Dear colleagues,

I have just finished several weeks of International FP&A Board meetings across Switzerland and Germany, and AI was part of almost every conversation. Not because finance leaders are still debating whether it matters. That discussion feels largely settled. What stood out was that the debate was rarely about capability. Most leaders agree AI can provide valuable insights. The real challenge is deciding when those insights can be trusted.

FP&A teams are increasingly using AI to analyse data, identify trends, challenge assumptions, and generate recommendations. Yet very few are prepared to accept those recommendations without checking them first. In finance, that caution is not resistance. We are trained to ask where the number came from, what is driving it, and whether we can defend it. As AI becomes more capable, those questions become even more important.

Our featured insight in this digest explores why explainability, auditability, and transparency are becoming essential requirements for AI in finance. We then look at what it takes to move from AI experimentation to trusted adoption, from organisational readiness and team capability to the way finance professionals question and review AI outputs.

Warm regards,

Larysa Melnychuk, CEO and Founder
FP&A Trends Group & International FP&A Board

AI can generate a forecast, scenario, or recommendation faster than finance can review it. But speed is not enough when the number has to stand up to challenge from the CFO, the Board, or the auditor.

This article examines why explainability, auditability, and traceability are becoming essential before AI outputs can be used in FP&A decisions with confidence.

Read this article on AI transparency in finance → 

Agentic AI can run forecasts, detect anomalies, and escalate exceptions, but only if finance has already defined the process around it.

Olha Zotova shows why successful adoption depends on reliable data, clear ownership, documented workflows, and teams that know when to trust the output and when to challenge it.

Read the article → 

AI readiness is not measured by how many tools finance has tested. It is measured by whether FP&A can use AI outputs in decisions that must be explained, challenged, and defended.

Andrew Wee argues that finance teams need governance first, value-led pilots, and structured upskilling before AI ambition can become board-ready practice.

Read the article → 

Prompting AI is no longer just about asking a better question.

Tanbir Jasimuddin shows how FP&A professionals can move from simple instructions to reasoning-based prompts that define context, test assumptions, check logic, and reduce the risk of polished but unreliable outputs. A practical guide for anyone using AI to support analysis, forecasting, or board-level narratives.

Read the article → 

The articles in this issue highlight a common challenge: moving from AI experimentation to trusted adoption. Our upcoming webinars explore the data, processes, and capabilities finance teams need to make that transition successfully.

FP&A Trends webinars are complimentary and offer an opportunity to learn from members of the International FP&A Board and see how finance leaders around the world are developing their FP&A capabilities. If you are not able to join live, you can register to receive the recording later.

Most AI challenges in FP&A still begin with fragmented data, inconsistent definitions, and weak governance.

Join this webinar to learn how finance teams are improving data foundations to make AI more practical, scalable, and decision-ready.

AI is entering planning, forecasting, and decision support, but many finance teams are still unsure how to move from isolated use cases to practical augmentation.

Register for this webinar to examine what it takes to move AI from isolated use cases into daily finance work.

The 2026 FP&A Trends Survey is here!

This year marks the 10th edition of our global survey. Drawing on insights from thousands of finance professionals worldwide and a decade of research, it provides a unique view of how FP&A is evolving across planning, forecasting, data, technology, business partnering, and AI.

Join us as we reveal the latest findings, discuss what they tell us about FP&A readiness in the age of AI, and explore the priorities shaping the profession's future.