Finance teams have more data than ever. Better tools, greater visibility into cash positions and more forecasting capability than seemed possible a decade ago. However, the real opportunity now is not through more information; it is doing more with it.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is starting to change that. Not all at once, but in practical ways that improve how finance teams work day-to-day.
What AI is actually improving
In the most recent Growth Corporates Working Capital Index, working capital efficiency ranked as one of the top AI use cases among CFOs and treasurers. The applications are specific: financial modeling and scenario planning, supplier assessment and onboarding and automating routine processes in financial operations.
These are all areas where the old way was slow — and where the pace of change now matters more than ever. Macroeconomic volatility has pushed finance teams to model scenarios faster, respond to supply chain shifts more quickly and make liquidity decisions with less lead time than they are used to. AI helps reduce the friction in each of those moments.
AI can compress the time between information and action.
The real barrier is knowing where to start
When finance leaders talk about AI, the hesitation is rarely about whether it works. It is about where to begin.
Many growth corporates already use AI without fully realizing it, embedded in the ERP systems and vendor tools they rely on every day. The capability is already there. What can be missing is the inspiration as to where to start.
Data readiness comes up often as a concern. Some finance leaders know their data is fragmented across systems and inconsistently formatted. That concern is valid, but it is a reason to start small, rather than wait. The organizations seeing results did not solve data quality first. They found a specific, high-friction use case and leveraged AI to address it.
What leading organizations are doing differently
Not all finance leaders use working capital the same way. Some manage it strategically, treating it as a tool for planned growth. Others use it tactically, responding to emergencies as they arise. A third group has emerged recently: adaptive leaders who move quickly in response to volatility, accelerating payments to key suppliers or securing inventory ahead of disruption.
The growth corporates getting the most from AI tend to fall into that last category. They treat working capital as a dynamic tool rather than something to review on a quarterly basis, and they use AI to optimize their usage.
Supplier management is a strong example. Organizations using AI onboard and replace suppliers faster than those without.¹ Faster onboarding reduces the leverage that slow processes give to existing suppliers. It helps create more parity between buyers and suppliers which means that when a better option appears, the organization can act.
There is a useful way to think about where this is heading. Every invoice is a working capital decision disguised as a payment. The question of when to pay, how to pay and to whom has direct implications for cash flow, supplier relationships and the cost of capital. The organizations gaining ground are starting to treat it that way.
Faster onboarding shifts the balance of power between buyers and suppliers
Where to start
Do not wait for a perfect strategy. An important first step is simply to begin using what is already available, building familiarity and confidence before expanding scope. Most ERP and financial platforms include AI capabilities. Understanding those is more valuable than acquiring something new.
From there, focus on the highest-friction areas first. For most growth corporates that is payables: supplier integration, early payment decisions and cash flow forecasting are all areas where AI can create measurable impact quickly.
Early payments, supplier integration and cash flow predictability are the strongest predictors of working capital performance.¹ A conversation with your banking partner about what is already available in your existing platforms is a good place to begin.
From reactive to predictive
The long-term advantage can come from using AI with confidence.
Finance teams that get this right move from reacting to events toward anticipating them. They position capital earlier, make decisions faster and treat working capital as a continuous cycle rather than a series of separate decisions.
For growth corporates already moving in this direction, that is the competitive advantage they are building.
About the author
Lauren Hewings
Senior Director, Global Large and Middle Market (LMM), Visa Commercial Solutions
Lauren Hewings is responsible for growing Large and Middle Market revenues globally for Visa Commercial Solutions. She leads a team that focuses on B2B payments solutions and their applications in different industries all over the world