{"id":23106,"date":"2025-07-04T09:30:26","date_gmt":"2025-07-04T08:30:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/?p=23106"},"modified":"2025-09-08T11:47:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T10:47:08","slug":"agentic-ai-explained-a-smarter-future-for-high-performing-finance-teams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/agentic-ai-explained-a-smarter-future-for-high-performing-finance-teams\/","title":{"rendered":"Agentic AI explained: A smarter future for high-performing finance teams"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/category\/technology-innovation\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Technology &amp; Innovation<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAgentic AI explained: A smarter future for high-performing finance teams\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-07-04T09:30:26+01:00\">4 July, 2025<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"Agentic AI explained: A smarter future for high-performing finance teams\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/agentic-ai-explained-a-smarter-future-for-high-performing-finance-teams\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/header>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/author\/asavinwattanajantra\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"40\" height=\"40\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2026\/03\/Asavin-350x350.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" alt=\"Asavin\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2026\/03\/Asavin-350x350.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2026\/03\/Asavin-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2026\/03\/Asavin-810x810.jpg 810w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2026\/03\/Asavin.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 40px) 100vw, 40px\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Asavin Wattanajantra<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019re entering a new world of agentic AI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If generative AI is about producing text, images, and answers on demand, agentic AI is about acting on behalf of users autonomously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For CFOs and finance teams staying ahead of the curve, this shift could be as significant as the move to the cloud in the early part of this century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This article will explore what agentic AI means in practice\u2014and how you can start preparing now. Here&#8217;s what we discuss:<\/p>\n\n\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><div class=\"wp-block-yoast-seo-table-of-contents yoast-table-of-contents\"><ul><li><a href=\"#h-what-is-agentic-ai-and-why-does-it-matter-now\" data-level=\"2\">What is agentic AI, and why does it matter now?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-how-generative-ai-builds-the-agentic-ai-foundation\" data-level=\"2\">How generative AI builds the agentic AI foundation<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-automation-to-autonomy-inside-the-new-finance-stack\" data-level=\"2\">Automation to autonomy: Inside the new finance stack<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#h-1-continuous-accounting-getting-data-in-friction-free\" data-level=\"3\">1. Continuous accounting: Getting data in, friction-free<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-2-continuous-assurance-real-time-trust-in-the-numbers\" data-level=\"3\">2. Continuous assurance: Real-time trust in the numbers<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-3-continuous-insight-from-reports-to-recommendations\" data-level=\"3\">3. Continuous insight: From reports to recommendations<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-how-to-move-to-fully-agentic-systems-in-finance\" data-level=\"2\">How to move to fully agentic systems in finance<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#h-wave-1-task-based-ai\" data-level=\"3\">Wave 1: Task-based AI<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-wave-2-generative-ai\" data-level=\"3\">Wave 2: Generative AI<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-wave-3-agentic-ai\" data-level=\"3\">Wave 3: Agentic AI<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-seeing-agentic-ai-in-action-for-finance\" data-level=\"2\">Seeing Agentic AI in action for finance<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-the-ai-trust-label-the-real-differentiator\" data-level=\"2\">The AI Trust label: the real differentiator<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-final-thoughts-tips-for-high-performing-finance-teams\" data-level=\"2\">Final thoughts: Tips for high-performing finance teams<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button has-custom-width wp-block-button__width-100\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-a72b68be-0fcb-4e24-b79a-14b0f9d2002c\">Download your free copy of AI: The Opportunity for CFOs<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-is-agentic-ai-and-why-does-it-matter-now\">What is agentic AI, and why does it matter now?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Put simply, agentic AI is like a digital analyst. It thinks for itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Kamales Lardi, author of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kamaleslardi.com\/ai-for-business-book\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Artificial Intelligence for Business<\/a>, puts it: \u201cLLMs are the brains, agents are the worker bees.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They&#8217;re purpose-built systems that combine language understanding with tools, data, and reasoning to complete tasks with minimal human input.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/inside-sage-future-high-performance-finance\/\">Sage Future 2025<\/a>, Sage&#8217;s Chief Technology Officer, Aaron Harris, stated that the next generation of AI will do more than answer questions and prompts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead of waiting for dashboards to refresh or prompts to be entered, agentic AI observes what\u2019s happening across your business, interprets the signals, and takes the initiative\u2014often before you know something\u2019s changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Agentic AI doesn\u2019t wait for you to ask a question or click a button. It\u2019s always running in the background, watching what\u2019s happening in your business, spotting changes, and acting on your behalf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Where traditional AI tools automate tasks or generate content, agentic AI can:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Monitor data across multiple systems.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Recognise patterns and exceptions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Decide what matters.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Take action\u2014or notify\u2014without being prompted.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You no longer need to look for insight\u2014insight can find you.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/company\/digital-newsroom\/2025\/06\/12\/how-agentic-ai-is-poised-to-transform-smb-productivity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kevin Quirk of AI Bridge Solutions explains<\/a>: \u201cAI agents are not just futuristic novelties; they\u2019re delivering measurable value today\u2014automating workflows, closing operational gaps, and increasing productivity without major overhead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It prompts a simple but important shift in thinking:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Are you still waiting for insight\u2014or is insight finding you?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do your systems offer context\u2014or just data?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Are you building trust\u2014or borrowing it?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>We don\u2019t need AI that\u2019s passively waiting for a prompt. We need AI that\u2019s always on\u2026 Combining reasoning, memory, and autonomy.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris, Chief Technology Officer, Sage<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-generative-ai-builds-the-agentic-ai-foundation\">How generative AI builds the agentic AI foundation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Agentic AI represents the future and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/sage-copilot\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sage Copilot<\/a> is already leading the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Dan Miller, Sage EVP of Financials and ERP, highlighted during a keynote at Sage Future, Sage Copilot is not a prototype or concept. It\u2019s already live, and embedded in products like Sage Intacct, Sage X3, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s delivering on the promise of high-performance finance operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>Sage Ai and Copilot aren\u2019t just reacting to what\u2019s happened. They\u2019re helping you stay ahead of what\u2019s coming next.<\/p><cite>Dan Miller, Executive Vice President of Financials and ERP, Sage<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Sage Copilot transforms day-to-day finance work by turning routine processes into intelligent, streamlined interactions. Examples include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Instantly surfacing overdue invoices by value and contact.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Assisting with reconciliation, variance analysis, and period-close tasks in real time.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Delivering answers sourced from Sage documentation via conversational AI.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Providing real-time insights through 360-degree dashboards across inventory, sales, and operations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Sage Copilot is trained on product documentation, accounting standards, and customer language\u2014a foundation on which agentic AI operates with deep financial trust and contextual understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At Sage Future, Sage announced a partnership with the AICPA to train its models on the profession\u2019s official content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>This is a first of its kind\u2026 A signal to the industry that we\u2019re building AI you can trust.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This move reflects a shift for a traditionally conservative profession: accounting leaders aren\u2019t just ready to adopt AI. They want to shape it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The building blocks are already there: reasoning, contextual awareness, and domain-specific expertise. The next phase is autonomy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-automation-to-autonomy-inside-the-new-finance-stack\">Automation to autonomy: Inside the new finance stack<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Agentic AI doesn\u2019t replace the need for clean data or strong processes. It amplifies them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s why the Sage \u201cinnovation north star,\u201d as Dan Miller explains it, is built around three connected ideas:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Continuous accounting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Assurance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Insight.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Together, these form future architecture for finance teams, with agentic AI is poised to power each one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-1-continuous-accounting-getting-data-in-friction-free\">1. Continuous accounting: Getting data in, friction-free<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>With AI-enhanced workflows like automated bill entry, PO matching, and classification, finance teams are already cutting manual work and reducing errors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But with AI agents, it goes further: intelligent systems won\u2019t just process your documents\u2014they\u2019ll monitor exceptions, detect anomalies, and correct patterns for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-2-continuous-assurance-real-time-trust-in-the-numbers\">2. Continuous assurance: Real-time trust in the numbers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Traditionally, finance teams wait until month-end to reconcile data, analyse variances, and flag issues. With Sage Copilot and agentic AI, those tasks can shift upstream, creating a near real-time flow of trusted data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTasks like reconciliation and variance analysis are starting earlier, flagged sooner, and completed faster,\u201d says Dan Miller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>AI agents can proactively detect deviations in your expected cash flow, flag them before they snowball, and even suggest follow-ups, long before a report is pulled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-3-continuous-insight-from-reports-to-recommendations\">3. Continuous insight: From reports to recommendations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This is where the shift to agentic AI becomes clearest. Instead of running reports or refreshing dashboards, you can receive contextual, actionable updates based on business changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>You want AI that doesn\u2019t just pull a report. You want it to analyse sales transactions, churn rate, and tell you what matters.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This is insight that leads, not lags. It\u2019s how agentic AI transforms finance from a reactive function to a strategic driver, and it\u2019s something every finance leader should have in their toolkit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-to-move-to-fully-agentic-systems-in-finance\">How to move to fully agentic systems in finance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>AI&#8217;s value to you lies in its ability to create the conditions for faster, smarter, more autonomous decision-making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That&#8217;s exactly what Sage Copilot has begun to deliver. By embedding generative AI into core workflows, Sage Copilot offers real-time assistance, contextual insights, and time-saving automation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But these capabilities are only the start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In finance, expect a world of orchestrated, agentic intelligence, where autonomous systems understand priorities, coordinate complex tasks, and act on behalf of your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Agentic AI isn\u2019t a sudden, unexpected leap. It\u2019s the result of years of strategic innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>From task automation to orchestrated intelligence: the journey to agentic AI has gone through many iterations. For instance, for over a decade, automation, machine learning, and now generative AI has been embedded into Sage products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each wave of AI advancement has deepened expertise, sharpened customer focus and performance, and strengthened foundations of trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s how that evolution unfolded:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-wave-1-task-based-ai\">Wave 1: Task-based AI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Sage builds machine learning into core workflows\u2014automating repetitive tasks like invoice categorisation or anomaly detection. This delivers speed, accuracy, and efficiency for clearly defined processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-wave-2-generative-ai\">Wave 2: Generative AI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Sage Copilot represents the generative wave. It helps finance teams:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Draft month-end close reports.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Answer \u201cHow do I\u2026\u201d questions via chat.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Surface relevant data on request.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>These tools accelerate decisions and reduce manual work\u2014but still rely on prompts to get started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-wave-3-agentic-ai\">Wave 3: Agentic AI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Today we\u2019re entering an age of orchestrated intelligence. With agentic AI, autonomous systems:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Operate continuously in the background.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Understand business context.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Connect multiple workflows.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Take initiative across multi-step processes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>To explore the Sage AI journey and see how these technologies can power your business, visit the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/sage-ai\/resources\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sage Ai Hub<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-seeing-agentic-ai-in-action-for-finance\">Seeing Agentic AI in action for finance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To illustrate what agentic AI looks like in practice, during his Sage Future keynote Aaron Harris walked through a familiar CFO scenario: tracking revenue against forecast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Traditionally, this means logging into a dashboard, comparing figures, and hoping nothing has shifted since the last update. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But that\u2019s reactive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It also assumes the dashboard tells the whole story. But the real signs of trouble often appear before the numbers even hit your accounting system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>The problem with this is you\u2019ve got to remember to go to the dashboard\u2026 And it\u2019s really possible that you\u2019re going to miss something because what\u2019s changed hasn\u2019t hit your accounting yet.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, you might be meeting your revenue targets, but if the business is signing more short-term, lower-value contracts, that could lead to higher churn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These early signals aren\u2019t in your accounts and often live upstream\u2014in sales pipelines, contract terms, or customer behaviour\u2014long before they hit the books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s where agentic AI steps in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead of relying on reports, you can instruct Sage Copilot to monitor a key metric\u2014in this case, your revenue forecast\u2014and alert you if anything changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>We\u2019ve told Sage Copilot to just let us know if the forecast changes.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>And here\u2019s where the AI agent goes beyond standard automation: even though bookings and revenue are tracking to plan, Sage Copilot notices the shift in contract mix, understands the risk of churn, and proactively flags a forecast change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Agentic AI automatically notifies the finance team, allowing them to respond quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>CFOs don\u2019t just want to know the answer\u2014they want to act on it. They want to pull others into the conversation so they can take steps to correct it.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the shift: from static dashboards to proactive, context-aware systems that spot changes early, explain what\u2019s happening, and make it easier to respond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-ai-trust-label-the-real-differentiator\">The AI Trust label: the real differentiator<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Finance teams need fast answers, but they must come from accurate, explainable, and secure systems. Any respectable approach to AI must go beyond performance to something deeper: trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Aaron Harris explained, Sage deliberately decided to train its own large language models, not because off-the-shelf models like GPT-4 lacked power, but because they lack precision, consistency, and accountability in a financial context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Generic AI is risky and unacceptable in a financial setting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hallucinations can\u2019t be tolerated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Audit trails matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Outcomes must be consistent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>We need these models to be experts at accounting and compliance\u2026 You don\u2019t want AI behaviour that drifts over time.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Kamales Lardi warns: \u201cThe very autonomy that makes AI agents powerful also poses danger. Without governance, the absence of oversight raises concerns about fairness, bias, and accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kevin Quirk adds: \u201cEvery AI agent we design operates within clear boundaries and is fully auditable. That\u2019s how you earn trust from employees and customers alike.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So instead of chasing scale, Sage focuses on relevance\u2014its internal models, built on 7 billion parameters (vs GPT-4\u2019s 2 trillion), are trained on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Accounting standards and exams.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Real-world customer and compliance data.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Industry-specific terminology.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sage product documentation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This supplies predictable, audit-ready outcomes\u2014a must for CFOs and auditors alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To bring that commitment full circle, Sage introduced the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/company\/digital-newsroom\/2025\/06\/04\/sage-unveils-ai-trust-label-to-empower-smbs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">AI Trust Label<\/a>\u2014a built-in feature that will accompany AI-powered features within Sage software products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This label will:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Explain how the model was trained.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Show how accuracy is measured.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Outline safeguards to protect data.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Disclose how bias is minimised.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>Trust is the biggest barrier to adopting AI\u2026 We\u2019re not just building artificial intelligence. We\u2019re building authentic intelligence.<\/p><cite>Aaron Harris<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>With trust embedded at every level, you have a software company positioned to use agentic AI and lead its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/sage-ai\/commitments\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">responsible evolution in finance<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-final-thoughts-tips-for-high-performing-finance-teams\">Final thoughts: Tips for high-performing finance teams<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As Kamales Lardi warns, the autonomy of AI agents demands oversight and accountability\u2014two areas CFOs must bake into their adoption strategies from day one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Encourage your finance team to think about automated, proactive, intelligent workflows that scale trust, insight, and action. It\u2019s about smarter systems that think ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>The narrative that AI agents replace jobs is an oversimplification. Instead, they evolve roles.<\/p><cite>Kevin Quirk<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Agentic AI represents the next big thing in finance: autonomous digital analysts that observe, reason, and act, freeing people to focus on judgment, leadership, and strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/sage-copilot\/\">Sage Cop<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/sage-copilot\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">i<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/sage-copilot\/\">lot<\/a> continues to expand its capabilities, you have building blocks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Real-time access to actionable insights.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Autonomous monitoring of key metrics.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Seamless collaboration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Embedded trust through transparent, domain-specific AI.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Don\u2019t wait for the month-end. Don\u2019t rely on yesterday\u2019s numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>The future isn\u2019t just arriving \u2014 it\u2019s already here. And it\u2019s available to you right now.<\/p><cite>Dan Miller<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Build a finance stack that listens, learns, and leads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta gated-content\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">AI: The opportunity for CFOs<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p>How finance leaders can realise the potential for integrated AI tools.<\/p>\n<p><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-a72b68be-0fcb-4e24-b79a-14b0f9d2002c\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Download<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1214\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2024\/10\/AI-e-book-The-Opportunity-for-CFOs-1214x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"Woman in office looking at phone\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2024\/10\/AI-e-book-The-Opportunity-for-CFOs-1214x810.jpg 1214w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to the Sage Advice newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Join more than 500,000 UK readers and get the best business admin strategies and tactics, as well as actionable advice to help your company thrive, in your inbox every month.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-b1a63862-3fa0-4a5e-bb67-c76b88bbc6b8\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Subscribe now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1440\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1073797282-1-1440x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1073797282-1-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Agentic AI is the next evolution in high-performance finance. Learn where the technology is now, according to top CFOs, technologists, and generative AI experts. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":356,"featured_media":23121,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":false,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,114],"tags":[50,126,145,164,159,125],"business_type":[3],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[63],"persona":[68,70,71],"imagine_tag":[77,330,309,87,96],"coauthors":[351],"class_list":["post-23106","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology-innovation","category-trends-insights","tag-ai","tag-data-analytics","tag-digital-transformation","tag-finance","tag-midsized-business","tag-workplace-technology","business_type-medium-sized-business","industry-professional-services"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-gb","author_name":"Asavin Wattanajantra","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2025\/07\/agenticai.jpg","imagine_tags":{"77":"Accounting software","330":"AI FP","309":"AI Hub","87":"Enterprise management","96":"Medium businesses"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice UK","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23106","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/356"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23106"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23106\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/23121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23106"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=23106"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=23106"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}