Are you spending too many sleepless nights merging Excel files, checking invoices, and chasing numbers during audit season?”
In more than 5 years of working with hundreds of CFOs and chief accountants, the Bizzi Vietnam team has noticed a common denominator:
What exhausted them was not the complexity of the work, but the sheer volume of manual work.
This is the barrier that many Traditional CFO It is difficult to spend time on long-term strategies.
And that's why AI CFO – CFOs apply AI and automation – becoming an inevitable trend, helping the finance department liberate manual labor, optimize operations and make fast decisions based on data.
Approximately 70% of CFO time is “burned” on manual work
The average CFO spends 60-70% of time per month on activities that do not create strategic value, including:
- 2-3 days to merge Excel files from departments, branches, and subsidiaries.
- 4-6 hours writing financial commentary for reports to the Board of Directors.
- Dozens of hours with the team to process invoices, reconcile documents, and check validity
- Stressful audit season due to scattered documents and unstandardized data.
This leaves CFOs with no time for important tasks like:
- Financial strategic planning.
- Analyze investment risks and opportunities. Train and lead finance and accounting teams.
This makes CFO no time left for critical tasks such as strategic planning, investment risk analysis or leading finance teams.
Meanwhile, a group Pioneer CFO application started AI and automation, from there free up time, focusing on strategic leadership and business growth.
Traditional CFO vs. AI-enabled CFO
Traditional CFO – busy but ineffective, “tied down” by manual processes
Traditional CFOs rely on experience, reputation and intuition, but each month they usually have to:
- Reserved 2 days to complete the report to the Board of Directors
- 6 hours for financial commentary
- 3–4 hoursMerge and consolidate Excel files from multiple departments
- Stress during audit due to scattered documents
Strengths of the Traditional CFO
- Meticulous and reliable: These CFOs have deep technical knowledge and analytical abilities based on years of experience.
- Have reputation and leadership skills, helping to maintain the trust of the Board of Directors.
Weaknesses:
- Manual process slow and expensive, especially as the business scales.
- Error prone due to distributed and asynchronous data.
- Difficult to create overall vision, only processes past data instead of predicting the future.
- 70% of time is spent on reporting, leaving only 30% for strategic planning.
CFOs using AI – strategic leaders, not just controllers
AI CFOs Remain in Leadership Role, But Are Accelerated by technologyInstead of being “drowned” in Excel, they leverage AI and automation to focus on Working capital optimization, forecasting and strategic decision making.
- Automate periodic reporting with ChatGPT + Python and other supporting tools
- Create financial commentary in 10 minutes: AI analyzes Actual vs. Budget fluctuations, explains the reasons for increases/decreases, and generates detailed analysis
- Building an analytical model only from simple prompt: Test “what-if” scenarios on raw material prices, exchange rates, interest rates in real time.
- Prepare SOP, checklist, correspondence in seconds, standardize internal processes.
Practical benefits:
- Analysis Real-time “what-if” scenarios to evaluate financial assumptions
- 24/7 Anomaly Detection, timely handling before closing the book
- Optimize time to Lead teams and make strategic decisions
- Scale quickly while still ensuring control
Core Difference:
- Traditional CFOs spend most of their time in Excel
- AI CFOs spend most of their time leading and guiding strategy
The Gap Between Traditional CFO and AI CFO
3 Steps to Becoming an AI CFO
Friend No need for data analysis team, nor does it require a complete system refactoring. Let's start with the most time-consuming manual tasks each month:
1) Create financial commentary (from 6 hours ➝ ~10 minutes)
Use ChatGPT Agent Mode to analyze data and automatically generate financial commentary in Excel.
Sample prompt:
“Analyze the financial data in the uploaded Excel file. Clean the data if necessary, and automatically generate a financial commentary explaining the major variances between Actual vs Budget. Record how much each category (Revenue, Expenses, OPEX, etc.) increased or decreased by %, and add the results to a new column in the file called Automatic Commentary.”
💡 Security Note:
- Import only sensitive data AI tool meets enterprise security standards.
- Check with your IT/Finance team to see what service package you are using.
2) Financial scenario analysis (answer in minutes, not days)
Financial forecasts often take days or weeks to build and update. Use AI models like Gemini or ChatGPT for analysis dashboard or simulator in natural language. From there, quickly build financial forecast in just a few minutes.
Steps to follow:
- Prepare the photo dashboard or report Present
- List the key driver in Excel: Revenue, Expenses, Exchange Rates, Interest Rates, Selling Prices, Cash Flow Create driver tree with Best / Base / Worst case scenarios
- Output 1 page chart and memo: assumptions, sensitivities, factors to monitor
3) Consolidate financial files (save hours per cycle)
One of the biggest pain points for CFOs is consolidating data from multiple departments and branches. You can use AI to create script (Google Script, VBA, Python) to clean, format and consolidate data from multiple sources into a single file.
Efficient process:
- Identify data source
- Describe data structure
- Identify tools in use (Excel, Google Sheets, ERP, etc.)
- Detailed description manual steps you are doing
- AI Requirements propose many solutions, exported as a table for easy comparison
- Choose the optimal solution and ask for AI generate specific code
- Implement, test, and continue using AI to troubleshoot when needed
💡 Pro tip:
- Record the entire process in SOP right the first time
- Next month just need “run → review → improve”, not “start over”.
However, as highlighted above, data security is extremely important. When using AI for financial data, security is always the number one priority. Bizzi Vietnam recommends that CFOs and finance teams take the following steps:
- Use only enterprise-grade AI: Prioritize certified platforms ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR.
- Hide or encrypt sensitive data before entering into the AI engine.
- Check service package with IT/Finance team to ensure appropriate access and authorization.
Why you should start now
The CFO Role Isn't Changing: Boards Still Expect You to Deliver strategic vision, analytical insight and leadership. The difference is: They want you to do it faster.
AI is the tool to help you achieve this — and your board knows it!
When AI handles manual tasks, you have time to focus on high value-added activities:
- Lead and coach the team
- Financial Strategy Audit
- Impact on business decisions before they are released
Check yourself this week: Where are you on your journey to becoming an AI CFO?
Every CFO has a packed schedule, but sometimes the hectic pace of work gets in the way. forget to look back at your role and core values in business. Try to spend 5 minutes this weekend to answer the following 3 important questions:
1. Do you build the report yourself and send it to the Board of Directors, or just sign it for approval?
Most CFOs have a support team, but the difference lies in Your role in the reporting process:
- If you and your team still Manually merge Excel files, check the data line by line, sheet by sheet before sending to the Board of Directors, you are waste of precious time into operations.
- If you just need open dashboard, automatic data review has been standardized and signed, you are actually play a strategic role, not “stuck” at the task layer.
This reflects a fact: The 21st century CFO is not valued simply for his ability to “check the numbers,” but for strategic vision and speed of decision making.
2. Can you run a live financial scenario during the meeting?
In Board meetings, all decisions are usually revolve around numbers and financial assumptions:
- Raw material prices increased by 10%, exchange rates fluctuated, revenue was slower than expected...
- Each scenario affects cash flow and growth strategy.
If you need a few days or even weeks to build and update a forecasting model, you will always running after meetings instead of lead it. In contrast, with AI tools, CFOs can:
- Enter data and Run what-if scenarios right in the meeting room, with Best Case – Base Case – Worst Case scenarios.
- Proactive propose optimal solutions immediately, demonstrating financial leadership rather than just being a “numbers provider.”
An AI-enabled CFO will never be passive, because they always prepare many options and updated data. in real time.
3. Do the unusual fluctuations find you, or do you still chase them at 10pm?
Traditional CFOs often experience "end of month nightmare":
- 10pm still emergency call to the accounting department for an unconfirmed expense.
- Stay up all night checking documents before closing date.
- Audit season is stressful when data is scattered and unstandardized.
The problem is not your ability or your team, but Manual processes are not fast and accurate enough to control fluctuations.
AI can change this by:
- 24/7 data monitoring, detect abnormalities and send alerts immediately.
- Minimize risk with automated control systems that don't rely on "humans checking in time." Help CFOs sleep well at night, instead of passively "running after incidents".
If most of your answers are “No”…
It doesn't mean you're failing – it just means you're is at the right starting point of the conversion journey.
The world of finance is changing faster than ever. Boards of directors, investors and markets CFOs are expected to respond faster, more deeply, and more accurately.. AI is the tool that helps you achieve this.
Let's start from a small workflow this week. Don't overcomplicate things – small wins add up to big progress.
You can start your AI CFO journey with Bizzi today
A typical example of AI + Automation in financial management in Vietnam is Bizzi Vietnam, a specialized SaaS platform for automating invoice processing and expense management.
Even when CFOs have the ability to build reports and predictive models using AI, there is still a major “bottleneck” that keeps finance teams caught up in operational work:
- Invoices and input documents processed manually, prone to errors, time consuming.
- Cost approval process complicated, many steps, causing delays in payment and travel expenses.
- Lack of real-time data making it impossible for CFOs to grasp cost fluctuations in a timely manner, having to wait for month-end or quarter-end summaries.
- Risk of loss and cost fraud, especially for businesses with many branches or market sales teams.
- Pressure to comply with legal regulations and document storage (CO, CQ, VAT invoice) is increasing, especially when the business expands.
Consequence: CFOs are stuck in “data farming”, rather than focusing on financial leadership and strategic planning roles.
Bizzi Vietnam uses AI and RPA (Robotic Process Automation) to replace almost all manual processes in Invoice processing and expense management, help businesses operate “digital finance” true meaning
Outstanding features:
Automate input invoice processing
- AI automatically reads, checks, and compares invoices with POs/warehouse receipts, eliminating 99.9% data entry errors.
- Reduce 80% time and 50% cost compared to manual process.
For example, an FMCG business with an average of 3,000 invoices/day can save up to 100 hours of accounting work just with this feature.
Centralized expense & travel management
- Employees can create payment requests, book tickets, and send documents right on the app/web.
- Validity check system, automatic warning when overspending.
- Manage and approve accounting anytime, anywhere, without relying on manual paperwork.
Real-time budget control
- Assign budget to each department/project.
- Monitor actual expenditure vs. budget directly on the system.
- Instant alerts when there are unusual fluctuations.
Corporate card and payment integration
- Bizzi partners with financial partners to provide “Pay Now – Pay Later” solution up to 45 days.
- Automatically synchronize transactions from corporate cards into the system, ensuring transparency and reducing fraud.
Smart reporting and analytics
- All cost, invoice, and work data is automatically aggregated into a real-time dashboard.
- CFOs can run reports right in the meeting, without waiting for the team to prepare them manually.
Bizzi Vietnam always accompanies CFOs and Vietnamese businesses on the journey of financial digital transformation.
Want to see Bizzi in action on your own data?
Sign up for free demo today and experience how Bizzi helps automate financial processes, control costs, and bring your business closer to the digital age. AI CFO.
Schedule a free consultation to discover how AI can help you:
- Speed up financial and accounting processes.
- Reduce audit and compliance risks.
- Free up time for strategy and growth.
The article is referenced and inspired by the original content of Nicolas Boucher, a globally influential financial expert, known for his insightful analysis of financial strategy and digital transformation.
Bizzi Vietnam compiles and develops additional information, analysis, practical examples and financial automation solutions to provide a perspective relevant to businesses in Vietnam.
