After AI Fever: When to Automate Finance Processes

    Join this finance webinar exploring when AI should automate finance processes and when it shouldn’t. Learn how selective automation reduces admin, builds auditor trust and frees finance leaders to focus on strategy and judgement.

    04 November 2026
    10am - 11am GMT
    UK

Speakers


Host/Moderator
Executive Leaders Network

As host and moderator, ELN will lead the session, facilitating expert discussion and ensuring a valuable experience, with opportunities for participants to ask questions and engage.

Vitor Silva
Senior Finance Business Partner
Pleo

Strategic finance leader with 15+ years of experience driving business growth and optimising financial performance across global enterprises (Amazon, H.B. Fuller) and high-growth scale-up (Pleo).

After AI Fever: When to Automate Finance Processes, and When Not to

Finance teams adopted AI at scale; 98% now use it, but transformation has stalled. Pleo’s latest research found that over half of finance leaders spend more time policing spend than shaping strategy. AI was meant to change this.

This session argues that the most effective AI for finance is one that's honest about where it can't go. Because AI doesn’t replace finance craft, it clears the noise so leaders can focus on judgement. We'll explore how intelligence that knows its limits speeds up approvals, earns auditor trust and puts decision-making right back where it belongs: with you.

Key Takeaways:

  • AI Adoption ≠ Transformation: 98% of finance leaders now use AI, yet transformation has stalled. Widespread tool adoption doesn't automatically drive business impact without the right strategy and workflows; AI becomes another checkbox rather than a catalyst.
  • The Spend-Policing Trap: Over half of finance teams spend more time policing spend than shaping strategy. This reactive cycle wastes leadership capacity that should be focused on judgement calls, forecasting, and driving business value.
  • AI Works Best With Honest Limits: The most effective AI isn't the one that promises to replace finance craft; it's the one honest about what it can and cannot do.Knowing where AI stops helps teams deploy it where it matters most.
  • AI Clears Noise; Judgement Shapes Strategy: AI's real power isn't automation for automation's sake; it's removing administrative friction and routine work so finance leaders can focus on what only humans do well: strategic decision-making and complex judgement.
  • Selective Automation Beats Comprehensive Automation: Not every finance process should be automated. The winning approach: automate what's repetitive and low-risk, preserve what requires expertise, and use the time saved to tackle strategic finance challenges.

    Good news: This is a virtual event that can be attended from the comfort of your office/home, eliminating the need to travel. By choosing to attend this virtual event, you are contributing to a more sustainable future while still benefiting from valuable industry insights.