In this special crossover episode of Beyond Spend and The Accounting Podcast, recorded live at Emburse in Motion 2025, hosts Adriana Carpenter (CFO, Emburse) and Blake Oliver sit down with Olga Pavlova (Finance Systems Manager, PizzaExpress) to discuss how AI is being applied practically in finance today.

From spend categorization to receipt validation, they unpack how automation is saving time, improving accuracy, and reshaping how finance teams work.

Takeaways:

• Successful AI adoption begins by unifying spend data across cards, invoices, and reimbursements to uncover hidden costs and streamline approvals.
  
  
• Automating repetitive tasks like receipt scanning and categorization frees up finance teams to focus on strategic analysis and business partnership.
  
  
• AI works best when finance teams trust the tech, starting small, identifying high-volume pain points, and continuously refining based on real outcomes.

Whether you’re just getting started with AI or scaling your automation strategy, this episode offers practical insights from leaders on the front lines of financial transformation.

Please check out all Emburse podcasts here:
https://embur.se/beyond-spend

Follow us on social!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/emburse/
https://www.facebook.com/emburse/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXAK_opRNScOFADAhgPHcCA
https://www.instagram.com/emburse