Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast

The question facing every CFO and finance leader right now is, how to invest in AI when the value case is still emerging? Andrew Ashton, Cisco's Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance, sits down with host Myles Corson to discuss the strategy behind how finance leaders can prove AI's impact.   Follow the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast for more conversations with global CFOs and finance leaders on AI, finance transformation and business strategy. Find out more at ey.com/betterfinance.  Key takeaways:  Treat AI spend as additive rather than a substitute for existing budget and prioritize accordingly.  Use pilots to identify patterns of value through better forecasting, stronger insights and faster decision-making.  Coordinate AI activity across functions to reduce duplication and focus resources where they can have the greatest impact.  Establish governance and security controls early to support AI adoption across the enterprise.  Embed AI across existing priorities rather than treating it as a standalone initiative.   © 2026 Ernst & Young Global Limited

In this episode of the Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast, Myles Corson speaks with Sheryl Estrada, senior writer at Fortune and author of the CFO Daily newsletter. Drawing on her conversations with finance leaders, Sheryl shares insights into how the CFO role is evolving beyond traditional finance responsibilities. She also explores how CFOs are playing an increasingly influential role in enterprise transformation.  Sheryl explains that finance leaders are rethinking whether traditional performance metrics fully capture business growth. With CFOs taking a more active role in shaping business strategy, organizations are placing greater emphasis on connecting financial performance to the broader business narrative. As a result, finance is reassessing legacy KPIs and redefining how value is measured and communicated.  The need for greater clarity is also reshaping the finance function itself. Sheryl describes AI and automation as a way to move finance beyond routine work, creating more capacity for the function to contribute to the business as a strategic partner. As CFOs rethink how roles are structured and how work gets done, the future of finance becomes less about adopting new technology and more about building a finance function that can bring sharper insight to the decisions that shape long-term value.  Follow the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast for more conversations with global CFOs and finance leaders. Find out more on ey.com/betterfinance.  Key takeaways:  Understand how the CFOs role is evolving beyond traditional finance responsibilities  Recognize the growing influence of AI on finance priorities and decision-making  Rethink how organizations measure and communicate value  Strengthen collaboration across the C-suite through data-driven insights  Prepare finance teams for a more strategic, technology-enabled future   © 2026 Ernst & Young Global Limited

Many finance organizations are exploring how to scale AI, but readiness remains uneven across teams and processes.  In this episode of the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast, host Myles Corson speaks with Mike Whitmire, CEO and co-founder of FloQast, about what CFOs need to get right before scaling AI in finance.  Drawing on his experience working with thousands of finance teams and building FloQast's accounting workflow platform, Mike explains why visibility into workflows, structured processes and reliable data remain essential for effective AI adoption. The conversation also highlights how AI adoption varies widely across finance functions, with different levels of maturity requiring tailored approaches based on scale, complexity and growth plans.  Mike also discusses the importance of governance, audit readiness and operating discipline, outlining how CFOs can align people, process and technology to scale AI in a structured way and deliver measurable value.  Follow the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast for more conversations with global CFOs and finance leaders. Find out more on ey.com/betterfinance.  Key takeaways:  Challenge assumptions about AI by focusing on what finance teams need to trust and adopt it, not what technology promises.  Tailor AI approaches to the scale, complexity and maturity of the finance function, rather than applying a single model.  Redefine the role of finance teams, with greater emphasis on judgement, review and providing confidence in outputs.   © 2026 Ernst & Young Global Limited

Treasury is entering a new phase of responsibility, one defined by continuous action rather than periodic oversight.  In this episode of the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast, host Myles Corson speaks with Stephen Randall, Global Head of Liquidity Management Services at Citigroup, about how treasury is adapting to an always-on, real-time global economy and becoming more central to enterprise value creation.  Stephen shares insights from Citi's research and client experience on what differentiates high-performing treasury functions, highlighting the importance of strong fundamentals, high-quality data, automation and programmable, rules-based cash management. He explains how always-on treasury models help CFOs and treasurers respond faster to disruption, reduce operational risk and make more informed balance sheet decisions.  Follow the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast for more conversations with global CFOs and finance leaders. Find out more on ey.com/betterfinance.  Key takeaways:  Understand why forecasting accuracy alone is no longer sufficient to support confident finance decision making.  Recognize how treasury can enable confidence through real‑time liquidity, visibility and control.  Explore how leading organizations are redesigning treasury operating models for an always‑on environment.  Identify the role of real‑time liquidity and automation in reducing reliance on manual intervention.  Understand how treasury's evolving role can support resilience, agility, unlock capital and support enterprise value creation.  © 2026 Ernst & Young Global Limited

In this episode of the Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast, host Myles Corson is joined by Jack McCullough, President of the CFO Leadership Council, to explore how CFOs can uncover and support hidden talent within their organizations to thrive in an AI-driven world. They discuss the concept of indispensable specialists — those individuals who may not hold senior titles or be highly visible but possess unique skills that drive significant value and impact. Jack shares insights on why recognizing these key contributors are important for CFOs navigating rapid technological change and organizational complexity.   The conversation highlights how AI is transforming finance roles but cannot replace the nuanced judgment, trust and crisis management that these specialists provide. Jack and Myles also explore practical strategies for CFOs to identify, nurture and reward these talents, including embracing dual career paths that allow experts to deepen their skills without necessarily moving into management roles.   Follow the EY Better Finance: CFO Insights podcast for more conversations with global CFOs and finance leaders. Find out more on ey.com/betterfinance.   Key takeaways:  Identify the specialists who deliver outsized value in your finance teams.  Recognize the importance of unique skills that AI cannot replace.  Implement strategies to nurture and retain indispensable talent.   Assess whether current career paths support both technical experts and leaders.   © 2026 Ernst & Young Global Limited