The new CFO: How AI-supported tech can help finance leaders stay ahead

Over the last three years, 93% of CFOs say their role has expanded beyond traditional financial oversight. They're now navigating everything from global expansion and regulatory compliance to ESG strategy and customer experience. As our CFO Konstantin put it: "The role of CFO has always been about being a good business partner — and that's still true — but now it includes more operational input and even deeper collaboration across the company."

The shift is clear: Modern CFOs spend more time on business strategy and less on reporting. But there's a catch — only 35% of CFOs believe their tech stack meets current needs, and a staggering 99% have faced issues in the past year, many of them data-related. Finance leaders need clean data, real-time insights, and systems that actually speak to each other.

What's holding finance teams back?

According to Irina from Kolleno, tech gaps and poor data are two of the biggest blockers. Irina described:

We worked with a $5B customer with 16 people on their finance team, but they still weren't hitting their goals. Once they implemented the right tech stack, their efficiency soared.

The tech conversation often starts with foundational systems like ERPs (including NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance, Sage Intacct, and more). As Irina explained, businesses must know when it's time to move on to a new system — a decision that becomes increasingly urgent as financial responsibilities expand.

Our CFO Konstantin added: "You can't scale without the right technology. You always have to ask: what does my finance function look like now, and will this setup still work in 24 months?"

Investment decisions and the ROI question

Both Konstantin and Irina agreed that ROI plays a huge role when it comes to investing in new tools and solutions, but it isn't always black and white. Sure, for major projects like automating accounts payable, there might be clear time-saving metrics and getting buy-in is relatively easy.

However, not every investment has an easily measurable return.

Konstantin described:

Sometimes, the value comes from reducing friction — onboarding, approvals, and payments. These are critical moments where the finance team can either be a blocker or an enabler, and you can't always measure it easily to work out ROI.

Irina added, "Even if you can't attach a hard number, you can assess if the investment solves a real pain point. Is it helping your people do more? Are your teams happier, faster, and more accurate? That's ROI, too."

The future of finance: human-AI collaboration

Talk quickly turned to artificial intelligence. Despite all the noise about AI replacing jobs, the panel was united: AI is a game-changer for finance, not a threat.

"AI won't replace people — it'll free them up to do more valuable work," said Konstantin. "Instead of chasing receipts, you'll be analysing trends, spotting opportunities, and driving the business forward."

Irina agreed, saying:

Think of AI as your junior employee. It can do the admin — but you still need to check its work. Just like Excel didn't take our jobs, AI is here to help, not replace.

However, to make AI successful, companies need to provide training. "If someone tells me they have a skills gap and want to improve — that's music to my ears," said Irina. Konstantin echoed that, urging teams to stay curious.

"There's always change — be in the driver's seat, don't fear it."

Introducing the AI Office of the CFO

At Payhawk, we’ve been thinking deeply about how to make AI genuinely useful for finance teams. That’s why we’ve launched the AI Office of the CFO, a bold new vision that embeds purpose-built AI agents right into our platform.

These agents aren’t add-ons or plug-ins — they’re embedded into the workflows finance teams already use to handle company payments, spend policies, approvals, and expense management.

Our first release, the Financial Controller Agent, is already in early access — and the results speak for themselves:

• 2x faster expense submission
• 62.7% of expenses submitted within 4 hours from a recent teambuilding event attended by over 350 people (up from 6.5%)
• 5x more approvals completed within 24 hours

Less chasing. Fewer delays. More time for strategic work.

This is what AI should be doing — solving real problems that suck up finance teams’ time and energy. The agent works across Slack, the app, and desktop, fits into your existing approval structure, and handles admin tasks like chasing receipts, checking compliance, and flagging anomalies.

And this is just the beginning. We’re working on a roadmap of agents designed to remove the heavy lifting from finance teams — with complete control, full transparency, and the same permissions as your human employees.

Smart investment = real business impact

The message from our latest research is clear. CFOs don’t just want cost-cutting — they want tech that drives growth.

In fact, updated finance tech stacks are expected to:

• Increase revenue by 14%
• Improve CAGR by 16%
• Boost operating cash flow by 20%

Accounts payable and spend management are among the top priorities, with 41% of finance leaders planning to implement or upgrade these tools in the next five years.

Meanwhile, 87% of CFOs say they trust AI to take on some of their responsibilities, and nearly half expect their finance teams to grow in size thanks to AI.

Empowering finance and your next steps

The bottom line? The finance function isn’t shrinking — it’s growing. But to manage this growth, teams need tools that help them scale without
burning out.

At Payhawk, our mission has always been to help finance teams save time and focus on what matters. With the AI Office of the CFO, we’re making that possible by removing friction where it hurts most — and giving finance teams the ability to lead with data, speed, and clarity.

Want to see it in action? Book a personalised demo today and explore the power of built-in AI for modern finance teams.