The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) today unveiled findings from its Future-Ready Finance: Technology, Productivity, and Skills Survey, revealing a significant gap between finance professionals’ expectations of AI’s impact and their organisations’ readiness to adopt it.

The survey of 1,446 senior finance and accounting leaders and managers paints a stark picture of organisational preparedness for AI:

• 88% of respondents believe AI will be the most transformative technology trend in accounting and finance over the next 12–24 months.
• Yet only 8% feel their organisation is very well prepared to manage the AI trend, while 21% feel their organisation is well prepared.
• 56% of respondents identified Generative AI (GenAI) as the most prominent skills gap. This reflects a broader shift in the skills landscape, with IT and technological capabilities moving from a secondary concern (20% in 2021) to the top priority today (46%).

The survey also highlights key barriers to technology adoption, with half of respondents (50%) citing a lack of human capital, skills, and talent as the biggest challenge, closely followed by safety and security concerns (47%) and doubts about technology maturity (42%).

Andrew Harding, FCMA, CGMA, Chief Executive of The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, said: “The advance of AI tools in the last two years is enabling a paradigm shift in how finance teams operate and the work they can do to generate value for their organisations. While professionals recognise the potential on offer, many today feel underprepared and under-skilled. There’s a clear gap between anticipating disruption and taking action.”

Despite the uncertainty, Harding remains optimistic: “The good news is that CIMA is addressing the skills gap. Earlier this year, we overhauled the CGMA Professional Qualification to embed new technologies such as GenAI across the syllabus and offer a number of resources to help members develop digital finance skills. GenAI is fast becoming a powerful co-pilot for finance professionals, helping to guide decision-making, drive performance, and enhance the value finance business partners bring to organisations. There has never been a better time to be a CGMA designation holder.”

Other key findings of the survey:

• Barriers to productivity: Lack of skills (41%) and low motivation (37%), followed by incompatible technology systems and poor coordination in tech implementation (both at 32%), which not only hinder organisational productivity but also slow the adoption of new technologies.

• Skills gaps beyond GenAI: Broader technology skills (AI, big data, cloud, IoT, robotics) remain a concern (37%), alongside data and analytics (36%). Significant gaps also persist in key areas such as communication, influencing, and critical thinking (33%) and business partnering (32%).
• Addressing skills gaps: On-the-job training ranks highest (61%) for effective technology upskilling, reflecting a strong preference for practical, just-in-time learning that integrates with daily work.

To download the report, visit https://bit.ly/4p2oV4D