How finance professionals can embrace and utilise the latest technologies
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have become increasingly prominent in the financial world in recent years, with innovations such as chatbot assistants, fraud detection and automated processes. The pace of these digital developments is unprecedented, with technologies like Web3 enabling organisations to work in a decentralised, distributed and democratic manner. At the same time, AI, ML, and intelligent automation utilise technologies to empower financial organisations to improve their services and optimise their processes. With new technologies, they can now offer smarter, safer ways of payment, savings and investments. Moreover, successful implementations of new technologies can provide a competitive advantage by increasing efficiency and reducing costs.
But how do finance professionals deal with these technological trends? Onguard asked over three
hundred Dutch CFOs, financial managers and financial employees about their views on technology
trends and their impact on their work and the industry. The results are compiled in this research report.
Impact of technology trends on financial processes
Technology trends influence all parts of an organisation, including financial processes. Artificial intelligence is seen as the biggest influencer of financial processes by 42% of finance professionals because it enables automated processes such as invoicing, saving time and reducing the chance of errors. Big data is also seen as a significant influence (37%) as it allows organisations to analyse risks far in advance and help prevent payment issues.
Blockchain technology
Blockchain is the last trend mentioned, and 14% of finance professionals see its influence on the financial process. They mainly see the greatest opportunity to utilise this technology in reducing errors (21%) and providing more convenience in international and business payments (18%).
Intelligent automation
In addition to artificial intelligence and big data, intelligent automation is also essential in the financial
sector. By combining different technologies, finance professionals can elevate their efficiency and
handle routine processes more easily and quickly. For example, AI can automate credit assessments,
while RPA software can make invoice processing more efficient. Currently, 15% of organisations use RPA
within financial processes, while one-third (33%) is developing ideas for integrating RPA.
Although the benefits are clear to utilising this technology, intelligent automation is currently underutilised, with only 8% of finance professionals currently using it. However, this does not mean there is no interest. The majority (78%) is in the early planning stage or expects to implement it within two years. It is important for finance professionals to gain more knowledge about intelligent automation to implement it successfully. Currently, only one in three (33%) understand what it means.
About the research
Every year, Onguard surveys how Dutch finance professionals view current trends and developments. The survey involved 311 respondents working as CFOs, in finance management or as finance employees.
About Onguard
Onguard’s mission is to make companies financially healthy. We help you get paid, and get paid quicker, because better cash flow leads to improved profitability. Our credit management solutions combine internal and external data to get a thorough understanding of debtor payment behaviour. This lets you identify, assess and control financial risks and create smarter and more considerate communication around unsettled invoices. Which in turn leads to faster payments, fewer write-offs and lower customer churn.
Onguard is a Visma company with more than 30 years experience in facilitating optimised working capital through smart credit management. Bottom line, we provide quality time with your customers by handling the day-to-day operations.
