Workday CFO Says Finance Teams Should Measure AI by Decision Quality

Workday CFO Zane Rowe said finance teams should judge artificial intelligence by its effect on decisions, staff capacity and customer value, giving companies a broader test than output volume alone.

On return on investment, Rowe said, “I think it’s so much more than that.” He pointed to better insights and stronger decisions, as well as giving finance teams more capacity and improving value for customers.

Rowe recently reviewed 10 AI agents being developed by Workday’s tax team and said some may not proceed. He used a hypothetical in which a team produces twice as many reports to illustrate why output volume alone does not show whether AI is improving finance work. The measures he cited focus on what teams learn, decide and can accomplish.

Workday made Decision Intelligence available across its portfolio on Oct. 13. The product lets human resources and finance teams work with live workforce, financial and planning information, compare scenarios and take actions within their existing permissions.

Workday also made the listed core components of its Trusted Agent Platform generally available on Oct. 13. The platform applies permissions, approval steps and audit trails to agents built by Workday, its customers or its partners. Those controls govern access and actions while keeping a record of activity.

Workday’s agent rollout is staged. The Talent Acquisition Agent is available to early-adopter customers, with general availability planned for early 2027. Early-adopter access to Autopilot capabilities for Payroll, Accounting and Deployment Agents is also planned for early 2027.

The rollout is part of Workday’s broader AI push.