AI is rapidly changing not only what finance technology can do, but how CFOs should think about the technology stack itself.
In this bonus episode of CFO Thought Leader, David Den Boer, CEO of Column Five and Darwin Analytics, joins Jack Sweeney to explore how AI is reshaping enterprise performance management—and why finance leaders may need to rethink long-held assumptions about EPM platforms, data systems and analytics.
Den Boer describes a market in which capabilities once associated with EPM are increasingly emerging from multiple directions. Large language models, data platforms, business intelligence tools and EPM vendors are all extending their reach into finance. For CFOs, the challenge is becoming less about selecting a single application and more about understanding how different technologies can work together.
That changing landscape is also behind Den Boer’s EPM Summit, taking place November 16–19 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Rather than centering on a single vendor, the event brings competing EPM providers, consultants and customers together, giving finance leaders an opportunity to compare approaches and question vendors side by side.
Den Boer argues that AI will also lower the cost of experimentation. Instead of making technology choices that effectively lock finance organizations into decade-long commitments, teams may increasingly be able to test new capabilities, evaluate new data sources and quickly determine what creates value.
His message to CFOs: AI is expanding the choices available to finance—but realizing its potential will require leaders who understand the entire technology landscape and know which questions to ask.
CFOTL: With AI companies, data platforms, BI tools and EPM vendors all moving deeper into finance, how should CFOs think about choosing the right technology?
David Den Boer: It’s confusing, and the answer isn’t going to be the same for every company. Data platforms like Databricks and Snowflake are becoming more full-featured, while BI tools are adding capabilities that previously belonged more exclusively to EPM.
The question becomes: What is uniquely EPM’s domain, and how far can I get by using AI to bridge the gaps between data platforms and front ends such as BI, EPM and Excel?
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My personal opinion is that all of the above is needed. No individual component does it all. AI won’t do it on its own. The data platforms can’t do it. The BI tools don’t do it, and EPM tools come closest but still don’t do it. CFOs have to become very educated and discerning about what each component brings to the table.
CFOTL: If AI changes the economics of finance technology, what changes for finance teams?
David Den Boer: AI is going to give companies much greater freedom to experiment. In the past, adopting a new tool could become a very expensive, long-term commitment. You couldn’t easily experiment, evaluate multiple solutions or roll something back.
I think AI will lower the cost of these solutions and create more options for finance. A company may be able to say, “I’ll take a shot. Let me try it for 90 days.” If it works, incorporate it into the standard process. If it doesn’t, try something else.
Instead of spending so much time operating manually intensive systems, finance teams can spend more time experimenting—looking at new data sources, new utilities and new ways to create value from financial analytics.
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