

  • Enhanced Productivity with Reduced Risk: AI and its related bodies can offer to help CFOs in unlocking and extracting greater financial outcomes from business activities they have engaged their organizations in. Furthermore, AI is built in a way to help reduce potential financial losses to the barest minimum.  


 

  • Streamlined Accounting and Compliance: instead of agreeing to gather and validate accounting data in a more costly and time-consuming way for the sake of ensuring accuracy and compliance, CFOs can simply use AI-based technologies to minimize compliance errors and enhance transparency without strain. 


 

How CFO’s can use AI in cutting costs in their enterprise

There are some important software intelligence technologies that CFOs can adopt in cutting cost and reshaping the face of the finance functions of their respective enterprise:

  • Automation and Robotics: CFOs can simply rely on the application of automation and robotics in simplifying and improving business processes. It becomes easier for CFOs to simplify core internal transactions, create standardized reporting mechanisms and even perform more efficiently just by introducing automation into their finance function. According to the research conducted by McKinsey and Global Institute, it’s possible to automate 40% of finance activities and another 17% can be easier to automate. 




  • AI for implementing Advanced Analytics: CFOs can use AI to create demand models for improving working capital and inventory management. They can also rely on it for conducting an intensive scenario analysis. While still holding on to AI-based technologies for accelerating decision support, CFOs can also find the software handful in developing self-optimizing algorithms for preliminary sales forecasts. Advanced analytics can also assist CFOs in managing standard financial transactions and core processes more efficiently. Aside from the fact that they can also make use of advanced analytics in shaping and speeding up tactical decisions, they can be innovative about it in discovering hidden business values. 




  • Data Visualization: Data visualization can help CFOs improve the organizational performance of their enterprise. They can also use Data Visualization to generate user-friendly dynamic dashboards and graphics customized for meeting internal customer needs. Most importantly, Data Visualization can be used in delivering important reports and can help in providing richly detailed information that can give end-users the real-time financial information that they need. 


 

Four AI Technologies CFO's can integrate for Cost Savings

There are many AI-based technologies that are deemed efficient and cost-effective in handling finance functions and other related activities, but the ones listed from the companies explained below have proven to be more exceptional than others in recent times:

 

  1. Sap Concor: as a CFO, the experts at Sap Concor have tools that you can simply use to control the spending of your organization. With the use of AI, Machine Learning, and other innovations, Sap Concor can help CFOs manage the spending of their organization both from the inside and from the outside. With the help of Sap Concor, CFOs can make their organizations smarter and more intelligent in terms of outcomes, processes, and experience. 

  2. AppZen: an AI-based technology platform like AppZen helps modern financial teams not only streamline processes but also helps reduce spend and compliance with policy. They have lots of products for helping organizations automate manual processes, discover problems, and optimize decision-making. Finally, AppZen saves CFOs both time and money by helping them get control of their costs. 

  3. ClearFind: ClearFind’s expertise is found in helping organizations analyze their software ecosystem to identify exactly what they should keep, assess, remove and consolidate. This has allowed leading enterprises to save huge amounts of time and money while simultaneously operating at a much higher level operationally and financially. By helping finance leaders take back control of their organization’s software, ClearFind has built an end to end solution that will truly revolutionize how CFOs manage, evaluate and budget their software spend and usage.

  4. SAP HANA: The term HANA stands for high-performance analytics appliance. SAP HANA is globally known for turning data into a superpower. CFOs can effectively help their organizations manage data and grow exponentially by employing the data management, database, and analytics cloud solutions of SAP HANA. 


 

Conclusion

Integrating the right AI into their protocols has allowed CFOs to become more innovative, efficient and productive in generating better outputs while using less money and doing so in less time.    

 
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