With Interest

AI has become one of the most-used business technologies. But delve deeper into the biz tech data and there's another story to be told.

In the latest CPA Australia Business Technology Report, 89 per cent of respondents said their organisation used AI in 2025, up from 69 per cent in 2024 and 55 per cent in 2023.

Yet only 16 per cent report that AI is fully embedded across their operations.

Most teams are still experimenting, often relying on free or basic tools rather than structured, strategic adoption. The gap between usage and true integration points to significant untapped potential.

Many core finance and operational processes are still only lightly digitised, despite clear opportunities for efficiency, clarity and improved decision-making.

This episode examines how finance and accounting teams can use AI to strengthen systems and create capacity where it matters most.

Drawing on the survey's findings, you'll hear how top-performing businesses integrate AI across their workflows and why mindset, curiosity and practical governance underpin successful adoption.

Gain a grounded view of how firms apply AI in everyday workflows, supported by data from CPA Australia's annual tech and business report.

Listen now for practical steps to help your business integrate AI.

Did you know that one of Australia's biggest superannuation reforms in decades is starting in July 2026? Are you prepared for the change?

In short, with legislation moving through Parliament, Australia will move from quarterly to payday-based superannuation payments – a significant shift with implications across business.

This expert-led episode, featuring three guests, explores the systems issues and regulatory implications as well as why Payday Super is happening and the benefits of this change to employees.

Key takeaways include:

• How cash flow, payroll systems and compliance will be affected by this change

• The closure of the Small Business Super Clearinghouse (SBSCH)

• How the seven-day payment rule will work for missing payments

• Practical steps accountants can take to help prepare clients early

Listen now for expert advice to help you prepare for the changes coming soon to superannuation in Australia.

Australia remains one of the few advanced economies still using PDFs for financial reporting – a format most global markets have already left behind.

In this episode, you'll gain expert-led insights on why adopting digital financial reporting in Australia is critical to supporting trust, transparency and competitiveness in global markets.

Explore how structured data allows regulators, investors and businesses to analyse and compare information more efficiently, driving better decision-making and reducing capital costs.

Listeners will learn:

• How structured data improves accountability and investor confidence

• Why global markets already mandate digital reporting standards

• The link between digital disclosure and lower capital costs

• How AI will enhance – not replace – digital reporting workflows

• What Australian policymakers can learn from global peers

Learn why CPA Australia is recommending a mandate for digital reporting by listed entities in this expert-led discussion.

Listen now.

In this special episode of With Interest, CPA Australia CEO Chris Freeland sits down with Australia's Auditor General, Dr Caralee McLiesh, for an exclusive fireside chat on public sector challenges.

The conversation builds on Dr McLiesh's keynote address on performance management in the Commonwealth public sector, drawing on insights from the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) annual report, released in September 2025.

The discussion took place following a roundtable lunch in Canberra on 5 August 2025, where CPA Australia convened senior public sector leaders to hear Dr McLiesh's keynote before she joined Chris Freeland to expand on the key themes.

Listen now.

Speakers: Dr Caralee McLiesh, Auditor-General of Australia and Chris Freeland, CEO, CPA Australia.

In this special With Interest episode, you can listen in full to a keynote speech by Australia's Auditor-General, Dr Caralee McLiesh.

The speech focuses on performance management in the Commonwealth public sector, drawing on some of the many findings in the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) annual report, released in September 2025.

The Auditor-General addresses the state of performance management 10 years after the introduction of the Public Governance Performance and Accountability (PGPA) Act of 2013. In her speech, she highlights three key areas where the framework's full potential has yet to be realised.

CPA Australia CEO Chris Freeland brought together senior leaders from across the public sector for a roundtable lunch in the nation's capital on August 5, 2025, where the Auditor-General gave this insightful keynote.

Listen now.

Speaker: Dr Caralee McLiesh, Auditor-General of Australia