Workiva: The secret compliance and reporting arms race

There's always been an arms race in cybersecurity, but what most don't realise is that there may be one in almost every other specialisation, too. That became clear in a discussion with Latitude Financial Services CFO Guillaume Leger, who said the emergence of powerful AI tools for compliance and other functions places pressure on accounting professionals to get more done, faster, while adding greater value.

The one advantage in compliance, of course, is that this particular race isn't driven by an adversary, but instead a mutual shared interest.

"The standard keeps going up because stakeholders have better tools, and they know we have better tools. Regulators will also raise their standards, as they too have better tools and can go through our numbers much faster," said Leger.

The demands placed on finance teams don't end there. When publicly listed companies deliver quarterly results, there's a short period between announcing the numbers and the market analysts posing their questions. "They have two hours to prepare; before AI, they would read and analyse. Now, I'm sure they're putting all disclosures into AI, and perhaps getting detailed sample questions to put to management."

It's a fresh and probably quite universal perspective on how AI compels improvement in many fields. Better tools contribute to enhanced outputs (there is a potential kicker that despite the promises, the advantages don't necessarily deliver improved productivity. More on that momentarily).

Advanced compliance starts with a sound base

Leger went on to explain that Latitude Financial Services, known for its interest-free period GEM Card, is in the final stretches of implementing the Workiva compliance platform. He's got a good deal of confidence in the vendor: "This is my fourth implementation of Workiva," he confirmed, "And as soon as there is the possibility of using the more dense parts of Workiva, like the latest AI which helps come up with disclosures and so on, we will definitely do that."

Providing more information on what those 'dense parts' that Leger refers to, Workiva's APAC GM Kristen Pimpini said emerging solutions include Agent Studio, Automated Testing for Internal Audit and GRC, and additional AI agents for specific regulatory reporting tasks. "Our investments move practitioners away from mundane tasks so they can double down on areas where they can make a considerable impact on their businesses," he said.

Pimpini is particularly enthused about Agent Studio. "Agent Studio extends our agents within the platform with Model Context Protocol, so that means integrating other tools our customers are using within other SaaS products or business units. That's a big shift, and it is in response to considerable market feedback."

For Leger, these developments directly feed into the increased demands placed on compliance and finance teams. "I need to be better prepared. Before our August results, we used AI to ask the toughest possible questions as preparation. We must, because the analysts on the earnings call are doing the same. And that means the standard of pretty much everything goes up."

Compliance work doesn't diminish, it changes

What doesn't happen even when compliance automation tools are introduced, said Leger, is necessarily a more relaxed finance team. Instead, their work changes and (one imagines) improves as dull or menial tasks are replaced with higher level ones. This brings to mind the productivity paradox and economist Robert Solow's famous quip that 'You can see the computer age everywhere but in the productivity statistics.'

In other words, the AI tools are becoming indispensable not because they eliminate work, but because the improvement they deliver necessitates it. "If you are a good performer, you won't be let go, but you'll probably find yourself moved around. You do need your best people and your experts," Leger added.

It's also why he's paying close - and approving - attention to Workiva's platform and roadmap. "As I say, we're still finalizing the connections of the core platform, but we will definitely adopt the AI tools. We're looking forward to testing and understanding what they do, and fully expect our team to elevate from core disclosures to data analysis."

Leger added that he sees a considerable advantage in a dedicated compliance platform with 'internal AI'. "The advantage of having the AI inside the platform is it is a lot more secure. You have confidence that whatever you're doing is safe. We have a lot more confidence than using general AI models."

It's a point Pimpini picks up on. "This is actually crucial; AI or any tool shouldn't produce unreliable results fast, because as I overheard recently, speed without trust is a liability. Right now, everyone wants to go fast, but when talking governance, going fast isn't the key outcome. Accuracy and reliability must come first. Guillame doesn't want to sign off on anything that isn't completely dependable."

Combining IR with compliance

Looking ahead, Leger said compliance teams are achieving more, including adding value to the business beyond recording adherence to applicable regulations. "It's 'compliance meets investor relations', two things that were historically disconnected," he noted.

"These meet in Workiva, and AI tools allow us to make sure it's very consistent. In the past it would be done by the CFO, but with these tools it is better, much easier, much faster, getting accurate and dependable results in front of management, board, public, investors, media. When everything has been done perfectly, it's a huge gain."