Modernising IT infrastructure (19%) takes priority over AI (11%) in corporate budgets. Almost a quarter (24%) of the C-suite cites manual data entry as the most outdated process. Leadership buy‑in and clear business integration strategy (31%) is the biggest obstacle to AI adoption. Discrepancy between the different board members: the CEOs focus on cost reduction and retention while the CFOs want to expand and innovate.
While the world is captivated by artificial intelligence, new research by Revolut Business among 150 Romanian business decision-makers (CEOs, CFOs and COOs) reveals that AI is not yet a top priority in the budgets of Romanian companies this year. They prefer to invest their money in modernising their IT infrastructure and automating outdated systems.
When asked where the largest budget increase will go this year, ‘modernising IT infrastructure and cloud migration’ takes the top spot (19%). This is followed by scaling up sales and marketing for market share (16%) and hiring new talent to expand the team (12%). Strikingly, ‘building out AI capabilities’ comes in sixth place with only 10%. „Thus, Romanian companies seem to want to repair the past first, before looking ahead and jumping fully onto the AI bandwagon.” – according to Revolut.
If companies do want to get started with AI, the technology itself is rarely the problem. Only 15% of surveyed executives view IT infrastructure as the biggest obstacle to AI adoption. The real hurdles are human: leadership buy‑in and clear business integration strategy (31%) and change management programmes for employees (21%). Furthermore, a quarter of corporates struggle primarily with internal buy-in, while one in five medium-sized companies simply lacks the technical talent.
Manual work and bureaucracy are major hurdles
That the foundation is not yet solid is also evident from the biggest frustrations. When asked which process is the most dated and needs immediate replacement, one quarter of respondents (24%) cite ‘manual data entry and reporting’. Long‑winded HR onboarding processes (22%) are also a thorn in the side, especially for small-sized companies (32%).
Tension in the boardroom
Although the general trend points towards consolidation, the research exposes an interesting discrepancy between the different board members.
. The CEOs want to retain: The CEOs prefer to put money into certainty. For them, ‘talent retention’ is a much higher priority (15%) than for the CFO (5%).
. The CFOs want to innovate: CFOs are more favorable to innovation than the CEOs (23% vs 13%)
This exposes a strategic dilemma: the CFO chases expansion and innovation, while the CEO prioritises internal stability and retention in an overheated labour market.
Iulian Boia, Sales Manager at Revolut Business, recognises the struggle of Romanian entrepreneurs: „Romanian companies are rightly pragmatic: you don’t build a skyscraper on a weak foundation. But modernising doesn’t have to mean spending years on IT projects. Many of the ‘old school’ frustrations highlighted in the research – such as time-consuming administration and unnecessarily complex approvals – can be solved immediately with the current generation of smart financial tools. By connecting solutions that automate this ‘manual work,’ you bridge the gap between the desires of the CEO and the CFO. With Revolut Business tools, operational efficiency becomes a reality, ensuring the transition from manual and cumbersome administration to instant, automated, and financially compliant payments”.
„As Revolut has already accustomed its clients, the digital bank continued to offer a simplified experience focused on solving the immediate financial problems of customers who run businesses. In addition to easy enrollment, many companies choose to work with Revolut Business because 90% of the transfers made are instant, especially supporting companies that run large amounts and in various currencies (34 fiat currencies are available to Revolut Business customers). Revolut Business customers’ international operations generated EUR/RON exchanges of €30 million in the last month alone.” – Revolut explained.
In the press release, the company said that „Revolut Business continues to grow in popularity among companies in Romania, representing an alternative to traditional banking services: a modern, fully digital solution that allows companies to access their funds without barriers, with lower fees for faster daily banking services, fewer administrative hassles, advanced security tools, fraud protection, real-time information and a series of automations and integrations with various platforms”.
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