Only 11% of financial expenditures in the global industrial sector are directed towards digital technologies and solutions, while 75% of expenses remain focused on internal and contracted employees, and 14% on experts and external support.
The data, revealed in a recent study by consultancy Gartner based on information collected over the past year, indicates there is much progress to be made in the sector’s digitalization and that it is poised for significant growth in the coming years.
Another survey by Deloitte points out that, despite the low share of technology investments, the digital transformation in corporate finance is already underway. It states that innovations such as report automation, ERP system integration, and the use of data for predictive modeling are among the leading trends in the field.
This scenario is also reflected in the priorities of financial leaders. According to a CFO Alliance study, 45% of CFOs prioritize data integration and visualization as their focus area. The expectation is that operational routines will become increasingly automated, allowing financial teams to concentrate on planning, projections, and strategy-related activities.
“Routine tasks tend to be absorbed by systems and platforms, leaving the team more dedicated to analysis and decision-making,” evaluates Alysson Guimarães, a specialist in the sector and CEO of LeverPro, a company that develops and provides technological solutions for the finance sector. In 2024, LeverPro was recognized as the best fintech in the country by the Brazilian Institute of Finance Executives (IBEF-SP).
According to the executive, applying technology in finance allows data to be more precise, centralized, and accessible in real time. Reports become customized according to each organization’s needs, and scenarios can be simulated more swiftly and consistently.
“Those who still spend time filling out spreadsheets are wasting their most valuable asset: their analytical capacity. The era of finance as a reactive department is fading. Today, numbers must guide actions, not just record results,” says Guimarães.
For the CEO of LeverPro, while acknowledging it won’t be an immediate reality for all companies, there will indeed be an intensification of this process. “Few finance functions will have a completely touchless back office by 2025. However, routine tasks will become increasingly easy to automate through ERPs, systems, and other technologies, ‘freeing up’ the finance department to focus on planning, forecasting, and other higher-value strategic activities,” he says.
With integration to over 50 ERPs, LeverPro’s solution, for example, automates projections, consolidates financial statements, generates customized indicators, and builds collaborative budgets with end-to-end governance.
“Technology removes manual and operational tasks from the planning and finance team, allowing them to focus on strategy and intelligence,” reinforces Guimarães.
The impact? A more strategic, agile finance team, closely connected to business results.
According to Alysson Guimarães, this evolution also impacts professional development. Initiatives aimed at fostering strategic competencies are gaining traction in the market, preparing teams to handle new tools and challenges.
“Proof of this is the creation of the CFX Institute, a course platform designed to train professionals with a strategic vision in corporate finance. Having the technology alone isn’t enough—you need to prepare those who will use it,” the CEO concludes.
