LONDON, Jan. 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Oracle
OpenWorld -- Finance teams lack the digital skillset to embrace
the latest advancements in artificial intelligence, causing a
negative impact on revenue growth, according to a new study from
the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants
(the Association) and Oracle (NYSE: ORCL). The study of more
than 700 global finance leaders found that despite a clear
correlation between the deployments of AI and revenue growth, 89
percent of organizations have not deployed AI in the finance
function and only 10 percent of finance teams believe they have the
skills to support the organization's digital ambitions.
The report, titled "Agile Finance Unleashed: The Key Traits
of Digital Finance Leaders" highlights that 46
percent of tech-savvy finance leaders report positive revenue
growth, compared with only 29 percent of tech-challenged leaders.
Furthermore, organizations that have seen revenue growth are more
likely to be deploying artificial intelligence compared to those
where revenues are flat or declining. However, only 11 percent of
finance leaders surveyed have implemented artificial intelligence
in the finance function, and 90 percent say their finance team does
not have skills to support enterprise digital transformation.
"For me, robotic process automation, advanced analytics, and
machine learning are three legs of the same stool," said
John Merino, chief accounting
officer at FedEx. "The combination of those technologies and the
ability to deliver them in an agile manner without long lead times
and extensive interface complexities creates a tremendous
opportunity to capitalize on some really big efficiency gains in
virtually every staff function. The big win for us is to liberate
that time and move finance up the value chain in what it delivers
to the organization."
"Businesses are missing out on huge growth potential by failing
to give finance teams the tools and training they need to make
better corporate decisions," said Andrew Harding FCMA, CGMA, chief
executive of management accounting at the Association of
International Certified Professional Accountants. "Cloud and
emerging technologies like AI and blockchain drive efficiency and
improve insight and accuracy, enabling finance leaders to step into
a more strategic role in the business and improve the
organization's data-driven decision making. To make the most of
these new technologies, finance teams need to simultaneously evolve
the competencies of their staff in areas such as analytical
thinking, decision-making and business partnering."
Key Traits of Digital Finance Leaders: The report
identifies three common traits of tech-savvy finance teams:
- Modern Business Processes: According to the report,
tech-savvy finance leaders use advanced technologies and establish
'operational excellence'. For example, 86 percent of Digital
Finance Leaders have a digital-first and cloud-first mindset, which
gives them greater access to intelligent process automation and
technologies such as artificial intelligence and Blockchain, which
are commonly delivered via the cloud. Additionally, 73 percent
centralize finance subject matter expertise in a global 'Center of
Excellence.'
- Data Insights: Leading finance teams are able to
connect data that was previously in disparate applications to
uncover new insights. They are increasingly relying on AI to
uncover hidden patterns, make recommendations, and learn
continually from the non-stop flow of business data. The report
shows that organizations that have seen positive revenue growth are
more likely to be deploying AI compared to those where revenues are
flat or have declined.
- Business Influence: Leading finance teams have been
able to move beyond reporting and are using data-driven insights to
influence the direction of the business. With reduced time spent on
manual reporting processes and armed with accurate and timely data,
finance leaders are empowered to partner with the business,
recommend new courses of action and influence business
strategy.
"The cloud has significantly reduced the barrier to emerging
technologies and is enabling organizations to introduce new
business models and unique customer experiences that drive
additional revenue streams," says Kimberly Ellison-Taylor CPA,
CGMA, global strategy leader, Cloud Business Group, Oracle and
former chair of the Association and the American Institute of CPAs
(AICPA). "Common benefits that our customers experience once in the
cloud include reduced costs and improved efficiency, increased
security, real-time and accurate reporting, deeper business insight
and better decision-making. The confluence of benefits enables
organizations to spend less time on low-value, time-intensive
reporting and innovate faster than their competitors."
The Association conducted in-depth interviews with CFOs and
other top finance executives at companies around the globe.
Included in that extensive and diverse group of participants were
the following Oracle customers:
- Addiko Bank
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
- Highmark Health
- Hungry Jacks
- Instacart
- RedMart
- Rolls Royce
- Royal Bank of Scotland
- Stitch Fix
- USEN Corporation
- Western Digital
The full report can be downloaded at
http://www.oracle.com/goto/agilefinance.
About the Association of International Certified Professional
Accountants
The Association of International Certified
Professional Accountants (the Association) is the most influential
body of professional accountants, combining the strengths of the
American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) and the Chartered Institute of
Management Accountants (CIMA) to power opportunity, trust and
prosperity for people, businesses and economies worldwide. It
represents 667,000 members and students in public and management
accounting and advocates for the public interest and business
sustainability on current and emerging issues. With broad reach,
rigor and resources, the Association advances the reputation,
employability and quality of CPAs, CGMA designation holders and
accounting and finance professionals globally.
About Oracle
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SOURCE Oracle