Elly Yates-Roberts |
Etihad Airways is launching the next phase of digital transformation for its finance division by using Microsoft AI to automate its bank-reconciliation process. In doing so, the United Arab Emirates airline hopes to improve efficiency and reduce the risk of human error, given the large number of transactions and manual reconciliation tasks.
“Bank reconciliations are a tedious and labour-intensive process in most global organisations and we are excited about the ability to automate this through the use of technology,” said Frank Meyer, chief digital officer of Etihad Aviation Group. “Our longstanding partnership with Microsoft has made it easier for us to initiate our automation plan to enhance efficiency, expand cost-reduction and optimise operations.”
The initiative follows Etihad’s successful deployment of Microsoft AI capabilities to support automated payment inspection earlier this year and is part of a continued partnership between the two firms to drive the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) across the business.
“AI will be a great transformer across several sectors including aviation, empowering the creation of higher-value services that can lead to overall economic growth,” said Jens Hansen, Microsoft EMEA vice president for data and AI. “We do not foresee AI fully replacing humans in the workforce; rather we see it as a universally accessible tool to augment human abilities. And Etihad Airways has been a frontrunner in preparing today’s workforce for the jobs of the future by setting an example in its harnessing of AI.”