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The AI Tipping Point: Half of CFOs will axe AI investment if it doesn’t show ROI next year

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4 out of 5 organizations are set to increase AI investment, but CFOs ‘don’t know where to start’31% lack clear strategic vision for AI within the finance functionThis uncertainty is preventing 41% of finance leaders from prioritizing AI investment75% of CFOs want greater investment in AI to focus more on strategic activities such as e-invoicing compliance and regulation

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Nov. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Four out of five Chief Financial Officers (78%) have expressed a desire to increase their investment in AI over the next 12 to 18 months, recognizing its value in transforming financial operations, but admit they ‘don’t know where to start’, according to a new *global survey.

While this signals growing confidence in AI, it’s accompanied by a strict demand for accountability. Half of CFOs (50%) report they will axe AI investment if it fails to deliver measurable ROI within a year, highlighting a narrow window for proving its impact.

The findings were revealed in accounts payable automation Basware’s AI to ROI Report, conducted by independent research firm Financial Times Longitude. The study surveyed 400 global CFOs and finance leaders on their attitude, priorities and challenges when it comes to AI in the finance department.

Infographic – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2555171/Basware_1.jpg

Uncertainty is Restricting Investment

The biggest priority for financial leaders when implementing finance transformation projects is cost efficiency, with one-third (32%) listing it as their primary focus.

However, any financial confidence will remain rocky with macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties continuing to swirl up until the end of the year, and beyond.

This uncertainty is directly impacting AI adoption within finance functions, making it challenging for 41% of finance leaders to prioritize AI investment.

No one is exempt from the fallout of uncertainty. Even Meta’s latest earnings saw a reduced stock-price revision worth $5.1bn to reflect concerns over the company’s capacity to mobilize AI investments and sustain growth. Meta has invested in a “significant acceleration” in AI-related infrastructure, but analysts warn that they need to prove they can continue to cover its rising AI costs and deliver ROI. For companies like Meta, a bounce-back is likely, but recoverability in the short-term isn’t achievable for all.

Unclear AI Strategy

According to the report, finance leaders want to invest more in AI to reduce manual tasks and allow their teams to focus on priorities in their business. 70% of finance leaders said that staff want AI support for administrative tasks, while 75% report that AI has enabled their workforce to focus on more strategic activities such as e-invoicing compliance.

However, the biggest barrier to finance transformation is change management and an unclear AI strategy. 40% of finance leaders state that their organization lacks change management capabilities, while 31% highlight a lack of clear strategic vision for the future of the finance function.

Infographic – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2555172/Basware_2.jpg

These factors hinder ROI for AI projects, resulting in question marks over investment without tangible financial benefits.

Perttu Nihti, Chief Product Officer at Basware, commented on the new AI study:
“The office of the CFO is tasked with overseeing a complex range of functions from regulatory compliance through to cash flow management and financial reporting. All of which are areas where AI-powered automation can help to reduce hours and relieve pressure. But the success of AI investment hangs on knowing where to start and proving impact. We’re at the AI tipping point. Focusing on high-value wins, such as AI-powered efficiency that demonstrate quantifiable ROI quickly, in areas such as compliance, error reduction and fraud detection, will help justify investment across a company’s organization.”

Turning Investment into Results

Accounts Payable is one such starting point that is already returning greater levels of ROI. The survey revealed that organizations prioritizing AI investment are realizing a return of 136% ROI, with savings exceeding $1.36 for every $1m invested over the duration of three years.

Among CFOs prioritizing AI innovation and applying it to processes in accounts payable, reducing errors, faster fraud detection, reduced operational costs and improved regulatory compliance were found to be the greatest benefits.

How One Global Company Realized AI’s ROI

One example of how AI has driven ROI for an enterprise is paper and packaging manufacturer Billerud. The accounts payable team was previously hindered by time-consuming manual invoice processing, which cost them several hours each day. To address this inefficiency, they implemented Basware’s SmartPDF AI Instant Learning solution, which uses AI and text extraction to convert PDF invoices into authentic e-invoices.

Billerud has seen a substantial reduction of invoices needing validation, dropping from 15% to 9% due to AI Instant Learning, and saving AP staff several hours each day. Now, powered by AI, over 90% of their invoices are validated automatically due to faster, more accurate data extraction.

Jesper Persson, Business Developer at Billerud, said:
“Since day one, we’ve perceived the desired values from the project. The quality of invoices has improved considerably, and the AI continues to evolve and improve with each passing day. The efficiency gains we achieved translated directly into tangible cost savings, paving the way for a rapid return on investment within just a few months.”

The findings reveal a tipping point for AI in finance. While 50% of CFOs may cut AI investments without clear ROI, those that identify specific starting points for AI implementation – such as invoice processing automation – can achieve measurable returns within months rather than years. These successes are creating a blueprint for broader AI adoption across finance functions.

 

Notes to Editors
* Invoice automation company Basware and Financial Times Longitude surveyed 400 global CFOs and finance leaders

For the full report, visit here: https://www.basware.com/en/resources/from-ai-to-roi-cfos-and-the-fast-track-to-value

About Basware

Basware is how finance leaders in global enterprises can finally automate their complex, labor-intensive invoice processes and stay compliant with regulatory change. Our AP automation and invoicing platform helps you achieve a new level of efficiency – in a matter of months – while reducing errors and risks. We bring a unique combination of true automation, complete coverage, and deeper expertise to make it all just happen for our customers. That’s why the world’s most efficient AP departments at thousands of companies rely on Basware to handle over 220 million invoices per year. With Basware, Now it all just happens.™

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SOURCE Basware

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Meta, Watsons Hong Kong, Hong Kong Life and OPTICAL 88 unlocked WhatsApp potential with Omnichat

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Create end-to-end customer journeys using WhatsApp Flows and ads that click to WhatsApp with Meta to accelerate business growthRedefine customer engagement with Omnichat’s WhatsApp membership system and enhance campaign tracking and optimisation through the Conversions APIWatsons Hong Kong integrated WhatsApp into the customer journey, from initial product discovery through to final purchase and payment, thereby offering customers a more convenient O+O experienceHong Kong Life revolutionised its interactions with customers by WhatsApp marketing, streamlining the acquisition of potential customers and elevating the overall customer experienceOPTICAL 88 leveraged WhatsApp’s direct messaging capabilities to create tailored, one-on-one conversations with customers, strengthening relationships and boosting satisfaction, resulting in an impressive 26% click-through rate on messages

HONG KONG, Nov. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Omnichat, an all-in-one omnichannel customer experience platform offering conversational commerce solutions, recently hosted a highly scalable conference titled “Unlocking Revenue Potential with Omnichannel Customer Experience”, which featured insights on delivering exceptional customer experiences via WhatsApp, with contributions from industry experts at the global social media giant Meta, international health and beauty retailer Watsons Hong Kong, the one-stop insurance and financial service provider Hong Kong Life, and the professional optical brand OPTICAL 88.

 

Omnichat, as the WhatsApp Business Solution Provider of Meta, introduced how its advanced omnichannel customer experience solutions empowered businesses to effortlessly drive customer loyalty and achieve personalisation through seamless journeys during the event. “Numerous businesses are seeking ways to streamline customer journeys, and WhatsApp Flows offers the perfect solution. Integrating WhatsApp Flows with marketing campaigns empowers businesses to design, build, and customise experiences. This provides customers a fast, simple way to complete tasks within a conversation, ultimately driving conversions and delivering better results,” said Alan Chan, Founder and CEO of Omnichat. The newly launched WhatsApp membership system offers brands and their customers a user-friendly loyalty solution by leveraging WhatsApp, the most popular messaging app in Hong Kong. “When constructing end-to-end customer journeys, loyalty is a crucial element that must not be overlooked. The WhatsApp membership system is designed to strengthen customer relationships through loyalty points, coupons, and membership cards, facilitating future re-engagement and encouraging potential repurchases.” Leveraging the power of Omni AI, auto-generated message content can be customised for various customer segments, enhancing efficiency in marketing and customer service while achieving personalisation. 

WhatsApp has the highest social media platform penetration rate of 79% in Hong Kong, according to the survey conducted by GWI. Driving engagement and growth across the customer lifecycle, the WhatsApp Business Platform plays a pivotal role in connecting with customers from discovery, consideration, purchase to re-engagement. “Meta has continually expanded the capabilities of business messaging to empower companies across various sectors to drive awareness, boost conversions, and create meaningful customer relationships for remarketing,” said Vicky Yiu, APAC Strategic Partnership Manager of Meta. “By creating a customised WhatsApp experience, WhatsApp Flows has achieved measurable results in generating more leads, appointments, and revenue directly within the platform, providing increased convenience for both businesses and their customers.” Meta also offers comprehensive tracking of the entire customer journey with the Conversions API. From the initial ads that lead to WhatsApp engagement, through subsequent WhatsApp interactions, to the final conversion, businesses can now generate actionable insights and fine-tune their advertising strategies with precision.

Prolog Leung, Online Business Director of Watsons Hong Kong also shared in the seminar, “Watsons Hong Kong has successfully integrated WhatsApp commerce into its innovative O+O (Offline plus Online) retail strategy by seamlessly implementing Omnichat’s conversational commerce solution, streamlining the checkout process and delivering an unparalleled shopping experience. It bridges the gap between digital convenience and personalised service. We are now handling tremendous customer enquiries monthly via WhatsApp, minimizing the waiting time of customers to answer their enquiries. Our ‘Watsons Here For You’ service offers one-on-one consultations with pharmacists, Chinese medicine practitioners, and dietitians via WhatsApp. This seamless integration of digital and physical retail spaces allows our customers to engage with our brand at their convenience, not only boosting online engagement and sales but also driving foot traffic to our physical stores.” 

Hong Kong Life has revolutionised its marketing and customer service strategies by leveraging WhatsApp and Omnichat’s advanced messaging solutions. Initially implemented to manage multi-channel enquiries on social media platforms, Hong Kong Life had quickly realised the transformative potential of WhatsApp for business growth and customer experience enhancement. “We have uncovered the limitless potential of WhatsApp in our marketing and customer service. The automated chatbot can now efficiently handle over 90% of simple enquiries, allowing our team to focus on marketing and nurturing deeper customer relationships,” said Jonathan Ko, Chief Marketing Officer of Hong Kong Life. “We have strategically implemented interactive Q&A games via WhatsApp chatbots, incentivising participation with exclusive coupons. This not only enhances customer engagement but also significantly expands our WhatsApp database. Leveraging this growing database to deliver targeted marketing broadcasts, our campaigns have recorded a remarkable 70% read rate, substantially boosting business conversions.” 

OPTICAL 88 has further solidified its reputation for exceptional customer service by leveraging the WhatsApp Business Platform. This strategic move has not only enhanced communication efficiency but also instilled a greater sense of trust and convenience among customers, thanks to the platform’s authorised blue tick verification. Andrea Chan, Digital Marketing Manager of OPTICAL 88 emphasised the significance of this digital transformation, “Maintaining a close, personal connection between our sales team and customers is a cornerstone of our brand values. We have observed that regardless of demographic, our customers overwhelmingly prefer the immediacy and interactivity of WhatsApp over traditional email communications, resulting in up to 26% click-through rate on our messages.” OPTICAL 88 has also broadened its tactical approach beyond one-to-one communications. Andrea further explained, “By integrating omnichannel chatbots with our social media strategy, particularly for Facebook comment auto-replies, we have facilitated engaging social media campaigns while effectively driving online traffic to our physical stores.”

By seamlessly integrating automated systems with personalised human interactions, the comprehensive chat commerce solutions are revolutionising the way businesses interact with their customers across WhatsApp Business Platform, Facebook Messenger and Instagram Direct, and setting new industry standards for customer experience excellence. 

About Omnichat:
Founded in 2017 with its headquarter in Hong Kong, Omnichat is an omnichannel chat commerce solution provider that centralises customers’ conversations from WhatsApp Business Platform, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, LINE, WeChat and website live chat into a single platform to enhance efficiency and productivity.

With a strong presence in the Asia Pacific region, the company has established a solid reputation for serving local and international retail and e-commerce brands. By offering an omnichannel social customer data platform, online-merge-offline(OMO) sales integration, marketing automation, chatbots as well as customer service platform, Omnichat strives to empower brands to deliver personalised customer journeys and drive digital transformation, ultimately converting visitors into customers through chats.

Website: https://www.omnichat.ai/
WhatsApp: https://wa.me/85291925071/?text=EnquiryForWhatsApp
LinkedIn: https://hk.linkedin.com/company/omnichat-easychat
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OmnichatAI

For media enquiries, please contact:
Omnichat Limited
Lily Yeung
Associate Director of Communications
Tel: (852) 9803 5977
Email: lily.yeung@omnichat.ai

Macy Chun
Communications Manager
Tel: (852) 6234 9555
Email: macy.chun@omnichat.ai

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SOURCE Omnichat Limited

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AccuRadio Shields Listeners from ‘The Little Drummer Boy’ in 2024 Challenge

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CHICAGO, Nov. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — This holiday season, AccuRadio, one of the world’s leading online radio services, is stepping up to protect listeners from the ultimate seasonal pitfall: Hearing the song “The Little Drummer Boy.”

This Christmas, AccuRadio is helping music fans dodge the ultimate holiday pitfall: Hearing “The Little Drummer Boy”

“We have a foolproof plan to help our listeners stay safe from that song this holiday season,” announced Kurt Hanson, Founder and CEO of AccuRadio.

AccuRadio’s initiative supports the Little Drummer Boy Challenge — a playful annual game in which countless holiday music lovers aim to avoid hearing “The Little Drummer Boy” for as long as possible, from 12:01am local time on Black Friday through 11:59pm on December 23rd (per littledrummerboychallenge.com). The challenge, originally born in Silicon Valley tech circles, has become a cherished holiday tradition, uniting music fans across the globe.

To aid participants in their quest, AccuRadio is launching a set of “safe zone” Holiday Music channels that feature all the festive classics listeners love, with one notable exception: “The Little Drummer Boy” is completely off the playlist.

“We want holiday music fans to have a safe space to enjoy their favorite holiday songs without fear of losing the challenge,” Hanson said.

For those feeling mischievous, AccuRadio is also introducing a specially-disguised channel that will actually play nothing but dozens of versions of “The Little Drummer Boy,” perfect for pranking friends. “We call it getting drum-rolled,” explained Paul Maloney, AccuRadio’s VP/Programming.

Todd Manley, VP/Promotion at AccuRadio, emphasized the platform’s commitment to its listeners: “In a world where online safety can be challenging to find, we’re making it easy for holiday music fans to enjoy their season with true peace of mind.”

AccuRadio’s “safe zone” channels are a new addition this year to what is already the most extraordinary collection of holiday music channels available anywhere. AccuRadio offers over 125 curated (and personalizable) Christmas music channels focusing on specific genres, decades, regions, tempos, and themes—making it the ultimate destination for holiday music enthusiasts.

This amazing assortment of holiday music channels can be found on the web at www.accuradio.com/christmas-music and on AccuRadio’s iPhone and Android mobile apps.

About AccuRadio
Launched in 2000 (making it one of the earliest pioneers in online audio), AccuRadio offers over 1,400 human-curated music channels (spanning over 50 genres) to over a million adult, upscale, and loyal users each month.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/accuradio-shields-listeners-from-the-little-drummer-boy-in-2024-challenge-302315954.html

SOURCE AccuRadio

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UPS Class Action News: Robbins LLP Reminds Investors of Quickly Approaching Lead Plaintiff Deadline in the United Parcel Service, Inc. Class Action

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SAN DIEGO, Nov. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Robbins LLP reminds investors that a class action was filed on behalf of all persons and entities who purchased or otherwise acquired United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE: UPS) securities between January 30, 2024 and July 22, 2024. UPS is a multinational parcel delivery and supply chain management solutions company operating in more than 200 countries and territories.

For more information, submit a form, email attorney Aaron Dumas, Jr., or give us a call at (800) 350-6003.

The Allegations: Robbins LLP is Investigating Allegations that United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) Misled Investors Regarding its Business Prospects

According to the complaint, during the class period, defendants created the false impression that they possessed reliable information pertaining to the Company’s projected revenue outlook and anticipated growth while also minimizing risk from seasonality and macroeconomic fluctuations. In truth, UPS’ optimistic reports of growth, plans to handle volume variability, upcoming profit growth, and consistent claims that the first quarter would present the worst margins of the fiscal year fell short of reality; the Company was not truly equipped to handle a volume surge without causing a corresponding significant decline in their operating margin.

Plaintiff alleges that the truth emerged on July 23, 2024, when UPS announced its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2024, provided lower-than-expected guidance for the third quarter, and reduced its margin guidance for the full fiscal year 2024. The Company attributed its results and lowered guidance on the shift in “U.S. volume mix both in terms of product and customer segmentation . . . toward value products.”  On this news, the price of UPS common stock fell from $145.18 per share on July 22, 2024, to close at $127.68 per share on July 23, 2024, a decline of $17.50 per share, or about 12.05% according to the complaint.

What Now: You may be eligible to participate in the class action against United Parcel Service, Inc. Shareholders who want to serve as lead plaintiff for the class must submit their application to the court by December 9, 2024. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.  You do not have to participate in the case to be eligible for a recovery. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member. For more information, click here.

All representation is on a contingency fee basis. Shareholders pay no fees or expenses. 

About Robbins LLP: Some law firms issuing releases about this matter do not actually litigate securities class actions; Robbins LLP does. A recognized leader in shareholder rights litigation, the attorneys and staff of Robbins LLP have been dedicated to helping shareholders recover losses, improve corporate governance structures, and hold company executives accountable for their wrongdoing since 2002.  Since our inception, we have obtained over $1 billion for shareholders.

To be notified if a class action against United Parcel Service, Inc. settles or to receive free alerts when corporate executives engage in wrongdoing, sign up for Stock Watch today.

Attorney Advertising.  Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.  

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SOURCE Robbins LLP

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