Insights from SSOW: Generating Value and Creating Measurable Impact through Smart AI

The article below is a summary of one of SSON's keynote sessions at Shared Services & Outsourcing Week North America in March 2025. We selected this session for the great insight into one of the industry's hottest topics, leveraging AI!

In today’s fast-paced business landscape, leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer just an advantage—it’s a necessity. Koch Industries, in collaboration with Oversight, has embraced Smart AI to transform its financial oversight, enhance spend management, and improve compliance auditing. At their keynote session this month at Shared Services Week North America, Anna Flanagan, Finance Director at Koch Industries, and Nathaniel L’Heureux, Chief Solutions Ambassador at Oversight, shared insights into how this implementation has driven significant value and impact.

Moving from Reactive to Proactive Reporting

Before integrating Oversight’s AI-driven solution, Koch Industries faced several challenges in its spend management processes. Reporting was largely reactive, lacking the depth needed to uncover spending trends and lost opportunities. A systematic, automated approach was necessary to track payment spends, identify risks, and educate employees on compliance.

To address these challenges, Koch expanded its audit team, establishing a dedicated compliance personnel base in Bangalore. This team now has the tools to analyze trends and identify opportunities, ensuring financial integrity and strategic spending.

A Principle-Based Approach to Governance

L’Heureux posed an important question about Koch’s governance policies, to which Flanagan responded by emphasizing the company’s principle-based culture. Unlike rigid, rules-based policies, Koch’s policies—such as its Travel & Expense (T&E) policy—are designed to support employees rather than restrict them.

Rather than enforcing compliance at the transactional level, Koch’s approach focuses on broader trends, identifying excessive behaviors and guiding employees toward better practices. The integration of Smart AI facilitates this approach, allowing auditors to concentrate on high-risk items while making compliance a more seamless experience for employees.

The Role of Smart AI in Koch’s Spend Management

Spending trends constantly evolve, making it challenging to pinpoint high-risk activities manually. Smart AI enables Koch to prioritize risk areas, streamline fraud detection, and enhance overall financial visibility. By using AI to detect anomalies and excessive spending behaviors, auditors can efficiently direct their attention to where it is needed most.

Key Benefits of Oversight’s Smart AI Implementation

With the implementation of Oversight’s AI-driven solution, Koch Industries has seen remarkable improvements in its auditing and compliance processes:

• Increased Efficiency: The team has doubled the number of items they can review, significantly improving the identification of policy violations.
• Just-in-Time Conversations: Real-time insights enable auditors to educate employees and supervisors immediately, fostering better compliance awareness.
• Strategic Consultation & Training: Oversight’s consultancy and resolution services have helped Koch identify gaps, implement spending thresholds, and train auditors to interpret and communicate insights effectively.
• Evolving Job Roles: Initial concerns about AI making jobs obsolete were quickly dispelled. Instead, auditors found their roles evolving from administrative tasks to investigative and strategic functions, making their work more engaging and rewarding. As a result, team retention has improved, and morale has increased.

Lessons Learned from AI Implementation

Through their journey with Smart AI, Koch Industries has gathered valuable insights:

• Align Policy with Team Goals: Clearly define what stakeholders want to achieve before rolling out an AI-driven solution to ensure a successful pilot.
• Engage Stakeholders Early and Often: Proactive communication ensures that expectations are aligned and reduces resistance to new technology.
• Communicate Before Implementation: Initially, Koch did not inform employees about the AI integration, which caused concern. Clear communication from the outset helps ease transitions and build trust.

Looking Ahead: Expanding AI and Analytics

Encouraged by their success, Koch is now looking to implement further analytics capabilities with Oversight. This next phase of AI integration is met with enthusiasm, as the team understands its potential to enhance visibility and efficiency. One key area of focus is leveraging translation capabilities, a crucial advantage for Koch, which operates in over 50 countries.

By continuing to harness AI-powered insights, Koch Industries is setting a new standard in financial oversight, ensuring compliance while empowering employees. Their journey underscores the transformative power of Smart AI—not just in efficiency gains but in reshaping how organizations approach governance and decision-making. To hear more from Oversight, register for our Finance Transformation Virtual Summit, where they will be speaking.