AI is quickly moving from experimentation to practical application inside the finance function. But for finance leaders, the biggest opportunity may not be a sweeping transformation.
It may be solving one repetitive problem at a time.
The most effective starting points for AI are often the tasks finance teams already know well: repeatable, rules-based activities that consume valuable time without necessarily requiring significant judgment. By targeting these areas first, finance organizations can create capacity, accelerate analysis, and demonstrate measurable value while maintaining the controls and accountability the function requires.
Start With the Work, Not the Technology
The question for finance leaders should not be, “How can we use AI?”
A better question is, “Where is our team spending time on work that could be automated or accelerated?”
Consider the recurring tasks that absorb hours every week or month. Preparing work papers. Building journal entries. Managing the monthly close. Creating financial packages. Formatting board materials. Analyzing large datasets. These are practical places to begin.
AI can already support finance teams across activities such as:
- Prepaid work papers and journal entries: Preparing amortization schedules and journal entries from GL data for human review and approval.
- Revenue analysis and dashboards: Processing millions of rows of data and transforming the results into customized dashboards.
- Monthly close management: Tracking close activities, dependencies, deadlines, and notifications throughout the month.
- Financial package preparation: Creating customized financial statements with current results, prior-period comparisons, and variance analysis.
- Recurring finance tasks: Accelerating work paper preparation, roll-forwards, board deck formatting, and other repeatable activities.
The goal isn’t automation for automation’s sake. It’s identifying work where technology can create meaningful capacity for the finance team.
A Practical Framework: 5% – 90% – 5%
Effective AI adoption does not mean handing a task to AI and accepting whatever comes back. A simple 5% – 90% – 5% framework can help finance teams balance speed and accountability.
5% | Set the Context: Start by giving AI clear direction. Define its role, the desired output and format, relevant data sources, and the intended audience. The quality of the execution depends heavily on the quality of the context.
90% | Let AI Execute: Once the parameters are established, AI can take on much of the repeatable execution, from reconciliations and journal entries to dashboards, reports, and analysis. This is where finance teams can begin reclaiming time previously consumed by manual work.
5% | Review & Validate: Human review remains non-negotiable. AI can accelerate the process, but the finance professional remains responsible for validating the output, applying judgment, and approving the final work product.
Move Fast, Without Losing Control
Finance organizations cannot approach AI exactly like other areas of the business. Accuracy, security, compliance, and financial controls matter too much.
That does not mean finance teams need to move slowly. It means they need to move deliberately.
New AI workflows should be tested outside production environments. Sensitive information should be protected. Approval gates should remain in place. And as adoption expands, IT and compliance should be involved to help establish appropriate governance.
The goal is to create a model where AI accelerates execution without compromising the controls that make the finance function trustworthy.
The Bigger Opportunity: Create Capacity for Higher-Value Work
The real value of AI in finance is not simply completing existing work faster; it’s what finance teams can do with the capacity they get back.
Every hour no longer spent manually formatting a report, rolling forward a work paper, or manipulating a massive spreadsheet is an hour that can be redirected toward analysis, forecasting, decision support, and strategic partnership with the business.
That is where AI has the potential to change the role of finance.
Start With One Task
Finance leaders do not need to automate everything at once. In fact, they probably shouldn’t.
Identify one recurring 30-minute task that could be automated or accelerated with AI. Test it. Establish the appropriate controls. Measure the time saved and the quality of the output. Then build from there.
Start with one task. Prove the value. Scale what works.
Ready to Put AI to Work in Your Finance Organization?
The Intersect Group helps organizations connect the right expertise to evolving finance priorities, from transformation initiatives to the specialized talent needed to move them forward. Ready to turn AI potential into practical progress? Let’s start the conversation. Set up a consultation with The Intersect Group!