Automate your financial reporting with the help of AI

Approximately 79% of finance teams say they feel overwhelmed by manual tasks. Being bogged down in the details slows down their ability to create accurate reports, it leads to errors, and it takes time away from strategic work.

Reporting is one place where AI excels at saving teams time. It can do the heavy lifting when it comes to gathering and consolidating data, and it can pull out insights that would historically take hours of manual analysis. This gives teams the data they need to make better financial decisions, plus more time to act on them.

In this guide, we’ll share the benefits of using AI to support your financial reporting. We’ll also show you some practical ways it can be applied and outline a clear plan for getting started.

AI is becoming standard practice in the financial services sector. The research shows adoption is rising fast, but so are concerns about trust and data quality. Here is what the latest innovations in AI mean for finance teams.

Eighty-three per cent of developers believe AI agents are fundamentally changing how their organisations operate, and 78% worry their business will be left behind if they don’t start to adopt more AI. For finance leaders, building AI into reporting now is the best way to stay ahead of competitors.

Eighty-six per cent of IT leaders say data quality determines whether AI works, and CIOs are already putting about 20% of their budgets into improving it. They know that, if the data isn’t accurate, automation only creates new risks.

Sixty per cent of consumers now expect financial tasks to be automated, but 84% would switch providers if they felt their data was mishandled. This highlights that any good AI strategy has to focus on both productivity and security.

Finance teams spend hours every week on tasks that are important, but repetitive. Collecting receipts, processing transactions, and double-checking for errors all take time away from analysis. Here’s a quick look at all the gains your finance team could make using AI for reporting.

AI makes financial reporting faster and more reliable, which gives teams more time to be creative and strategic. The benefits of using AI-powered financial reporting also include:

• Increased accuracy: AI cuts down on human mistakes by checking data against transactions automatically. When it spots an error, it can flag it for a human expert to review before it causes any damage.
• Greater efficiency: Routine tasks like collecting data, consolidating receipts, and generating reports can be automated.
• Deeper insights: AI can spot patterns that are easy to miss in manual reviews. It can also help forecast revenue, expenses, and cash flow based on real-time data.
• Stronger compliance and risk management: AI tools can monitor transactions in real time to detect fraud or irregularities. They also help ensure that reports meet changing regulatory standards, which is always important for CFOs.

The result is faster financial reporting that gives finance leaders the clarity and confidence to make better decisions.

AI can transform every stage of the reporting workflow, from the first step of gathering data through to audits and compliance.

Here are some of the powerful ways you can use AI in your reporting.

One of the biggest drains on finance teams is pulling data from multiple sources. AI can extract information directly from invoices, receipts, contracts, and PDFs using natural language processing.

Salesforce CRM Analytics takes this a step further by connecting all those sources into one place and preparing the data for analysis, so teams start with a single, reliable view.

Reconciliations are often repetitive and time-consuming. AI can automatically match transactions between company records and bank statements, flagging any differences for human intervention.

It can also validate data against compliance rules in real time, reducing the risk of errors slipping through the cracks. With Agentforce, routine checks and reconciliations can be handled by AI agents that work in the background and alert teams only when something needs their attention.

Once the data is accurate, AI tools can generate draft financial statements like income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow reports. Generative AI can also go a step further by creating plain-language summaries that explain the numbers in a way all your stakeholders can understand.

For example, AI can generate a draft income statement straight from monthly sales and expense data. Tableau then turns those numbers into easy-to-read charts, so finance leaders can quickly see where the business is performing well and where costs are rising.

AI models can forecast revenue, expenses, and cash flow. This supports budgeting, hiring decisions, and scenario planning. For example, AI can show how a change in sales volume affects cash flow three months out, or estimate the impact of rising costs on EOFY results.

AI changes audits from a once-a-year activity into an ongoing process. Transactions can be reviewed as they occur, with any errors or compliance issues flagged immediately.

Generative AI can prepare audit notes in plain language, making it easier for teams to review findings. Salesforce CRM Analytics adds another layer by giving both finance leaders and auditors real-time dashboards, so everyone is working from the same up-to-date, accurate data.

Your financial records are some of the most sensitive data your business holds. If you plan to use AI in financial reporting, you need a clear strategy for your data, people, and processes.

Here is a simple roadmap finance leaders can use to successfully implement AI reporting.

Start by looking at the reporting tasks that take the most time or are prone to human error.

This might be manual data entry, reconciliations, or expense reporting. These areas are good places to test early automation because they immediately free up capacity.

AI works well only if the data it's fed is accurate. Before using new tools, finance teams should tidy up their data, make sure their formatting is consistent, control who has access, and remove duplicates.

You’ll save a lot of manual effort if you choose an AI solution that integrates with your existing finance systems.

Salesforce products such as CRM Analytics, Tableau, and Agentforce are designed to work alongside ERP and accounting platforms (including Xero, MYOB, and QuickBooks). This makes it straightforward to bring all your data together.

Technology adoption is always more successful when teams understand how to use it. Try to offer training focused on shifting finance teams from transactional work to more strategic tasks, such as analysis. This change helps upskill your people, builds their confidence and ensures your team gets as much value as possible from AI.

AI still needs human oversight. Setting up feedback loops helps track what is working and where changes are needed. A good way to start is by testing AI in areas like expense reporting before rolling it out more widely.

When monitoring their new AI tools, finance leaders should ask:

• Are reports and reconciliations correct?
• Do staff feel confident using the AI?
• Is the team spending less time on manual tasks?
• Is the system flagging risks or issues in time for us to intervene?
• Are the insights actually helping leaders make better decisions?

Rolling out AI in financial reporting can feel like a big change, especially if your business isn’t already tech-forward. However, with the right planning, you can overcome any challenges and set your team up for success.

Here are a few potential bumps to be aware of and ways to work through them:

Moving data from old systems and getting new tools to connect properly can be tricky. A phased rollout and choosing an option that integrates easily with your accounting software will help reduce any disruption for your team.

Your team needs to understand how to use AI and monitor its accuracy to get the most out of using it. Beginner-friendly training, clear change management, and support during rollout can increase adoption and ensure people feel supported, rather than replaced.

Generative AI can introduce risks such as copyright issues , data privacy breaches, bias, or inaccurate results. That’s why it’s important to set clear rules and keep human checks in place, so the tools are used safely.

It’s also important for your team to be able to tell when to use AI and when they should rely on human judgment.

One of the biggest risks with AI is staff using it in ways that are unethical. Without clear rules, you can quickly lose trust with customers and regulators. On the flip side, you can build trust by setting policies for how AI is used, keeping it aligned with compliance standards, and making sure someone in your business is responsible for its oversight.

Despite the challenges, secure and easy-to-use software makes the shift simpler.

For example, Syndex, an investment marketplace, used Salesforce Sales Cloud’s AI to automate reporting and compliance. The result was a 50% reduction in admin work and better transparency for investors, with clear updates and enterprise-grade protection from Shield 2.0.

AI is here to stay, with 83% of developers saying AI agents are already changing how businesses work, and 78% are worried they will fall behind without them.

This fundamentally changes what it means to work in finance. Instead of focusing on individual tasks like compliance or gathering expenses, accountants and finance teams are shifting into the role of trusted advisors.

In addition, here are two key ways AI will impact finance teams:

Soon, most teams will be using AI to draft financial reports in plain language, highlight unusual figures, and provide financial reports. Ultimately, this shift is designed to reduce time spent on manual reporting and give finance teams more space to actually make adjustments based on these insights.

AI also makes it possible to check transactions as they happen. This shift from quarterly audits to continuous monitoring can help catch errors early, improve compliance, and build trust with stakeholders.

The skills that matter most now are the ones that help you work with AI directly. Practising with the tools, building confidence, and becoming a native user will put finance leaders in the best position to lead their teams into the future.

The future of finance is one where AI handles the repetitive work and people focus on the strategic and creative side of reporting.

For finance teams, that means less stress, more accuracy, and the chance to have a bigger impact on the business. Getting on board now is all about using the right software and building the skills to use AI confidently in your day-to-day work.

Salesforce’s AI gives finance teams a simple way to get started. It connects the data already in your CRM with your accounting software to deliver secure, trusted insights.

Here are the three tools financial teams usually combine to get the most out of their reporting.

• CRM Analytics uses AI to analyse financial data and build dashboards to forecast revenue, track expenses, and highlight any risks.
• Tableau turns financial statements into clear visualisations, making it easier to spot trends in cash flow or profit.
• Agentforce is your very own AI assistant, automating tasks like reconciliations, report generation, and compliance checks.

Together, these tools make financial reporting faster, smarter, and easier to act on.