James Tucker, an expert in Corporate Finance & Strategy at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), said that corporations' CFOs should reemerge as the decision-makers for AI investments. He said CFOs should set AI investment priorities, define success criteria, and design so AI translates into real corporate value.
He also advised Korean corporations investing in AI that "competitive advantage will come not from adopting a superior AI model, but from integrating AI into core business processes faster than rivals." The following is a Q&A with James Tucker.
─Why do you think the CFO's role is becoming more important in the AI era?
"At first, corporations debated whether they should invest in AI, and then discussed how much to invest. Now the key task is where to prioritize investment. CEOs and investors have begun asking where to allocate limited resources—capital, talent, and executive attention—to most increase corporate value.
For this reason, in the AI era the CFO stands at the center of decision-making. The role is to distinguish investments that create real economic value from those that do not amid the expectations and excitement around AI. In other words, the CFO becomes the bridge between expectations about technology and shareholder value, responsible for judging not only where to invest but also where to stop investing."
─What is the biggest difference between corporations that create real business value through AI and those that remain stuck at the experimentation stage?
"The biggest difference lies not in the level of technology but in capital allocation and execution. Corporations that create tangible value approach AI not as a collection of individual pilot projects but as part of corporate strategy. They focus on a small number of high-impact priorities, redesign processes accordingly, and measure performance with financial metrics.
In contrast, corporations that fail to deliver results often use the number of AI projects launched as the measure of success, rather than how much AI has actually changed business outcomes."
—BCG described the CFO in the AI era as the "architect of AI value." What does that mean in actual management practice?
"An architect is not someone who inspects a completed building but someone who is involved in the design from the start. The same goes for the CFO in the AI era. The CFO helps determine AI investment priorities, defines success criteria, and takes on the role of designing so AI leads to real corporate value.
The finance organization should become the corporation's "control tower," linking operating data and financial performance in real time. This lets executives adjust course before missing opportunities. In the AI era, the CFO must evolve from someone who reports value after it is created to someone who makes value creation happen."
─As market expectations for AI investment grow, how should CEOs and CFOs define and manage AI return on investment (ROI)?
"The most common mistake is viewing AI ROI only as the return on a single investment project. AI is not a single project but should be managed like an investment portfolio. Some projects deliver short-term productivity gains, while others build long-term competitive advantage. Therefore, AI performance should be evaluated across multiple dimensions, including growth, profitability, resilience, customer experience, and future strategic options.
Ultimately, what investors want to know is not how much was invested in AI, but how that investment will translate into improved future results and cash flow."
─How should CFOs evolve in the AI era from "explaining the past" to "predicting the future"?
"AI enables finance organizations to answer far more important questions: 'What is most likely to happen next, and what should we do now?' By combining real-time operating data with predictive models and scenario analysis, they can spot risks and opportunities weeks or even months ahead of traditional reporting systems.
The best CFOs will build what BCG calls "no surprises finance," a finance organization that gives the CEO time to respond before the unexpected happens."
─What capabilities and leadership do you think are most important for a successful CFO in the AI era?
"A CFO in the AI era does not have to be a data scientist. But they need enough understanding to test existing assumptions, ask better questions, and make confident decisions about AI investments. At the same time, because AI transformation ultimately changes how people work and make decisions, leadership that can drive organization-wide change is also crucial.
A successful CFO combines financial discipline with curiosity, business insight, and the courage to redesign long-accepted finance processes."
─What are the most common mistakes corporations make when measuring and managing the value of AI?
"Many corporations still approach AI as a technology project rather than business transformation. As a result, they measure activity itself rather than actual outcomes. For example, they track the number of models built, employees trained, and pilot projects, but often fail to properly measure how AI has affected actual sales, productivity, and profitability.
Another mistake is evaluating each AI project in isolation. You need to see what synergies they create at the overall AI investment portfolio level. Above all, the biggest misconception is thinking technology alone creates value. Sustainable value is created not by the technology itself but when processes, governance, and ways of working are changed around it."
─What should Korean CEOs and CFOs prioritize over the next 12 to 24 months?
"The next stage of AI will be the stage of "accountability" and "advantage," not mere adoption. CEOs and CFOs should clearly build a corporation-level AI investment portfolio, establish consistent value measurement standards, and put in place a system to confirm in real time whether AI is actually improving business performance.
Korea has world-class technological competitiveness and ample potential in the AI race. Lasting competitive advantage will come not from adopting superior AI models but from integrating AI into core business processes faster than competitors.
Ultimately, the corporations that win will be those that can prove, through AI, not just that they have improved operational efficiency, but that they are making the corporation itself more valuable to customers, employees, and investors."