Breaking down the structural barriers to AI implementation

A home without a solid foundation risks severe structural damage. Experts, including Scott Rottmann, president of consulting services at professional services firm RGP, warn of the same risks for companies with big AI ambitions but weak “enterprise foundations” to build upon.

CFOs, who can find themselves at the center of their firms’ AI-fueled transformations, need to patch up foundational cracks that may come from poor data quality, technology limitations, or worker-related challenges, according to experts.

A new survey from professional services firm RGP of 200 US-based CFOs found that just 14% said they see a “substantial” return on their AI investments today, although two-thirds expect “clear, measurable impact” within two years. This is clearly a CFO problem: Roughly half of survey respondents said they’re “ultimately responsible” for ensuring a return on their organizations’ AI investments.

“CFOs are emerging as the orchestrators of enterprise transformation, but turning AI’s promise into performance requires strengthening the systems, data, and talent that make AI scale with confidence,” RGP’s Rottmann said in a statement.

Laying an AI-ready foundation. Before implementing AI, CFOs must “zoom out and see where you need help, where you see the problem,” according to Hrishikesh Pippadipally, partner and CIO at accounting firm Wiss.

Finance leaders should “have an internal review, get a good perspective, think where you actually need AI help, and look for an appropriate vendor,” Pippadipally told CFO Brew. An organization may not be ready to tackle all the AI opportunities that leaders identify, he added.

In fact, there tend to be significant barriers to AI adoption that organizations have in common, according to the RGP survey. One of the largest of those is data quality. Only one in 10 CFOs said they “completely trust” the quality of their enterprise data, while 35% cited data quality and reliability as their largest barrier to realizing ROI.

Skills gaps are another challenge to AI adoption, 68% of CFOs said. According to the RGP report, “the demand for advanced analytical, technical, and ethical capabilities is rising faster than organizations can develop them.”

Pippadipally recommended training employees on AI with specific use cases that are relevant to each function.

“It’s a mindset shift. It takes…a few rounds [of training] for them to really understand and believe that they are more empowered” by AI, Pippadipally said.

Limitations in technology, such as “legacy systems, aging ERPs [enterprise resource planning systems] and fragmented architecture,” can also impede AI deployment and mute its impact, RGP noted in the report. Nearly nine in 10 (86%) of CFOs cited this as an AI barrier, and 74% said they’re modernizing tech infrastructure in tandem with their AI investments.

“CFOs who lead boldly, modernize intentionally, and build the cross-functional muscle for AI adoption will define the next decade of enterprise performance,” Rottmann said. “AI readiness is not just a technology mandate—it’s a new blueprint for finance leadership.”