Auditoria: many corporate finance back-office systems are not automated

Even though industries are increasingly embracing automation, corporate financial services still rely on manual processes. That’s one finding from Auditoria’s State of Automation in the Back Office report: nearly 60% of finance professionals said that current back office systems are not automated enough.

Nearly 60% of finance departments believe there is a tipping point within the back office because current back office systems do not meet their needs. While other departments are embracing cutting-edge technologies, finance is stuck at the start, wasting valuable time and resources on manual tasks that could be automated.

Accounts Payable is the most manual back-office process. Nearly a third of finance professionals believe that accounts payable involved the most manual work within the
finance back-office, follow-up of customer accounts.

Above: Most finance professionals are missing out on the benefits of artificial intelligence.

Image Credit: Auditoriums

The results clearly indicate that finance is fed up with the current status quo, with manual tasks taking up the majority of their day. Time spent on repetitive tasks is the top challenge for finance professionals, followed by time spent verifying and updating data. Additionally, more than 50% of finance professionals want a reduction in these types of tasks. Many are ready to embrace automation, as a third of professionals said investing in new technology to improve business processes in the next year was a top priority for them.

In short, the findings of the Tipping Point: 2021 State of Automation in the Back Office report indicate that the corporate finance back office must embrace automation to survive in a digitally driven business environment. Now more than ever, finance needs to shed its reputation for being slow to adopt new technologies and use advanced systems, allowing the back office to contribute more directly to an organization’s strategic growth.

Auditoria conducted an online survey of 622 US-based finance professionals in the spring of 2021, ages 30-60+. Titles included CFO/Chief Accounting Officer, Controller, VP/Director/Finance or Accounting Manager, Finance Specialist/Professional (Accounts Payable, Receivables, Collections, Treasury, Tax, Audit, etc.) or IT/financial support.

Read in full Tipping Point: 2021 Automation Status Report in the Back Office of the Auditorium.