In this era of dicey economic and geopolitical realities, how are CFOs planning to stimulate growth? The leading answer is through artificial intelligence, but only by a hair.
Among 500 CFOs and other finance leaders in the United States and Europe, 40% cited AI as a top growth strategy for 2025. But right behind were M&A and workforce expansion, among other strategies.
The study was conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of Coupa, a provider of an AI-driven spend-management platform.
Coupa reported that growth “remains a priority, but with a sharper focus on efficiency, consolidation and long-term scalability rather than unchecked expansion.” Finance leaders “are not ignoring risks, but rather positioning their organizations for sustainable growth in an unpredictable world.”
The surprisingly large proportion of survey respondents planning to enlarge their workforces represents a sharp reversal from the widespread layoffs of recent years, Coupa noted. In the vendor’s 2024 poll of CFOs, hiring ranked as the lowest priority for growth.
Now, rather than defensive cost-cutting, companies are shifting to strategic workforce development through a focus on reskilling, upskilling, and selective talent investment, Coupa said in its survey report. Only 6% of the respondents said they plan to cut jobs to reduce costs this year.
The planned workforce expansions are connected with expectations for continued growth of AI usage, according to Coupa: “With AI and automation transforming business operations, companies must also ensure their workforce evolves alongside technological advancements, fostering a more agile and scalable organization.”
At the same time, the rise of AI is introducing new vulnerabilities in risk management, Coupa acknowledged. Deepfake-style scams and other emerging fraud threats are getting more sophisticated and difficult to detect, and more CFOs are dealing with them directly, having been tasked with overseeing AI policy and adoption. These new risk exposures are making cybersecurity and fraud prevention even higher priorities for finance teams this year.
Meanwhile, although the research was performed in January and February, many finance leaders were already concerned about tariffs on foreign countries. At the time, 22% of those surveyed said they were increasing inventory levels to mitigate financial risks, while 19% were engaged in hedging strategies and 18% were restructuring their supply chains.
Some other survey findings:
- ESG initiatives are on the decline: Only 25% of those surveyed said they will maintain or increase their focus on such initiatives regardless of regulatory changes. And 23% said they were reducing that focus.
- More than two-thirds (69%) of the respondents said they were concerned about meeting year-end financial goals.
- Almost half (48%) of CFOs said they are currently using AI in finance and procurement processes.
