2026年金融趋势报告

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance

CFOProgram

ADeloittesurveyshowsfinanceleaders

influencingenterprisestrategy,cost

optimization,anddigitaltransformation—andbuildingtech-fueledteamstopowertheirorganizations

Tableofcontents

02...Introduction

03...Trend1:Thespeedpriority—Advancedscenarioplanningandagilegovernancefornavigatinguncertainty

06...Trend2:Financeleadersarestrategyleaders—especiallywhentheyembraceadvancedAIandcloud

08...Trend3:Focus.Precision.Discipline—Howfinance-ledcostmanagementhelpsdrivemeasurablevalue

10...Trend4:Thejourneytoagenticinsights—ManyfinanceteamsembraceAI,butROIandagenticimplementationsoftenlag

14...Trend5:Infusingtechtalentinfinance—Wheredatascientistsandaccountantsmeet

17...Leadingfinanceintothefuture:Toptakeawaysfromourinterviews

18...Endnotes

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance1

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance2

Introduction

omparedtotherecentpast,today’sleadingchieffinancialofficersarethinkingdifferently,operatingdifferently,andhiringdifferently.They’rehelpingnavigatenewmarkets,preparingforacquisi-

C

tionsanddivestures,andbuildingfuture-readyteams.Butthey’recontendingwithacomplexgrowthenvironment.

Howarefinanceleaderspreparingtheirteamstoproactivelyaddressthesecomplexities,andbuildforthefuture?

Tohelpleadersgainabetterunderstandingofwhat’slikelytocomenextandinformthisinau-guralFinanceTrendsreport,wesurveyed1,326globalfinanceleadersaroundtheworldandacrossindustries.RespondentstooursurveyareCFOs

ornext-in-linetobeCFOsatsomeoftheworld’slargestcompanies(withannualrevenuesexceed-ingUS$1billion).Wealsoconductedone-on-oneinterviewswithninefinanceexecutivesfromglobalorganizationstolearnhowthesetrendsareplayingoutintheirroleandacrossthefinancefunction(seemethodology).

Basedonthisresearch,weidentifiedfivetrendslikelytohavethemostdirectimpactonfinanceleaders,thefinancefunction,and,byextension,therestoftheorganization,through2026.Collectively,thesetrendsillustratetheintegral—andincreasinglymoreprominent—rolefinanceleadersareoftenplayinginhelpingtheirorganizationsoptimizecosts,catalyzeinnovation,andorchestrateastrategicagendathatfuelsenterprisewidegrowthandvalue.Herearethetopfivetrendsimpactingfinance:

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance3

Trend1:Thespeedpriority—

Advancedscenarioplanningandagilegovernancefornavigatinguncertainty

F

inancechiefsoftenwalkarazor’sedgebetweentwounrelentingdemands:managingcostefficiencywhileidenti-fyingopportunitiestoinvestinbusi-nessgrowth.Fromacost-optimizationperspective,itcanbehardtoignoreone

ofthebiggestcontributorstovolatility—supplychaindisruptions.Localizedpressures,suchaslaborshortages,combinedwithcross-borderchal-lenges,areamongthebusinessfactorscontribut-ingtohighercosts,andcanthrowglobalsourcingintodisarray.1

Intandem,itmaybeincreasinglydifficultforfinanceleaderstokeeppaceandidentifythemostimportantinvestmentstohelpfuelgrowthandinnovation.Three-quartersoftheleaderswesurveyedsaytheirorganizationrequireseitheramoderateamountor“alotmore”resourcestomaximizeinvestmentopportunitiesacrossthebusiness.

Oursurveycorroboratesahighlevelofuncer-taintyandcomplexityinthecurrentenvironment.Askedtoranktheirtopthreepriorities,therewaslittleconsensus(figure1).Planningforexternal

challengesandadoptingnewtechnologicalcapabil-itiestiedforhighestprioritiesamongrespondents.Buttherewasonlya4-percentage-pointdifferencebetweentheseresponsesandthefifthmost-citedpriority,protectingresourcesbyreducingcosts(44%).Overall,thislackofconsensussuggeststhat,whenitcomestowhichprioritiesshouldreceivethelion’sshareofrespondents’attention,itmaybeacaseof“everything,everywhere,allatonce”—manyfinanceleadersarelikelyjugglingseveraltopprioritiesatthesametime.

Respondents’viewsonexternalchallengesaroundperceivedrisksalsohelpillustrateachallenginglandscape.Askedtochoosetheirtoptworisks,economicuncertaintyrankedhighest(26%).Butthiswascloselyfollowedbyfinancialreportinganddisclosurerequirements(25%),dataprivacyregulations(24%),andtaxregulations(22%).Meanwhile,geopoliticaltensionsandsupplychaindisruptions—tiedforsixthplaceat21%—areonly6percentagepointsawayfromthetopchoice.Thesefindingsmaysuggestthatmanyfinanceleadersarenavigatinganumberofhigh-priorityriskssimultaneously.

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance4

Figure1

Manyfinanceleadersmaybefocusingonseveraltoppriorities,fromplanningforexternalchallengestocostmanagement,simultaneously

ToprespondentprioritiesthroughFY2026(percentageofrespondents)

Planningforexternalchallenges(e.g.,inflation,tariffs,regulations)

Adoptingnewtechnologicalcapabilities(includingAI)

Developingnewproductsorservicestoexpandrevenuestreams

Optimizinghowweallocatefundsandmanageday-to-daycashflow

Protectingcurrentresourcesbyreducingcosts

Preparingformajorbusinessevents

(e.g.,IPO,acquisitions,ordivestitures)

Expandingintonewmarketsorregions

48%

48%

46%

45%

44%

40%

30%

onlya4pt.differencebetweenthe1stand5thmost-cited

priorities

Notes:n=1,326.Respondentswereaskedtoranktheirtopthreeprioritiestodriveorganizationalsuccessforfiscalyears2025and2026.

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

Howleadersmaintainfocusamidcompetingpriori-tiescaninfluenceacompany’sagilityandresilience.Ourresearchshowsthatmanyfinanceleadersaretakingstepstobolsterscenarioplanningandgover-nancestructurestobetteranticipateandrespondtotheirchangingenvironments.Askedtoidentifytheirplanstohelpmanageuncertainty(figure2),respondentscitetheneedtobolsteradvancedscenar-io-planningcapabilities(30%)andbuildmoreagilegovernancemodelstosupportfasterdecision-mak-ing(28%).Amongothertopstrategies,25%ofrespondentsplantoleverageAI-driveninsightstoguidebetterdecisionsand18%expecttoinvestindedicatedriskmanagementteams.Similarly,advancedscenarioplanningandagilemodelsleadthelistofcapabilitiesrespondentssaytheyneedtomakemoreinformedcapital-allocationdecisions.

Trendsinaction:Afaster,smarterscenario-planningcapability,pairedwithemergingcentersofexcellence

Elevatingthefrequencyandsophisticationofscenario-planningtechniquesisbecomingcriticalformanyleaders.“Scenarioplanningissomethingwe’vealwaysdone,butthecurrentenvironmenthascausedustoreallyacceleratethewaywedoit,”saysWalmart’sCorporateControllerandChiefAccountingOfficerDavidChojnowski.“Inthepast,wemayhaverunscenariosmonthly;now,we’vebeenrunningmodelsanddoinganalysisalmostdaily.”HeexplainsthatAIhasmadethesemodelsfarmoresophisticated;theynowcombinedatarelatedtopricing,inventorylevels,supplierdynam-ics,andcustomertrends.“We’reabletouseAItounderstandmarkettrendsandcorrelatethosetrendsandothercompetitors’decisionswithoursinawaythatwehaven’tbeenabletointhepast.”

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance5

Figure2

Respondentsplantobuildstrongeranticipationandresponsecapabilitieswithinfinanceteamstobolsterorganizationalresilience

Actionsconsideredmostimportanttomanaginguncertaintymoreeffectively(percentageofrespondents)

Usingadvancedscenarioplanningtobetteranticipatechangingneeds

Buildingmoreagilegovernancemodelstosupportfasterdecision-making

LeveragingAI-driveninsightstoguidebetterdecisions

Investingindedicatedriskmanagementteams

30%58%cite

enhancinganticipationorresponsecapabilities

28%

25%

43%cite

aiinsights

ordedicatedteams

18%

Note:n=1,326.

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

Morethanhalfof

surveyrespondents(57%)saythey

arenowamong

thetopleaders

influencingstrategydevelopmentacrosstheorganization.

Somefinanceleadersarealsoestablishingnewgovernancestructurestohelpempowerteamstorespondtotheirenvironmentsmorequickly.Embraer,theBrazilianmultinationalaerospacecorporation,hasbuiltcentersofexcellencetoprovideframeworks,guidance,andspecializedtalenttohelpinfusespecificcapabilities,likeintel-ligentautomation,acrosstheenterprise.

Thisapproachcanhelpimproveefficiencybyprovidingstandardizationandoversightwiththeuniquerequirementseachbusinesslineneeds.

“Wewanttomotivateandencourageourdepart-mentstobuildtheirownsolutionswithoutcreatingasecondorthirdITstructure,”AntonioCarlosGarcia,executivevicepresidentandCFOofEmbraer,explains.“Weneedtoenablethebusi-nesstoaddresstheircustomer,market,andproductneeds,whicharedifferentfromcommercialaviationtoexecutivejetstodefenseandsecurity.”Overthepastfiveyears,synergiesidentifiedacrossseveralinitiativeshelpedreduceITspend—whilesimul-taneouslyincreasingthespeedofimplementation,accordingtoGarcia.

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance6

Trend2:Financeleadersare

strategyleaders—especially

whentheyembraceadvancedAIandcloud

F

ormany,gonearethedayswheninflu-entialfinanceleadersspentmostoftheirtimeonthecorefoundationsoffinancialmanagement.A2024DeloitteanalysisofCFOjobpostingsrevealedthenumberofskillsCFOapplicants

wereaskedtobringtothetableincreased19%overafive-yearperiod.Atthesametime,theshareofCFOsexpectedtohaveastronggriponriskmanagementmorethandoubled,accordingtothesameanalysis.2

Asthescopeoffinanceleadershipexpands,theirinfluenceonstrategyacrosstheorganizationseemstogrowinstep.Overall,wefoundthatmanyfinanceleadersareholdinggreateraccountabilityfordriv-ingbusinessoutcomeswheretheycanorchestratecollaborationanddrivetransformativegrowth.

Morethanhalfofsurveyrespondents(57%)saytheyarenowamongthetopleadersinfluencingstrat-egydevelopmentacrosstheorganization(figure3).Notably,wefoundthesestrategy-influencing

Figure3

Morethanhalfoffinanceleaderssurveyedplayaleadingroleininfluencingstrategyacrosstheorganization

Respondents’reportedlevelofinfluenceonenterprisestrategy(percentageofrespondents)

57%

17%16%

9%

1%

Weplay

leadingrole

We’reinvolvedbutnotleading

Weprovideinput,butstrategyis

shapedelsewhere

We’reonly

consultedafter

decisionsaremade

We’renot

consultedatall

Note:n=1,326.

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance7

leadersalsohandleabroaderscopeofresponsibil-ities:Acrossninecategories,theyaverage20%moreresponsibilitiesthanotherrespondents.3

Interestingly,strategy-influencingleadersappeartobescalingtheirimpactquitedifferentlyfromtheir(relatively)lessinfluentialpeers.BysystematicallyapplyingtechnologicalandAI-drivensolutionstohelpmanagetheirbroaderscopeofresponsibilities,someoftheseleadersarehelpingredefinethefinancefunctionasaproactivepartnerinthebusinessthatisalignedwiththeorganization’smostcriticalgoals.Amongtheserespondents,forinstance,nearlyhalf(48%)saythey’redeployingcloud-basedsolutionstohelpoptimizecostsacrosstheirorganizations,versus33%offinanceleaderswhoareinstrategy-supportingroles(figure4).Strategy-influencingrespondentsalsoseemfurtheralongintheirAIjourneys.They’remorelikelytouseAItohelpaddresscurrentshortfallsinproductivitycompared

torespondentsoperatinginastrategy-supportingrole(43%versus36%).Morethanone-thirdsaythey’realreadydeliveringclear,measurablevaluefromtheirAIinvestmentscomparedtothoseinastrategy-supportingrole(37%versus17%),andnearlyhalf(48%)saytheyhavefullyintegratedAIagentsintospecificareasofthefinancefunction,comparedto18%ofsupportingrespondents.4

Similarly,AIishelpingenhancethestrategicimpactofthefinancefunctionatHewlettPackardEnterprise.MarieMyers,theexecutivevicepresidentandCFO,says,“Ourfinanceorganization’sjourneyoverthepast18monthshasbeentransformative.WeareusingAItoempowerourteamstobecomestrategicpartners,leveragingdataandtechnologytodriveenterprisewidevalue.”Myersfurtheremphasizes,“We’vereimaginedtheroleoffinance,movingfromtraditionalstewardshiptoproactiveleadershipenabledbydigitaltransformation.”

Figure4

Manystrategicfinanceleadersscaletheirinfluencebychampioningthecloud,automation,andAI

SupportingstrategyroleLeadingstrategyrole

Actionsrespondentssaytheyhaveachieved(percentageofrespondents)

48%48%

33%

+30pts.

18%

36%

43%

17%

37%

Deploycloudsolutions

FullyintegratedAIagents

UtilizeAIand

Alreadydeliveringclear,

tooptimizecosts

intospecificareasofthefinancefunction

automationtoaddressproductivitygaps

measurablevaluefromAIinvestments

Note:n=1,326.

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance8

Trendsinaction:Unlockingvaluethroughautomationandscaledsolutions

Whilemanagingaseeminglyever-expandingscopeofresponsibilitiesmayseemdaunting,leveragingautomationtechnologiescanhelpfinanceleadersclearapathtoaccomplishmorestrategic—andrewarding—workacrossthefinancefunction.

Reflectingontheimpactofhisteam’smultiyearjourneytostandardize,centralize,andautomate

alargeportionoftheirday-to-daywork(suchasprocessingclaimsorpullingtogetherroutinereports),Walmart’sChojnowskisays,“It’sempow-eredourteamtofocusonmorevalue-addedwork,moreforward-lookingwork,includingengagingmorewithregulatorsandcustomerstoinfluenceoutcomes.”Chojnowskisaysthistransformationhasalsofreeduphisteamtoprovidemorerobustsupportacrossfunctionsbyequippingbusinesspartners“withfinancialandaccountinginsightstohelpthemmakeoptimalbusinessdecisions.”

Trend3:Focus.Precision.

Discipline—Howfinance-ledcostmanagementhelpsdrive

measurablevalue

W

henfinanceleadersowncostandexpensemanagement,whatcansetthemapartarethetoolstheybringtocostdisciplinealongwithafocusonaccountability.

Justoverathird(36%)offinanceleaderssurveyed(and42%ofCFOssurveyed)areprimarilyrespon-sibleforcostandexpensemanagementfortheirorganizations.Yettheseleadersaremorelikelytoconsistentlymeet—orexceed—theircost-savingsgoalscomparedtorespondentswhosaytheyplayasupportingroleinenterprisecostmanagement(47%versus39%).

Trendsinaction:Leveragingthecloud,AI,anddedicatedexpenseteams

Respondentswhoaretakinggreaterownershipofcostmanagementoftenbringtogethercloudinfra-structure,intelligentautomation,andspecializedin-houseexpertisetohelpstrikeabalancebetweengrowthandcostcontrol.

Findingflexibilityinthecloud

Cloudinvestmentsappeartobethepreferredcost-managementmethodamongrespondentswhoownexpenseoversight.While51%ofrespondentswhoowncostmanagementaredeployingcloudsolutionstooptimizecosts,just36%oftheircoun-terpartsinsupportingrolesaredoingso(figure5).

Thismayalsobebecausesomeorganizationsrequiregreaterflexibilityintheirdigitalstructures.Forinstance,inDeloitte’s2025MarginPlussurvey,thetoptwointernalbarrierstoorganizationalsuccessarethe“inabilitytoenabledigitalinfrastructuretomeetnewexternalbusinessconditionsandscale”(49%)anda“lackofflexibilityinexistingassetsandinfra-structuretorespondtoexternaldemand”(45%).

Atitscore,thecloudcanofferfinancialandopera-tionalflexibility;companiescanscaleresourcesupordownwithoutnecessarilylockinginfixedinfra-structurecosts.Cloud-basedsolutionscanminimizeup-frontexpendituresforhardwareandprovidemorescalableinfrastructuretoconductanalysisforidentifyingcost-savingopportunities.5

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance9

Whilethecloudcancreateefficiencies,itcanalsoleadtounintendedcomplexityandcostsifcloudusageisn’tcloselymonitoredanddeployed.Forthisreason,somecompaniesarealsoestablish-ing“FinOps”teams(teamsthatcombinefinanceandDevOpsexpertise,practices,andstrategies)tohelpassess—andoptimize—cloudspendingandefficiency.6

LeveragingAItoimproveefficiency

ManycompaniesareturningtoAItohelpcutoper-ationalexpenseswhileincreasingspeedandaccu-racy.Amongrespondentsowningcostoptimizationattheirorganizations,AIrankssecond,justbehindcloud-basedsolutions,asthemosteffectivewayto

achievecostsavings.Forthesecostandexpenseowners,49%saytheyarelikelytouseAItoidentifycost-reductionopportunities,comparedwith40%offinanceleadersinasupportingrole.

Inthiscapacity,financeleaderscanuseAItostreamlinecertainrepetitiveprocessesorelimi-natemanualverificationincertaintransactions.Forexample,afewofourintervieweessaytheyareusingAItoscantheiraccountsreceivablesandproactivelyanalyzetransactionstoidentifypotentialerrorsandidentifywhichaccountshaveahigherpotentialfordelinquency.

OtherDeloitteGlobalresearchalsohighlightshowAIcanbeespeciallyhelpfulintherealmoftax.Specifically,sometaxleadersareusingAIto

Figure5

Respondentswhoowncostmanagementprioritizecloudsolutions,AI,anddedicatedexpenseteamsmorethanthoseinsupportingroles

Costmanagementpracticesbyownership(percentageofrespondents)

CostmanagementownersCostmanagementsupporters

51%

49%

45%

43%

40%

41%

37%

36%

Usecloud-basedsolutionsto

optimizecosts

UseAItoidentifycostreductionopportunities

Maintaina

dedicatedexpense

managementteam

UseAItoautomateprocessesand

reducecosts

Note:n=1,326(477respondentswhoserveascostandexpensemanagementownersand849respondentswhoserveascostandexpensemanagementsupporters).

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance10

helpidentifyefficienciesintransfer-pricingdocu-mentationandcorporateincometaxreturnsandpayments.7

Usingdedicatedteamstotakeadisciplined,proactiveapproach

Anotherwaymanyfinanceleadersexcelatcostmanagementisbytreatingitasacontinuous,stra-tegicdiscipline—notaone-offinitiative.Theyinvestindedicatedexpensemanagementteams,whichhelpfindopportunitiesthroughcross-functionalcollaborationandprocessimprovement.Amongrespondentswhoserveinacost-ownershipandexpense-ownershiprole,45%citetheuseofadedi-catedexpensemanagementteamaspartoftheircost-managementpractices.

TimoIhamuotila,theglobalCFOforglobalelectri-ficationandautomationmanufacturerABBGroup,explainshowthisdedicatedteamresideswithinthefinancialplanningandanalysisteam.Specifically,theylookforopportunitiestofindefficiencyandprofitabilityacrossABB’snetwork.Forexample,hesays,“Theteamdesignedagrossprofitabilitymetric(theamountofgrossprofitgeneratedperunitofheadcount)andthismetrichasbeenanextremelypowerfulwayforustodrivetherightqualityofrevenue,cost,andprofitbehaviorsacrossournetwork.”Heemphasizesthatestablishingrigoraroundcostmetricsmakesproductivityandeffi-ciencycentraltoABB’sculture.

Trend4:Thejourneytoagenticinsights—ManyfinanceteamsembraceAI,butROIandagenticimplementationsoftenlag

O

ursurveyshowsthatnearlyeveryfinancedepartmentisatleastexperimentingwithAIusecases.Impressively,63%ofrespondentssaytheyhavealreadyfullydeployedandareactivelyusing

AIsolutionsintheirfinancefunction.Yet,formany,thereisstillrunwaytoamplifythereachandmeasurableimpactoftheirAIinvestments.Forinstance,amongrespondentsactivelyusingAIsolutions,only21%believethoseAIinvestmentshavealreadydeliveredclear,measurablevalue;andonly14%havereachedtheadditionalmilestoneoffullyintegratingAIagentsdirectlyintothefinancefunction(figure6).

ThislikelyreflectsabroaderchallengeofmovingfrompilotprojectstoembeddingAIineverydayfinanceoperations.ItalsoreflectswheremanyindustriesandfunctionsareintheirmarchtowardenablingAIagentstomanagespecifictasks—anditisstillarelativelynewfrontier.8

Trendsinaction:ChallengesandopportunitiesalongtheAIjourney

OursurveyanalysissuggeststhatprogressindeployingAIdependsonwherefinanceleadersareontheirAIjourney.Here’swhatwelearnedaboutthechallengesandopportunitiesrespondentfinanceteamsarefacing.

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance11

Figure6

Mostrespondents’teamsuseAItools,butfewhavefiguredouttheirROIorhaveintegratedagents

14%

21%

63%

21%offinanceleadershave

fullydeployedandalreadyseethoseinvestmentsdeliveringclear,measurablevalue

14%offinanceleadershavefully

deployedAI,alreadydeliveredclearvalue,andfullyintegratedAIagentsintospecificpartsoftheirfunction.

63%offinanceleadershave

fullydeployedandactivelyuseAIwithintheirfunction

Note:n=1,323.

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

Earlychallenges:Legacytechnologyandunclearreturnoninvestment

UsingAItotransformthefinancefunctionremainsanelusivegoalformanyrespondents.RespondentsfromorganizationsintheearlyphasesofAIadop-tion(thosewhohaveonlyreachedtheAIdeploy-mentstage)saytheyaregrapplingwiththeweightoflegacyinfrastructure.

Inoursurvey,41%ofearly-stageteamsreportlegacytechnologyasabarriertoAIadoption,comparedwith31%of“AIleaders”—respondentswhohavedeployedAIsolutions,deliveredmeasurablevaluefromthosesolutions,andhavealreadyintegratedAIagentsintothefinancefunction(figure7).Notably,severalofthefinanceleadersweinter-viewedsaytheyareactivelygoingthroughadigitaltransformationtotheirenterpriseresourceplan-ning(ERP)systemstoprovidegreaterflexibilityandaccesstoinsights.Buttheyalsoacknowledgedthatthisisamultiyearjourney.

Inaddition,somerespondentsreportthatwithAIadoption,provingareturnoninvestmentischal-lengingwithinthefinancefunction.Oursurveyfoundthat30%offinanceleadersintheearly

stagesofAIadoptionstrugglewithjustifyingROI,comparedwith21%ofthosefurtheralongtheAIjourney,orAIleaders.

ROIcanbeamajortippingpointacrossfunctions,notjustfinance.AccordingtoDeloitte’sStateofgenAIintheenterpriseJanuary2025report,70%ofthosestrugglingwithROIneedatleastayeartoproperlyresolvethosechallenges9—showinghowtransformationcanslipthroughthecracksiffinanceleaderslackastrongbusinesscaseandleadershipbuy-in.PriorDeloitteGlobalresearchsuggestsfinanceleadersshouldadoptamoreholis-ticviewofAI’sreturnoninvestment—measuringsentimentlikeorganizationaltrustalongwithtradi-tionalfinancialmetrics.10

Recently,electricalsuppliesdistributorGraybarundertookatechnology-enabledbusinesstrans-formation.SeniorVicePresidentandCFODavidMeyeremphasizeshowenhancedAI,andanalyticscapabilities,canhelpoptimizeworkingcashflowandprofitabilityfortheirfinancialplanningandanalysisfunction.“We’vealreadyseenbenefitstoworkingcapitalandareexpandingouruseofdataanalytics,machinelearning,andAItoenhanceforecasting,optimizeinventory,andincreasecash

FinanceTrends2026:Navigatingtheexpandedscopeoffinance12

Figure7

ScalingAIinfinance:RespondentsfurtheralongtheirAIjourneysfacedifferentchallengesthanpeersinearlierstages

TopAIchallenges(percentageofrespondents)

AIleadersEarlyAIjourneypeers

57%

+13pts.

45%

47%

44%

44%

41%

40%

+10pts.31%

30%

+9pts.

21%

Datasecurityconcerns

LimitedexpertiseRegulatorycomplexityLegacytechnologyUnclearROI

Notes:AIleaders(n=182)arerespondentswhohavefullydeployedAIusecases,deliveredmeasurablevalue,andintegratedAIagentsintothefinancefunction.EarlyAIjourneypeers(n=1,048)havenotfullydeployedAIusecasesordeliveredmeasurablevalue.

Source:DeloitteFinanceTrendssurvey,spring2025.

flow,”hesays.“Ontopofthat,wewillbeapply-ingscenarioplanningandpredictiveanalyticscapabilitiestosupportanalyzingacquisitionandgrowthtargets.”11

Ensuringdataprivacyinfinanceisatopconcern

Datasecurityconcernsreignnearthetopofrespon-dents’listofAIimplementationchallenges.ThisappearsespeciallytrueforrespondentswhoareAIleaders:Fifty-sevenpercentcitedataprivacyasatopchallengeversus44%forthoseearlierontheirAIjourney.

Severalofourintervieweesstressedthatdata

privacyisparticularlyrelevantinfinance,whereteamshandlesomeoftheorganization’smost

sensitivedata.EnsuringthatAItoolsaresecureandcompliantwillbecriticalasfinanceteamsexpandtheirAIcapabilitiesacrosssensitiveworkflowsanddecision-makingprocesses.

Tohelpmanagethesesensitivities,Johnson&Johnson,thehealthcarecompany,iscreatingmorenuancedgovernancemodelstohelpensureproperusageanddeploymentoftheirpotentialAIsolutions.BridgetteLink,seniorvicepresident,FinanceSolutionsandTechnologyatJohnson&Johnson,explainsthatwhileimplementinganewERPsystem,theyareexaminingtheentirelifecycleofthefinancialprocesstoensureeachrelevantfacethasadatastewardresponsibleforprotectingandconsidering