French leaders in the RSM/IFOP study see generative artificial intelligence as a double challenge. The main identified problem relates to the security and protection of financial data for 61% of respondents. The second challenge, i.e. 41% of the answers, refers to the integration of artificial intelligence technical solutions adapted to accounting and financial activities.
While artificial intelligence has been automating the tasks of administrative and finance teams for years, generative artificial intelligence (IAGen) is still very little used and raises many questions about the challenges ahead for finance departments. IAGen, comparable to the latest generation of chatbots, generates content based on algorithms inspired by data that has already been observed, hence the importance of their reliability.
Within a profession that is very cautious about safety and security risks, regulatory compliancenot surprisingly, IAGen is in the evaluation phase, like any other emerging technology.
The RSM investigation confirms the results of the Blackline study which must be read between the lines at mistrust of CFOs (Administrative and Financial Director) with respect to IAGen. Thus, the main barriers to IAGen adoption lead to a trust deficit for 34% of the panel.
The lack of skills in CFO teams is cited by 30% of respondents who also mention resistance to changes in teams (30%). Compliance with regulatory and legislative frameworks leads to doubts about compliance of AI applications with financial data for 31% of respondents.
According to the RSM/IFOP study, it appears that 80% of panels representing UK management functions do not use generative artificial intelligence and do not intend to use it as part of their financial activities. An explicit result that shows the gap between the optimism of solution providers and their customers.
In France, CFOs make marginal use of generative artificial intelligence
According to the RSM study, only 5% of respondents state that they already use IAGen. A figure that reaches 8% for large SMEs with 200 to 249 employees means that this technology is struggling to be adopted in France for administrative and financial occupations. Regulatory compliance and maintaining customer confidence are buzzwords in the financial professions, which I can partially explain
this reluctance.
In terms of CFOs, the study shows slightly more enthusiasm for IAGen in the services sector (24%) and in large, medium-sized and large companies with more than 500 employees (26%). The survey also reveals a large lack of awareness of public programs that encourage the adoption of artificial intelligence in the economic sector.
from 2018
However, the Blackline study showed areas where AI can help CFOs. As a reminder, the advantages of artificial intelligence for the financial and accounting profession are as follows. On the one hand, better analysis (35%), improved forecasting capabilities (35%) thanks to the ability to process financial data.
These advantages are complemented by improved auditabilityData analysis (33%) and finally, detection of potential fraud (31%). As for IAGen, its interest is not obvious to interested parties, at least until today.