AI in the finance team: automate or verify?

Artificial intelligence can save finance teams many hours, but not every task should be handed over. The useful question is not whether to use AI, but where its output must be verified.

Good candidates for automation

• Drafting variance commentary from figures already reviewed
• Classifying transactions and suggesting account codes
• Summarising contracts, minutes and long reports
• Preparing first drafts of policies and procedures

Where a human must verify

• Any figure that goes to the board, a bank or a regulator
• Judgements: provisions, impairments, revenue recognition
• Anything involving confidential or personal data

A simple rule

Let AI prepare, and let accountable people decide. Keep a log of prompts and outputs for important work, so the reasoning behind a number can always be traced.