Job security is a concern for most professionals at some point in their career. But now, modern workers have to grapple with the threat of artificial intelligence and whether AI could replace the need for their human abilities altogether, rendering their current role non-existent. Naturally, workers in certain industries feel more vulnerable to this threat than others. This has also left many asking,” Which industries will AI impact the most?” At Datarails, we focus on financial technology and finance AI tools. While that is certainly part of the discussion we’ll have today, we also want to di ..read more

When any finance business partner–a CFO or an FP&A professional–wants their counterpart across the table in marketing, sales or HR, to understand the essentials of numbers, they hand them the business classic, Financial Intelligence, A Manager’s Guide to Knowing what the Numbers Really Mean. First published in 2006, the book has been named in the Top 100 Business Books of all time and remains a word of mouth sensation and continues to sell rapidly nearly two decades on. The classic was authored by former CFO, Joe Knight and Karen Berman. Until her untimely death 10 years ago, Karen, was al ..read more

AI tools for HR are becoming more common and a great way to help deal with the challenges that HR teams face today – namely employee retention and recruitment and how employee changes affect the company’s revenue and future. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) data, approximately 25% of organizations already use automation and AI in HR-related tasks. This number is evidence of a growing trend in HR—leveraging AI technology. For businesses that already use AI for HR, it shapes how their entire teams operate. Now, more HR teams are eager to explore the possibilities of ..read more

It’s a bustling Monday morning, and Sarah, a junior finance professional, is settling at her desk when the CFO, Mark, bursts into her office. “Sarah, I need a report for the board meeting this afternoon. We need to present our financial insights and recommendations for the next quarter.” Eager to impress, Sarah nods enthusiastically and gets to work. Four hours and thirteen minutes later, Sarah hits the final slide on her deck. She nailed it. Every detail of the complex financial analyses was captured in graphs and charts. Any questions? The silence lasts a little too long. Surveying the glaze ..read more

In this episode Glenn Hopper talks to the researcher responsible for the groundbreaking study which found that AI is better at conducting financial analysis than humans. Alex Kim, University of Chicago Booth School of Business, provides a full overview of his findings, methodology and the impact on FP&A, CFOs and finance from the attention-grabbing study “Financial Statement Analysis with Large Language Models”. The analysis, which made headlines across the world, found AI produces a 60% rate of accuracy in predictive financial performance. Human experts’ accuracy tends to fall betwee ..read more

Becoming a CFO is not easy, but it’s also very attainable. There is no one path to get there, but the right education, skillset, and motivation will definitely help. CFOs of S&P 500 companies’ average annual salary is $4.7 million, while many of the top 500 highest paid CFOs in the US top over $1 million annually. With these numbers in mind, it’s no surprise so many people want to know how to become a CFO. This high-level role sits at the intersection of strategy and financial management. A CFO title might come with a big paycheck, but it’s also a job requiring a lot of experience and educ ..read more

We received a flood of FP&A and CFO questions from our audience (and FP&A Reddit). These and more are put to this this week’s finance headhunter special guests: Nick Gribbon,Senior Partner, Financial Officers Practice at Essenta, and Laura Streather, Consultant, Private Equity at Essenta, who run the finance headhunting section at the global executive search firm. Hear all the behind the scenes anecdotes and secrets to getting your next big FP&A or CFO job. Connect with Nick Gribbon, Senior Partner, Financial Officers Practice at Essenta https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-gribbon-373 ..read more

Insight Software’s Spreadsheet Server real-time financial reporting tool works with over 140 of the top ERPs directly in Excel. Many users rely on this solution to automate the most time-consuming financial analysis processes that weigh their business down. But is Spreadsheet Server the best way to do this? Are there better alternatives? Where does it stand out from the competition? We’ll get to the bottom of these questions and more in this comprehensive overview of Spreadsheet Server reviews, alternatives, and features. Spreadsheet Server: Overview Spreadsheet Server, developed by Insight So ..read more

When you think of business growth, the first thing that comes to mind tends to be customer acquisition. But there is another important metric that is often overlooked – Customer Lifetime Value, or CLV. Before looking for new customers, you should make sure you’re making the most of your existing customer base. One of the most overlooked avenues to business growth can be increasing customer lifetime value. Moreover, tracking this metric is a vital financial KPI for monitoring overall business health. It can help businesses discover key obstacles to their success like churn rate, abandoned carts ..read more

Human resources software tools are incredibly important in today’s business environment. It’s how companies keep all of the employee data in one place, comply with a range of global legalities, and make sure everything is in order with their most important resource – their workers.  BambooHR is one of the more popular Human Resources tools. It aims to enhance the employee experience, streamline workflows, and improve data accuracy. The software includes applicant tracking, onboarding, performance management, and HR reporting.  But HRIS software, including BambooHR have their limitati ..read more