With AI, process and workflow innovation is just as important as product innovation. The best place for organisations to start is to review their business operations and strategically choose the use cases where AI will enhance human action; that is, make a process more efficient, reduce human error, or allow new processes to be put in place. Similarly, it involves identifying opportunities for AI use that enables teams to concentrate on strategic priorities and what they do best, rather than being distracted by administrative responsibilities.

AI in Finance

In the finance sector, accuracy and time is paramount; however, this means there can be some reluctance to introduce AI. Training and a thorough implementation process, particularly leveraging the skills and experience of an external partner, can encourage implementation and effective AI use throughout an organisation.

The most important AI skills are prompt engineering and strategic thinking. AI is like a digital worker: it needs training, and when properly utilised, can become an extension of the team. Prompt engineering is a skill like any other and providing understanding best-practise is paramount. This is where the need for a cultural shift comes in, part of AI implementation is about creating excitement and focused training to give teams the confidence to effectively craft prompts and understand when and where AI brings value to their role.

Utilising the Right Technology

The next step is to utilise the right technology for the right business or client need. Many companies, especially in the financial space, are training their own small language learning models as opposed to open LLMs within their own environments, also known as Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG). This ensures not only that private and sensitive data does not enter the public domain, but also that the AI responses are tailored and more impactful.

Areas where AI can excel for finance teams include planning and analysis, account reconciliation, recording data through to reporting, tax and treasury operations and compliance processes. It can help to speed up and improve accuracy in the month end process and reporting, reducing pressure on finance teams at that all-important month end period. By giving finance teams the right tools and training, they can manage this autonomously by creating and training their own AI agents, adapting to their specific needs.

Good Use of AI

What ‘good’ use of AI looks like should be defined as part of any training and implementation process. We see the best results when everyone is aligned on AI implementation, and it is purposefully integrated into strategic areas of business operations. It’s also important to learn from others; the recent Microsoft AI Tour is a great example of where to draw inspiration. Sharp exhibited how XR glasses can interact with AI to merge physical and digital worlds to inspire businesses as to how thinking outside the box can often lead to unlocking new opportunities you may never have considered.

That ultimately is the real power of AI – disrupting the finance world, and empowering teams to reconsider established processes, reduce inefficiencies and become more creative in their approach.

Learn more at sharp.co.uk