In this podcast episode, FM editor-in-chief Oliver Rowe summarises the content in the February digital edition of FM. He begins with an article on use cases for finance teams using AI and automation to improve efficiency, from predicting late customer payments to accelerating complex data‑transformation projects.
This episode also previews articles on practical guidance for strengthening your LinkedIn presence, responding to a rival organisation’s recruiting pitch, and understanding more about the fractional CFO model.
The conversation closes with an explanation of how members can access the February digital edition as well as the issue library.
What you’ll learn from this episode:
- Details on the article about how finance teams can apply AI and automation.
- A short sound clip from Mohit Sharma, ACMA, CGMA, one of the experts quoted in the article on AI and automation use cases.
- A preview of the article on strengthening your LinkedIn presence.
- Other highlighted topics from the February digital edition.
- How CGMA professionals can access digital editions of FM.
Play the episode below or read the edited transcript:
— To comment on this episode or to suggest an idea for another episode, contact Neil Amato at Neil.Amato@aicpa-cima.com.
Transcript
Neil Amato: Welcome back to the FM podcast. This is your host, Neil Amato. Today’s topic is the FM digital edition for February, and joining the show is FM editor-in-chief Oliver Rowe to discuss it. Oliver, welcome back to the podcast.
Oliver Rowe: Thank you, Neil. Great to be back.
Amato: One article in this edition is on a very practical topic for finance teams and finance leaders. It has the headline, “How Are Finance Teams Really Using AI and Automation?” We have a sound clip from one of the quoted experts in that article. Oliver, can you tell me more about that?
Rowe: The CGMA professional’s name is Mohit Sharma, and the clip is about when CFOs can introduce automation and when AI processes are more appropriate.
Mohit Sharma: When they are evaluating these different options to resolve their challenges, and every CFO 100% has got 30 different challenges which are very big and very open for them. This is their day-to-day life. Try to see, if there is a challenge associated with volumes, scale — automation is the right fit. If there is a challenge which needs decision-making or intelligence, this is where you can refer to AI as the right fit.
Amato: Again, that was the voice of Mohit Sharma, one of the experts quoted in the article. That’s a good preview for us, I think. Oliver, what else would you like to say about that topic?
Rowe: Thank you. We have three experts in the article, including Mohit Sharma, each with a use case of how they’re using AI and automation. The first of these is how Mohit Sharma is using AI to solve what is a long-standing and pervasive issue, which is delays in paying invoices. An estimate from the article is that 60% of customer invoices generated in a B2B environment don’t get paid on time, and this has many consequences.
The solution that Mohit Sharma is providing is to use AI to predict which customers will be late making payment and the specific reason it appears that they’re likely to be late in doing that. The article explains that the AI solution taps into a broad spectrum of data to deliver an actionable insight at a scale that would not otherwise be possible. The second use case for AI is a daunting data transformation project completed in just a few days that normally would have taken several weeks. Thirdly, the article has a telecoms use case for automation.
Amato: Thank you for that summary. Also in this edition is an article on making the most of your LinkedIn profile. What is some of the advice shared there?
Rowe: Absolutely, Neil. This one from Andrew Kenney. The article describes how LinkedIn provides an important resource to search, network, and post content. It also discusses if and how you should create videos. The article also looks at third-party AI tools, how they’re used in relation to LinkedIn, but offers a caution about using AI-generated content. That’s especially third-party tools as the potential to violate LinkedIn’s terms of service.
Amato: This next topic, I’d label it a talker because it is a headline that definitely draws attention: “What to Do When a Rival Tries to Poach You”. What can you say about that one?
Rowe: Yes, Neil. While it’s flattering to be contacted by a competitor’s business about an opportunity, there are several pitfalls to avoid, and the article describes these. The article offers advice in the event your employer takes what you might describe as a hardball stance and how you can navigate that. There’s a range of other advice about meetings, when to arrange those, and the process — which sometimes can be fairly long.
Amato: That’s great. We’ve talked about AI and automation. We’ve talked about LinkedIn. We’ve talked about that career topic you just mentioned. What else would you like to highlight from the February digital edition?
Rowe: Several more articles to highlight. There’s a second article on AI implementation, specifically looking at SMEs — small- and medium-size enterprises.
We’ve got an article on how to make the fractional CFO/client relationship effective. The use of fractional CFOs is growing, and the article provides data that points to that. The fractional model has allowed small and growing businesses to hire experienced executives in a part-time consulting role. But the arrangement, as the article points out, is not only for small businesses.
The model offers flexibility for large companies, providing finance leadership on an interim basis when that’s required and also help with expansion of particular projects. The article looks at both sides of the relationship and talks to several CGMA professionals. There’s advice that includes, about the scope of the engagement, creating phases of work. One fractional CFO in the article suggests three phases of foundation, acceleration, and elevation. For fractional CFOs, specifically, there’s advice to not stop marketing your services.
Amato: That’s an excellent rundown of the content in the February edition. As a closing reminder, how can members access the digital editions?
Rowe: As always, three ways to access the FM digital editions, which are for CGMA professionals. You can go direct to the AICPA and CIMA website at aicpa-cima.com. From the main menu, go to “resources” and then “publications”, and you’ll see Financial Management magazine. There’s also a link on the homepage of the FM website, which is at fm-magazine.com. Then in addition, for each new digital edition, there’s an FM email alerting members to that.
I’d like to mention one other thing if I could, Neil. This edition of FM, as with other editions, we have Institute News, which provides updates on the profession and updates affecting your membership. There’s also the leadership columns.
Amato: That’s great. Oliver Rowe, we look forward to talking to you again in April about that digital edition. Thank you very much for being on.
