- May 19, 2025
- Business
Automation in finance is revolutionizing how businesses handle financial reporting. According to McKinsey, most businesses will be able to automate within the next five years. However, more than 50% of financial reporting professionals prepare financial statements using Word and Excel, despite the significant time and resource drain this creates in approximately 25% of their reporting processes.
From our experience, financial statement reporting software can transform this outdated process. Automated reporting tools can save teams up to 40% of their time while reducing the 1% error rate commonly associated with manual data entry. A Big Four case study on KeyBank found that automation cut their manual financial reporting workload by 50%.
In this guide, we'll explore how intelligent automation in finance can help you drastically cut the time spent creating comprehensive income statements, statements of changes in net assets, financial positions, cash flow statements, and notes sections. With 90% of professionals in a big four accounting survey recognizing the value of automation in finance departments, we'll show you exactly how to implement these solutions for your business in 2025.
Why Financial Reporting Takes So Long Today
Despite technological advances, many finance teams still struggle with lengthy reporting cycles. Studies show that employees spend over 40% of their time on repetitive, manual tasks that could be automated. These delays have real consequences: regulatory penalties, diminished investor confidence, and reduced ability to raise funds.
Manual data entry and reconciliation
Traditional reporting processes are still largely manual. Around 26% to 39% of finance professionals spend significant time entering data by hand, increasing the risk of errors that can ripple through entire financial statements. A small mistake in a statement of financial position can lead to extensive downstream corrections, potential client dissatisfaction, or even legal exposure.
Manual reconciliation- such as matching invoices to purchase orders is also time-consuming, particularly for preparing the statement of changes in net assets.
Disparate systems and a lack of integration
As organizations grow, their financial systems architecture becomes increasingly complex. Many businesses now operate with multiple systems, including accounting/ERP, invoice management, expense management, procurement, and financial consolidation tools. This proliferation creates significant integration challenges.
Without proper integration, finance teams face:
- Inconsistent naming conventions and difficulties in intercompany reconciliation
- Currency conversion complications that delay consolidated financial statements
- Data quality control problems and difficulties in data mapping between systems
- Master data management complexities across multiple platforms
When information is stored across multiple databases, obtaining accurate and up-to-date data becomes exceedingly difficult. By the time reports are compiled, the information is often already outdated, making timely decision-making nearly impossible.
Compliance and audit preparation delays
Audit preparation creates additional time pressures for finance teams. Many businesses don’t realize that first-time audits require examination of both opening and closing balance sheets, creating unexpected additional work. Moreover, preparing for audits requires significant involvement from senior personnel—it’s not merely a box-ticking exercise.
Compliance obligations further extend reporting timelines. Companies must determine whether full impairment tests are needed at quarter or year-end, and when historical misstatements are discovered, organizations must follow SEC-mandated processes to determine materiality—a time-consuming and labor-intensive undertaking.
The consequences of delayed filings can be severe. In 2021, the SEC fined eight companies £198,540 for failing to file proper, “not timely” forms with their late submissions. Without efficient systems in place, meeting these compliance deadlines becomes increasingly challenging, particularly for businesses operating across multiple jurisdictions with diverse regulatory demands.
Process automation in finance offers a promising solution to these challenges, particularly as intelligent automation in finance continues to advance. Rather than accepting these delays as inevitable, forward-thinking organizations are implementing financial statement reporting software to streamline these processes.
How Automation Cuts Financial Statement Time in Half
“Automation significantly accelerates the generation of key financial reports by eliminating delays inherent in manual processes. Financial data can be gathered, consolidated, and analyzed in real-time, reducing or removing the need for extensive reconciliation work at period ends.” — Digital Defynd, an Educational platform specializing in finance and technology resources
The time-consuming nature of financial reporting is finally coming to an end. Modern automation in finance slashes financial statement preparation time through three powerful mechanisms that eliminate manual bottlenecks. Real-time data syncing across systems
Traditional financial reporting relies on batch processing that updates data only at predetermined intervals. In contrast, real-time financial data integration instantly updates information across systems, eliminating the waiting period
This capability fundamentally transforms how financial teams operate:
- Instant cash flow visibility: Finance teams gain immediate access to up-to-date cash positions
- Rapid decision support: Leadership receives current metrics rather than outdated reports
- Risk detection: Systems identify fraud and unusual transactions as they occur
Real-time data synchronization ensures consistency across multiple platforms, from banking data to ERP systems. This continuous alignment eliminates manual reconciliation between disparate sources. For financial statements specifically, this means data from invoicing, payment processing, and banking systems flows automatically into reports, significantly reducing preparation time.
Automated calculations and validations
That cascades through financial statements. Financial automation eliminates this problem through algorithmic processing. Manual calculations introduce a one-percent error rate
AI-powered mathematical accuracy checks instantly verify calculations across all financial tables, including:
- Vertical and horizontal totals in statements
- Cross-calculations in supplemental disclosures
- Customized formulas for specialized reporting needs
These automated validators don’t just check mathematical accuracy—they also perform internal consistency validation. Systems automatically cross-check figures between statements and notes, detect mismatched descriptions, and flag narrative irregularities. This validation process can check thousands of data points in seconds rather than days.
For comprehensive income statements, statement of changes in net assets, and financial position reports, automation performs basic calculations that update in real-time as transactions occur. This enables finance teams to reduce manual review time by up to 33%.
Instant report generation and formatting
Perhaps the most visible time-saving aspect of financial automation comes through report generation capabilities. Traditionally, over 50% of financial professionals prepare statements in Word and Excel, manually formatting and updating each document.
Automated financial statement reporting software connects source systems and ledgers to templates that generate properly formatted reports instantly. This functionality extends to all critical statements:
- Balance sheets and statements of financial position
- Income statements and comprehensive income reports
- Cash flow statements
- Statements of changes in equity
The automation transforms report preparation by cleaning, transforming, and summarizing millions of spreadsheet rows instantly. This shifts finance professionals’ focus from compilation to analysis—a far more valuable use of skilled talent.
For notes and disclosures, typically the most time-consuming section, automation helps readers understand share-based payment arrangements with one-click disclosure reports. Some tools can even automatically translate financial statements when publication in multiple languages is required.
Essentially, process automation in finance eliminates the manual grind. By leveraging financial reporting tools that automate data entry, calculations, and formatting, companies typically cut financial statement preparation time by 33-50%, freeing finance teams to focus on strategic analysis instead of repetitive tasks.
Key Financial Reports You Can Automate in 2025
In 2025, modern financial reporting tools unlock time-saving possibilities by automating the creation of key financial documents. Consequently, businesses gain both accuracy and efficiency across all essential reporting requirements.
Comprehensive income statement
Financial statement reporting software transforms income statement preparation by automatically pulling data from connected systems. The software draws from various business accounts, tax information, operating costs, and materials spending. It then performs calculations to arrive at gross and net income figures without manual intervention. Through intelligent automation in finance, these statements update in real-time as transactions occur, enabling finance teams to analyze data rather than just compile it, revenue, and expense data
Statement of changes in net assets
This critical report shows why during a statement period and how changes in revenues over expenses affect the organization’s net asset position. Process automation in finance eliminates the tedious work of tracking contributions for charity care, endowment funds, net realized gains on investments, and assets released from restrictions. Subsequently, this automation ensures accurate reporting of temporarily restricted and permanently restricted net assets, traditionally one of the most error-prone areas in manual reporting, net assets changed
Statement of financial position
Formerly a time-consuming manual process, balance sheets now benefit substantially from automation in finance department solutions. These tools automatically map general ledger balances to financial statement lines, creating a standardized layout that increases transparency during review. Excel-based automation tools include built-in checks between financial statements, notes, and general ledger balances, dramatically reducing errors while saving hours of preparation time.
Cash flow statement
For cash flow reporting, automation in corporate finance pulls data from connected accounts payable and receivable records, operating expenses, investment activities, and shareholder dividend payments. Instead of manually calculating cash movements, financial automation performs these tasks instantly. Indeed, cash flow automation tools integrate with ERP and CRM systems to deliver real-time cash position visibility across the organization.
Notes and disclosures
Often the most laborious part of financial reporting, notes and disclosures now benefit from specialized automation tools. These systems automatically prepare notes using specific company details and financial statement data to generate accurate disclosures. Above all, they ensure regulatory compliance by adhering to annual report standards and guaranteeing professional formatting. These tools save significant time for financial managers while enhancing transparency and integrity in all financial statements.
Top Tools and Technologies for Financial Reporting Automation
“These efficiencies typically result in shorter contract cycles, an elevated customer experience, and increased productivity.” — WisePay, a Financial technology company specializing in payment solutions
The financial technology landscape has expanded dramatically, offering powerful solutions for streamlining financial reporting processes. From cloud platforms to AI-enabled tools, these technologies work together to modernize financial operations. Cloud-based financial statement reporting software
Cloud-based platforms have become the cornerstone of modern financial reporting. Caseware Financials stands out as a solution that creates accurate and professional reports. With its compliance with UK GAAP and automatic drafting capabilities, it allows finance teams to produce statutory accounts for FRS 105, FRS 102, and FRS 102 Section 1a. Likewise, Workiva’s financial reporting software links data across financial and non-financial reports, allowing teams to update all linked locations at once. These platforms primarily focus on delivering real-time collaboration where multiple users can work simultaneously on the same document from any location in just a few clicks
AI and automation in finance tools
AI-powered automation brings unprecedented intelligence to financial processes. Esker’s Synergy AI incorporates advanced machine learning for smart document processing, like invoices. Notably, AI technology excels at anomaly detection, identifying discrepancies that could indicate potential errors or fraud. IBM’s automation solutions combine artificial intelligence with business process automation (BPA) to create more powerful workflows that supercharge decision-making around financial processes. Through these tools, organizations gain the ability to process high volumes of data quickly while providing actionable insights in real-time, extracting data accurately from financial documents
No-code platforms for process automation in finance
Financial teams now leverage no-code solutions to build automation without technical expertise. FlowForma’s 100% no-code platform enables financial services firms to digitize paper and spreadsheet-based processes rapidly. Similarly, Quixy allows teams to automate key finance-related tasks such as accounts reconciliation and preparing financial statements with minimal human intervention. As explained by one provider, no-code finance automation “is like building with LEGO blocks,” where finance professionals can assemble workflows without needing technical expertise. These platforms excel at streamlining approvals, automating purchase orders, and simplifying expense management.
Integration with ERP and CRM systems
Connecting financial systems with ERP and CRM platforms creates a seamless information flow. This integration allows key employees to access the same data within a single interface. For instance, linking these systems enables teams to convert CRM quotes into ERP orders with a single click or automatically trigger invoicing processes. The integration provides a holistic view of both the demand and supply sides of business, helping organizations stay on top of demand swings. Perhaps most important for financial reporting, this connected approach ensures both operational and customer data are managed in one reliable source of truth.
Best Practices for a Smooth Automation Rollout
Start with a workflow audit
Initially, evaluate your existing finance processes to identify prime automation candidates. Map out your current financial workflows to spot bottlenecks and time-consuming tasks. Prioritize repetitive, high-volume processes that don’t require significant human judgment, like data entry for comprehensive income statements or reconciliation tasks. This assessment creates a prioritized list of automation opportunities across your financial reporting cycle.
Choose scalable and secure tools
When selecting automation solutions, focus on functionality, scalability, security, and integration capabilities. Consider whether the tools can integrate with your current systems and accommodate future growth. Evaluate if the software provides room to incorporate emerging AI capabilities as your organization evolves. Primarily, invest in cloud-based solutions designed to connect seamlessly with your existing ERP and CRM systems.
Train finance teams on new systems
Comprehensive training is crucial for successful implementation. Address team concerns about job security and changing roles upfront. Create dedicated “Automation Champions” within your finance department who can lead others through the transition. Accordingly, focus training on both technical skills (data analysis, AI, technology) and soft skills (leadership, communication).
Monitor KPIs and optimize continuously
Establish clear KPIs that align with your business goals for financial automation:
- Processing time for comprehensive statement preparation
- Error reduction in statements of changes in net assets
- Efficiency gains in financial position reporting
- Time saved on cash flow statement generation
Regularly analyze these metrics using dashboards that visualize results in real-time. Create a culture of continuous improvement around your automation initiatives. Ultimately, iterate based on feedback, insights, and lessons learned to maximize your investment in financial reporting tools.
Conclusion
Financial automation stands as a game-changer for finance departments struggling with time-consuming reporting processes. Throughout this guide, we’ve seen how automation slashes financial statement preparation time by 33-50%, essentially cutting the work in half while simultaneously reducing the one-percent error rate associated with manual processes.
Undoubtedly, the benefits extend across all critical financial documents. Teams can now generate comprehensive income statements in minutes rather than days. Similarly, statements of changes in net assets update automatically as transactions occur. Financial position reports draw from interconnected systems to present real-time snapshots of organizational health. Cash flow statements compile instantly from integrated data sources. Perhaps most importantly, the tedious notes and disclosures section transforms from a manual burden into an automated output.
The strategic advantage gained through automation cannot be overstated. Rather than spending countless hours on data entry and reconciliation, finance professionals can focus their expertise on analysis and strategic decision-making. This shift fundamentally changes the role of finance teams from report creators to business advisors.
Looking ahead to 2025 and beyond, finance departments that embrace automation will establish clear competitive advantages. Their ability to produce accurate financial statements quickly will support faster decision-making, better regulatory compliance, and stronger stakeholder confidence. Those who cling to manual processes, however, risk falling behind as industry standards continue to evolve.
Financial reporting automation represents more than just a technological upgrade—it marks a fundamental shift in how organizations approach financial management. Though implementation requires careful planning, the payoff in time savings, error reduction, and strategic capability makes this investment essential for forward-thinking finance teams. Start your automation journey today, and your future self will thank you for the countless hours saved.
FAQs
Q1. How much time can automation save in financial statement preparation?
Automation can typically reduce financial statement preparation time by 33-50%, essentially cutting the work in half while also reducing errors associated with manual processes.
Q2. What are the key financial reports that can be automated?
The main financial reports that can be automated include comprehensive income statements, statements of changes in net assets, statements of financial position, cash flow statements, and notes and disclosures.
Q3. What are the benefits of real-time data syncing in financial reporting?
Real-time data syncing provides instant cash flow visibility, supports rapid decision-making with current metrics, and enables immediate risk detection for fraud or unusual transactions.
Q4. How does automation improve the accuracy of financial statements?
Automation improves accuracy by eliminating the one-percent error rate associated with manual calculations, performing automated validations, and ensuring consistency across all financial tables and disclosures.
Q5. What should companies consider when implementing financial automation?
When implementing financial automation, companies should start with a workflow audit, choose scalable and secure tools, provide comprehensive training for finance teams, and continuously monitor KPIs to optimize the process.
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