Five emerging themes in cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) finance applications will shape the future of the finance function through AI and automation, according to Gartner.
Based on these themes, Gartner predicts that finance organisations using cloud ERP applications with embedded AI assistants will see a 30% faster financial close by 2028.
“Cloud ERP finance applications will deliver additional automation, insight, and efficiency to finance functions in the near future by integrating machine learning, GenAI, and AI agents,” says Mike Helsel, senior director: research in the Gartner Finance practice.
“However, realizing these benefits requires CFOs to navigate vendor hype, organisational change, and the evolving economics of AI in the enterprise.”
The five emerging themes for AI innovation in the cloud ERP finance application market include:
- Composable ecosystem
- Intelligent process automation
- AI trust, risk and security management (TRiSM)
- Adaptive analytics
- AI-driven planning and forecasting
Composable ecosystems are critical to the cloud ERP landscape because they empower organizations to build and modify their financial systems with unprecedented agility.
“Many ERP systems of the past earned the descriptor ‘monolithic’ due to their infamous inflexibility,” says Helsel. “In contrast, modern cloud ERP ecosystems embrace low-code flexibility and modular composability. This will enable finance functions to combine and operationalise new capabilities much faster, moving in lockstep with shifting market environments.”
AI-driven intelligent process automation in cloud ERP finance applications uses agentic AI, ML, and process orchestration to streamline reconciliation and collections.
“Cloud ERP providers are redefining mature intelligent process automation solutions to handle everything from autonomous transaction processing to AI-driven accounts receivable (AR) collections that predict payment behavior and optimise working capital, freeing finance teams to focus on strategic priorities instead of routine tasks,” says Helsel.
As financial systems grow more complex, AI TRiSM is emerging as a safeguard against fraud, compliance breaches and insider threats.
“AI TRiSM in cloud ERP finance promises AI-driven anomaly detection, continuous controls monitoring, and real-time audit logging to strengthen financial integrity, with both emerging and established capabilities available in the marketplace,” Helsel says.
Adaptive analytics capabilities are emerging in cloud ERP finance platforms, aiming to equip finance professionals with conversational, natural-language interfaces and context-sensitive dashboards that quickly translate large amounts of data into clear, actionable insights.
“We are seeing developments in the market, such as GenAI ESG disclosures and conversational analytics, that allow CFOs and finance teams to interact with cloud ERP finance applications using plain language,” says Helsel.
AI-driven planning and forecasting tools offer scenario modelling, predictive analytics, and personalised dashboards to provide actionable insights for planning and risk management.
“These tools have the potential to deliver more accurate forecasts and enhance strategic agility by enabling faster responses to market changes,” says Helsel.