It’s no secret that organizational leaders depend on financial reports and having up-to-date data at their fingertips — especially in a volatile landscape shaped by escalating tariffs, shifting regulations and economic uncertainty. Yet too many financial teams still operate in yesterday’s world of disparate data sources and manual processes — and that’s a problem for many reasons.

Entering, compiling and checking information, then distilling what it means in a digestible fashion, takes too much time, diverting them from supporting leadership more fully as a strategic advisor. Manual processes open up the risk of human error — definitely not what an organization needs during a time-sensitive investment decision, the pressure-packed weeks before a transaction or a pivotal investor, city council or school board meeting.

Meanwhile, disconnected workflows across multiple systems impede big-picture visibility of risk and opportunities alike. Security often falls by the wayside (especially when sensitive financial data is shared over email), leaving information exposed to the very threats organizations are trying to avoid.

Automation rises to the challenge on all of these fronts and more.

Given these challenges, Diligent’s own Chief Accounting Officer, Adam Ginsberg, saw the potential in 

, an automated connection between essential ERP, professional services and human capital data from Oracle NetSuite and the Diligent One Platform, which surfaces it all as a visual dashboard in Diligent Boards.

Ginsberg and his team can deliver better operational and financial insights faster to board members, executives and investors. That fosters better governance by empowering leadership to make fully informed decisions. With Finance Reporting powered by NetSuite, he reported that his team saved 8-12 hours in financial reporting time each month.

“We can focus on analysis and the why, and less about validating the information is complete and accurate...It saves us time and enables us to provide better and more timely insights to directors and the board.” — Adam Ginsberg, Chief Accounting Officer, Diligent

Here’s how it works and how automation delivers multifaceted benefits to financial teams and the leaders they support:

3 proven ways automation streamlines financial reporting

For organizations with multiple departments and divisions like Diligent, one request for financial data unleashes a host of time-consuming steps:

Aggregating data across operations and subsidiaries

Verifying it all for accuracy and recency

Exporting these massive data sets into Excel for laborious manual analysis

Finally, curating and contextualizing it all for leadership, board and investors

When these requests add up, and when they’re time-sensitive and mission-critical, the financial team feels the pressure and risks falling behind.

Automation streamlines this process from start to finish, bringing ease and confidence to reporting and freeing up time for more value-added work.

“We can focus on analysis and the why, and less about validating the information is complete and accurate,” says Ginsberg. “It saves us time and enables us to provide better and more timely insights to directors and the board.”

Connect directly to NetSuite, visualizing essential ERP data within Diligent Boards to deliver better operational and financial insights to board members, executives and investors.

Control your financial reporting

Automation-powered reporting tools can also help teams provide a clear and consistent view of financial performance and risk.

In the case of Finance Reporting powered by NetSuite, financial data, along with operational metrics from NetSuite applications, surface directly in reporting templates designed by industry experts based on governance best practices. Leadership and the board then get this information directly and consistently via Diligent Boards.

“I don’t have to repull the data every single time,” says Ginsberg. “We can focus more on the analysis and the explanation of what happened, and less about validating the information is consistent with the last report and deciding how to present what happened.”

These capabilities have helped his team report metrics to leadership more proactively, and leaders make more fully informed decisions. Ginsberg uses the metric of days sales outstanding (DSO) as one example, which many companies report on frequently internally and to their boards.

“Being able to manage and track DSO allowed us to measure the success of our policy changes and operating plans and ensure we hit our goals,” he says.

Finally, bringing data, workflows and collaboration together into one integrated platform strengthens security. With traditional manual processes, communication and data-sharing take place across too many channels, many of them insecure. Teams risk exposing data to bad actors, losing it along the way or letting errors creep in.

Tools like Finance Reporting powered by NetSuite tackle these challenges head-on. Leveraging automation and integration, they give financial reporting teams a secure channel for aggregating, storing and sharing data — with the board, trusted outside consultants, regulators, shareholders and beyond.

Harness the power of automation for your financial reporting

More time for value-added work. More capacity to meet reporting demands, with accuracy and consistency built in. Sharper decision-making and stronger security. Automated financial reporting is the investment that pays off organization-wide today and into the future.

Download the case study to learn how the Diligent-NetSuite partnership improves efficiency, security and executive collaboration.

Automation: Bringing efficiency, accuracy and ROI to financial reporting 

What happens when a boardroom falls behind the curve of a technology that’s reshaping industries, economies, and ethical boundaries all at once? Artificial intelligence isn’t just another trend — it’s a transformational force. And boards that fail to engage meaningfully with its governance risk more than missed opportunities; they risk irrelevance. In this shifting landscape, how can boards lead with confidence, foresight, and accountability?

 (2026), explores the board's role in AI oversight and best practices for fostering robust AI leadership.

Andrea makes several things clear for boards: continuous education and proactive oversight are key to a successful AI governance program. Reviewing board skills and expertise, and identifying gaps to address, will also help boards understand how they can enhance their AI literacy and oversight.

Here we review some of Andrea's key points in more detail:

Continuous education is vital for board members, particularly those who are not digital natives. The board chair should play a key role in facilitating this 

, ensuring that all members have access to the necessary resources and training.

Board members should demonstrate curiosity, acknowledging their knowledge gaps and actively seeking to learn more. This can be achieved through workshops, seminars, and bringing in external experts to provide insights and training.

 can help identify areas where new members with relevant expertise are needed to enhance the board's capabilities. This ensures that the board has a well-rounded set of skills to address the complexities of AI governance.

Boards should actively engage in overseeing AI adoption by asking management about the significant risks and opportunities associated with new technological developments. This proactive approach ensures that AI initiatives are aligned with the organization's strategic goals and that potential issues are identified and addressed early.

It is essential to have a high-level C-suite or executive person responsible for AI oversight, who is part of the executive team. This individual can ensure that AI governance is prioritized and that the board receives timely and accurate information.

Integration of AI oversight into governance structures

AI governance should be integrated into the existing organizational structures through a whole-of-board approach. This means recognizing the significant and potentially existential impact of AI on the business and society.

While risk and audit committees can be a 

, AI oversight should not be confined to these committees alone. Forming a standalone committee focused on AI and other exponential technologies can provide more specialized and effective oversight.

The integration of AI oversight into the broader governance framework ensures that all board members are attentive to AI-related issues and can contribute to strategic discussions. This holistic approach helps in making well-informed and balanced decisions.

Conducting a skills matrix analysis is essential to identify gaps in the board's expertise related to AI. This analysis should assess the current knowledge and skills of board members and highlight areas where additional expertise is needed.

Boards should actively seek to bring in new members with relevant knowledge and experience to fill these gaps. This can be done through targeted recruitment or by engaging with external advisors and consultants.

A well-rounded board with diverse expertise will be better equipped to handle the complexities of AI governance and make informed decisions.

AI and other exponential technologies present both 

significant opportunities and potential existential risks

. Boards must be vigilant in identifying and mitigating these risks while also exploring the strategic advantages that AI can offer.

Recognizing the existential impact of AI involves understanding how it can fundamentally change the business model, market dynamics, and societal norms. This recognition should drive a proactive and comprehensive approach to AI governance.

 requires a nuanced understanding of the technology and its implications. Boards should ensure that the organization has robust risk management frameworks in place while also fostering innovation and strategic use of AI.

Effective board governance of AI is a multifaceted and dynamic process. By adopting a proactive and comprehensive approach, continuously educating themselves and integrating AI oversight into existing structures, boards can guide their organizations through the complexities of AI and position them for success in the digital age.

Enhance your AI oversight with Diligent's Education & Templates Library

 features curated libraries of eLearning courses, certifications, templates and videos on key GRC topics, including 

AI governance, risk management and ethics

. Explore and learn as the Diligent Education & Templates Library continues to grow, ensuring the latest insights and guidance.

Learn more about the Education & Templates Library, as part of the Diligent One Platform, and request a demo.

Andrea Bonime-Blanc, JD/PhD, is an expert in governance, strategic risk, sustainability, and exponential technologies. A former C-suite executive, she advises global businesses, NGOs, and governments, and serves on multiple boards. She is a Senior Fellow at The Conference Board and NYU’s Center for Global Affairs, and Ethics Advisor to the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico. Recognized by Diligent Governance 100, NACD Directorship 100, and Ethisphere’s 100 Most Influential in Business Ethics, Andrea is the author of Gloom to Boom and the upcoming 

Governing Pandora (Georgetown University Press, 2026).

Is your board ready for AI’s ethical crossroads?

AI is no longer the exclusive domain of tech giants. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), GenAI presents a powerful opportunity to drive efficiency, innovation, and smarter decision-making — without needing large-scale budgets or in-house data science teams.

To better understand how SMEs can unlock the potential of GenAI, Diligent Institute partnered with the Institute of Directors (IoD) to survey 60 UK-based directors. The result? A concise, actionable infographic that outlines the top challenges, opportunities, and best practices for integrating GenAI into your business strategy.

Whether you're just starting your AI journey or looking to scale your efforts, this visual guide offers a roadmap to responsible, effective adoption.

GenAI for small businesses: An infographic for smarter growth  

Poll finds boards struggling to navigate Washington

As tariffs, inflation and sourcing disruptions grow, a new poll finds America’s public-company boardrooms fighting to manage the moment. ‘You can't forecast anything.’

 in Q2, according to the most recent Director Confidence Index, conducted by Diligent Institute and Corporate Board Member, but that doesn’t mean America’s board members are breathing easy. Our latest polling finds the director community remains deeply concerned about the economic impact of the Trump administration’s policies, prompting new approaches to risk oversight in America’s boardrooms.

The extent of the impact from the current administration is extensive. Directors rate the current risk level for U.S. companies at 6.8 out of 10, on a scale where 1 is Negligible and 10 is Significant, with 81 percent of the 126 public company board members polled May 12-14 listing tariffs as the top business risk today.

Second on the list? A tie at 46 percent between two other Washington-created challenges: “supply chain / sourcing disruptions” and “inflation and currency fluctuations” (the survey asked directors to list their top three challenges). The third and fourth picks were D.C.-driven as well: geopolitics and regulatory changes.

“You can't forecast anything in this uncertain environment,” added Joseph R. Bronson, a director on the board of Nasdaq-traded PDF Solutions. “We're doing what we can to deal with this mess created by the White House.”

To cope, directors want to increase the frequency of their board’s strategy and risk conversations (42 percent) and making better use of new AI tools for real-time data and risk analysis (35 percent).

“These two answer options are inherently related,” says Dottie Schindlinger, Executive Director of the Diligent Institute and partner in this research. “As boards recognize the need for more frequent conversations about risk and strategy in the current environment, having access to the real-time data and analysis to support those conversations is crucial.”

Overall, 47 percent say they are engaging in scenario planning to help navigate the current environment—the most common tactic selected by those participating in the survey. Other approaches include diversifying supply chains, revising pricing models and strengthening financial reserves.

“While the highest tariffs keep getting kicked down the road 90-days, that's not a long enough interval for businesses to plan, and there is still no clear trade policy,” said one director.

Still, boards and their companies remain committed to pursuing growth as planned this year. Nearly half (48 percent) said their priority for the rest of the year remains growth—through M&A, new products and new markets. Slightly more than a third said their priority was risk mitigation, including reforecasting, scenario planning and diversification.

“More boards are realizing that uncertainty is the new norm and that many elements driving this uncertainty have been experienced in the past,” said Brian Kushner, who serves on the board of Resideo Technologies, adding: “Just not all at the same time.”

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Automation: Bringing efficiency, accuracy and ROI to financial reporting

Is your board ready for AI’s ethical crossroads?

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