Performance by Design

Why Finance Is Entering Its Most Defining Decade Yet

As we approach the Gartner Finance Symposium, one theme is coming through with absolute clarity:
Finance is entering the most consequential period it has faced in decades, shaped by AI, automation and Extended Planning and Analytics (xP&A).

Across my conversations with CFOs, the same pressure points surface. Traditional planning rhythms, manual consolidation and backward-looking reporting are no longer sufficient for organisations that must adapt at speed. Volatility is constant, talent is stretched and decision cycles are compressing.

The discussion is no longer about technology curiosity. It is about redesigning finance so that it becomes the organisation’s system of advantage.

Our panel, Performance by Design, will explore this in depth. Ahead of that conversation, here is why this shift matters, and why now.

AI & Automation: The New Engine Room of Finance

The early discussions about AI focused heavily on automation: how many hours could be saved, how many manual steps could be removed. Automation still matters because it strips out friction, reduces errors and gives teams time back.

But automation is only part of the story.

The real shift comes from combining automation with AI-driven intelligence.

Together, they are changing the finance function in three important ways:

1. Automation removes the operational drag

• Period-end cycles shorten
• Data preparation becomes hands-off
• Approval flows move without bottlenecks
• Teams can redirect effort from processing to advising

2. AI expands what finance can see and solve

• Forecasts adjust automatically to new signals
• Scenarios multiply without extra effort or manual rebuild
• Emerging risks surface earlier through pattern recognition
• Assumptions are tested continuously, not once per quarter

3. Finance gains a genuine decision advantage

When data flows automatically and intelligence is applied continuously, finance can move at the speed the organisation requires. Analysts become partners in shaping decisions rather than custodians of spreadsheets.

This future is augmented finance, where people are supported by systems that take on the heavy, hidden work beneath the analysis.

xP&A: The Integrated Operating Model Finance Needs

Extended Planning and Analytics is becoming the operating model of choice for organisations that want to unify decision-making. Not because it is fashionable, but because disconnected planning no longer works.

xP&A links:

• financial planning
• operational planning
• workforce planning
• commercial planning

into one coherent environment.

When automation connects the data and AI interrogates it, finance can act as the enterprise control tower. Every decision, from supply chain to workforce to commercial strategy, can be viewed as part of a living performance system.

The result is a planning environment that is integrated, responsive and continuously improving.

The Expanding Role of the CFO

All signs point to a significant shift: the CFO is moving from scorekeeper to architect of enterprise performance.

The finance function of the next decade will:

• automate the manual work that slows decision cycles
• operate with continuously updated, AI-enhanced forecasts
• coordinate workflows across teams rather than chase inputs
• integrate financial, operational and commercial signals into a shared context
• align strategy through dynamic modelling rather than static plans
• develop analysts who shape decisions rather than maintain spreadsheets

This shift is already visible in leading organisations across Australia and New Zealand.

Why You Should Join the Session at Gartner Finance Symposium

Our panel brings together leaders from some of Australia’s leading organisations to explore:

• how AI and automation are reshaping the expectations placed on finance
• where organisations are seeing measurable impact today
• how connected data improves judgement and decision quality
• what xP&A looks like inside complex, multi-speed enterprises
• how CFOs are redesigning their operating models for resilience and agility

It will be a practical, honest and cross-industry conversation focused on what is working now, not what might work one day.

Throughout the Symposium, our team will also be at the IBM booth, demonstrating the capabilities, workflows and design patterns that enable this shift. If you are rethinking your planning model or exploring how AI and automation can lift decision-making, I encourage you to stop by.

Finance has entered a defining decade shaped by intelligence, integration and orchestration.

Join us at the Symposium as we explore what that means for your organisation, your team and your role as a CFO. Discover how IBM is helping Australian finance leaders move from reactive reporting to predictive, scenario-led performance — combining trusted AI, intelligent automation and governed hybrid cloud to build finance functions that can anticipate change rather than absorb it. Find out what IBM has planned at the Gartner Finance Symposium, including their panel session with real CFO perspectives. For more information on the Symposium itself, visit Gartner CFO & Finance Symposium.

Want to take your learning further? Register for our upcoming webinar — From 3,000 Spreadsheets to Real-time Insight — and hear first-hand how Summerset transformed their financial planning, eliminating thousands of manual spreadsheets and gaining real-time insights and AI-driven performance with IBM Planning Analytics. Whether you’re attending the Symposium or not, this is a practical, real-world perspective on what modern finance transformation looks like in action

Jason Codespoti is Chief Financial Officer, IBM Australia and New Zealand. He leads financial strategy, performance and transformation across the region, partnering closely with the business to drive disciplined growth and operational excellence. With deep global experience in finance leadership roles across IBM, Jason brings a pragmatic, data-led approach to planning and investment, positioning finance as a strategic partner in delivering sustainable client and shareholder value.