New ICV Expert Work Group on Finance Change & AI Transformation

How can finance organizations manage increasing complexity and use artificial intelligence in a targeted, responsible, and cost-effective manner? The new Expert Work Group “Finance Change & AI Transformation” addresses this question. It supports financial organizations in the areas of accounting, controlling, tax, and related functions in establishing structure and direction, developing concrete action plans, and building a modern, high-performing financial organization. The focus is on combining consistent end-to-end digitization with the targeted use of the “human-in-the-loop” approach—where the final decision is always made by a person.

The Expert Work Group is being established against the backdrop of profound changes in the finance function. Today, financial organizations are confronted with increasing process complexity. End-to-end perspectives are gaining importance, regulatory requirements and ESG guidelines are increasing, real-time control is becoming ever more critical, and cross-system data flows are placing additional demands on organizations. At the same time, the need to utilize artificial intelligence is growing. Traditional automation solutions are often no longer sufficient, while expectations regarding speed, quality, and scalability are continuously rising.

In addition, the adoption of AI in many companies has so far been limited to isolated cases. There is often a lack of a comprehensive approach that links technological possibilities with organizational implementation. AI initiatives are implemented in a fragmented manner, organizational integration is not sufficiently established, and strategic governance mechanisms often remain unclear. This is precisely where the new Expert Work Group comes in.

In terms of content, the Expert Work Group addresses key issues surrounding the future of finance organizations. Topics include the vision for finance organizations in 2030, as well as the target state and role of the finance function in the age of AI. In addition, end-to-end processes in finance and the identification of AI levers are on the agenda, as are specific AI use cases. Other key areas of focus include governance issues, accountability, and responsible AI, as well as the cost-effectiveness and business cases for AI initiatives. Organizational aspects also play an important role. The Expert Work Group addresses topics such as organization, skills, and change management, as well as roadmaps and process models for AI transformation. This is complemented by an examination of change processes within the framework of the “human-in-the-loop” approach.

The Expert Work Group is led by Judith Leopold, Principal Digital Finance at KEYE Advisory GmbH; Nausica Costin, Senior Manager of AI in Finance at MHP; and Jaqueline Palazewski, Lead Consultant for Digital Transformation at valantic Management Consulting. The Vice Women are Univ.-Prof. Dr. Verena Dorner from the Institute for Digital Ecosystems at WU Vienna and Prof. Stefanie Schwaar from HTW Berlin, who specializes in ML and AI solutions.

This Expert Work Group is open to professionals and executives in finance, controlling, and transformation, regardless of industry. It is aimed in particular at CFOs, heads of finance, controlling, accounting, and tax departments, those responsible for finance excellence and financial transformation, executives in finance shared service centers, heads of AI, senior controllers and business partners, those responsible for reporting and planning, as well as AI process owners with end-to-end responsibility.

The Expert Work Group “Finance Change & AI Transformation” serves as a platform for discussing the challenges and opportunities associated with AI transformation in finance and controlling. Interested professionals and executives are invited to get involved and actively shape the professional dialogue.