Over the years, technological advances have pushed the finance function forward, moving it from manual, paper-based processes to a function powered by cloud computing, data analysis and increased automation.
These technologies have enabled finance professionals to automate repetitive tasks, improve accuracy and gain deeper insights from data, allowing them to focus more on strategic decision making and adding value to the business.
However, with the maturation of cloud and cognitive computing tools and the adoption of AI in the finance function picking up speed over the last 12 months, a new phase is emerging which has been coined by Gartner as Autonomous Finance.
Defining Autonomous Finance
There are variations of the definition of Autonomous Finance but at Aptitude, we believe an Autonomous Finance function is one where:
Systems are self-learning, self-improving, efficient and interoperable
Tasks are optimized and intelligent
An enterprise-wide data platform supports real-time insights, enabling finance to be a strategic and trusted advisor to the business
In a 2022 survey, Gartner found that, while 64% of CFOs believe autonomous finance will become a reality by 2028, few are making progress toward it.1
To better understand where CFOs and their teams are in their journey to Autonomous Finance – and if it’s a journey they want to be on – Aptitude, supported by Microsoft and HSO, commissioned third-party research that surveyed CFOs and finance professionals across the globe. The focus was on understanding current priorities, the role of Autonomous Finance & AI and where finance teams fell along a continuum ranging from traditional to autonomous finance.
Through qualitative and quantitative research, several key themes started to emerge.
Research methodology
We used a third-party to conduct a survey of over 1,700 finance professionals and CFOs across nine geographies and six sectors. All respondents worked for organizations with revenues greater than £250 million GBP and self-reported as decision makers within their organization.
10 qualitative interviews with global CFOs were also held to get a deeper understanding of key themes and trends.
Geographies: ANZ, Benelux, Canada, DACH, Hong Kong, US, Scandinavia, Singapore and UK
Sectors: Banking, Insurance, Platforms/Tech, Manufacturing, Media, CPG/Retail
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