Media Alert: Australian organisations back finance transformation despite data gaps
The vast majority of Australian organisations would have a dedicated budget and dedicated IT team support in place to execute finance transformation projects in the coming year, despite concerns siloed departmental data and a lack of real-time data will hold organisations back.
This is according to Workiva Inc., which is releasing the Australian findings from its 2026 Executive Benchmark Survey of 1,400 global leaders and 100 institutional investors from the world's largest firms.
Key Findings:
Trustworthy data is a top priority
78% of Australian executives have secured a dedicated budget to execute finance transformation projects in 2026, while 76% reported having a dedicated IT team to support transformation initiatives, and 57% said a centre of excellence or steering committee would guide execution.
83% of Australia executives ranked strengthening data governance across teams and automating data collection as their top digital transformation priorities for 2026
A third of Australian leaders (33%) cited siloed departmental data as the single biggest limiter of strategic impact, while 32% cited a lack of real-time data as the biggest limiter. Only 14% said not having enough time to analyse data was their biggest limiter – among the lowest of regions surveyed and well below the global average (20%)
The foundations of AI
The survey found 64% use AI in select components of quarterly or annual disclosures, and 55% use it extensively across the reporting process, while 75% say that internal audit teams test their AI models.
Sustainability in motion
39% of Australian executives said they are designing their sustainability reporting with investors in mind, and view their reports as a tool for communicating value, risk, and long-term resilience to the capital markets.
34% of local respondents say financial performance and profitability are primary drivers of their company’s sustainability efforts, while 20% say brand, values, and mission are at the top.
Just 7% of Australian respondents said regulators are the primary audience of their sustainability reports, indicating other stakeholders, investors, employees and customers (88%), are driving sustainable investment.
The findings from Workiva’s 2026 Executive Benchmark Survey found that, as leaders work to move faster and more confidently under pressure, Australian organisations rank data automation and governance as their top digital transformation priorities for 2026. Importantly, most local companies are now funding this shift with dedicated budgets and IT support.
“All over the world, businesses face the challenge of how fast they can turn disruption into action – and that’s a data problem,” said Narain Viswanathan, Area Director ANZ, Workiva. “In Australia, we are seeing leaders invest in transformation with the core aims of growth, profitability, and achieving operational excellence. To do this they must gain financial clarity, modernise data flows, and scale with confidence.”