By Jessica Salerno, OSCPA senior content manager

Artificial intelligence is no longer a foreign new technology, as small and mid-sized organizations are beginning to implement AI into their work processes.

“In the later part of last year there were some success stories, particularly around cash collections, billing and invoicing,” said Chris Ortega, director of finance, America’s at Emarsys. “Businesses are starting to see the impact that those are having. Another area that’s been spun out is the ability to get actionable insights to drive the business with artificial intelligence and machine.”

On the most recent episode of The State of Business podcast, Ortega discussed the impact AI has had so far on businesses and what the accounting and finance profession can expect to happen next.

“Last year was about the introduction of AI,” he said. “This year is about the implementation of the tools and how they work, and the third phase we’re going to get to is actually integrating inside a business. I don’t think we’re quite yet at the integration stage, but I think the implementation stage is really exciting.”

To begin preparing your business to use AI, Ortega suggested “going through the trenches” and learning the ins and outs of the AI and machine learning tools along with researching the products available. Consider how other industries like pharmaceuticals and retail use these technologies and the lessons you can learn from them.

This is a valuable time to be aware of what other companies are doing, Ortega said. Pay attention to not only those who use the technology successfully, but also the failures.

“That’s going to be a fundamental piece where artificial intelligence and machine learning can really build momentum,” he said. “Not only the success stories but also the lessons learned. And I think that’s a challenge for a lot of financial leaders and financial organizations, is being able to investigate and seek out what those lessons learned are.”