In an environment where customer behavior is changing rapidly, currencies can be volatile and decisions sometimes need to be made within hours, finance teams are facing increasing demands. For MTN Ghana, this pressure was long amplified by reporting and planning processes that were still largely manual. The company has gradually embarked on a transformation with Vena, followed by Vena Copilot, to enable its finance function to devote more time to analysis and decision-making.
When manual tasks slow down finance
The starting point was fairly typical. MTN Ghana’s finance teams collected files from different entities, consolidated the data manually and prepared presentations using extensive copy-and-paste. Once reporting was complete, the information still had to be reformatted before being sent to the MTN Group, which used a different technology environment.
These operations took up a significant portion of the teams’ time and made last-minute changes particularly difficult to absorb. A change in foreign exchange assumptions or revenue drivers could therefore require teams to redo part of the work already completed.
Making finance a true decision-making partner
Under these conditions, finance risked remaining focused on an essentially operational role: collecting, checking, consolidating and presenting data. However, management wanted to evolve this function into a more strategic role, capable of supporting the company in real time as it made decisions.
MTN Ghana’s CFO had therefore set a clear ambition: to bring the “Future of Finance” into the organization’s daily operations.
This ambition requires freeing teams from time-consuming tasks that do not necessarily create additional value. It was from this perspective that technology gradually became a driver of transformation.
Vena to automate FP&A processes
MTN Ghana leveraged Vena to automate some of its financial planning and analysis (FP&A) processes, while bringing financial and non-financial data together on a centralized platform.
Consolidation operations that could previously take several hours are now completed in a matter of minutes. Teams therefore have more time to analyze results and work on higher-value topics. The Excel-like environment also made it easier for users to adopt the solution.
The issue is therefore not solely technological. It also concerns how work is organized: reducing repetitive operations so that finance professionals can focus more on their expertise.
AI gradually becomes part of teams’ daily work
The second stage of this transformation involves artificial intelligence through Vena Copilot.
MTN Ghana now uses Copilot to access data quickly and answer questions that may arise during meetings or planning cycles. This capability notably makes it possible to find certain information more quickly when leaders need it.
However, the company did not choose to automate everything immediately. Instead, its approach is based on gradual adoption, with practical use cases that provide direct value to teams.
Building trust before going further
This cautious approach is one of the interesting lessons from MTN Ghana’s journey. The company believes that AI adoption must first be built on trust.
Teams therefore use Copilot in their daily activities to become familiar with the tool and gradually integrate AI into their working habits. Forecasting and dedicated reporting agents could then represent new stages in this evolution.
This approach is a reminder that digital transformation is not achieved solely by deploying a technology. It is also built with users, based on real needs and experiences that are concrete enough to create trust.
Less operations, more strategy
Ultimately, MTN Ghana wants to fundamentally change how its finance teams allocate their time. Today, between 70 and 80 % of their time is reportedly still devoted to operational activities. The ambition is to gradually move toward an organization more focused on strategic responsibilities.
This shift could change the very nature of finance professionals’ work. When collecting and consolidating data takes less time, teams can devote more energy to understanding trends, challenging assumptions, identifying risks and supporting decision-making.
A transformation that puts people at the center
MTN Ghana’s experience ultimately shows that artificial intelligence does not necessarily mean less human involvement in finance. On the contrary, it can enable employees to devote more time to the human and strategic dimensions of their work.
AI accelerates access to information and automates certain tasks. However, interpreting results, engaging with business teams and turning data into decisions remain at the heart of finance teams’ role.
From finance that reports to finance that anticipates
MTN Ghana’s journey is still taking shape, but its direction is clear: to gradually move from a finance function primarily focused on explaining what has happened to one capable of helping the company understand what might happen tomorrow.
This is what makes this experience particularly interesting. Transformation does not necessarily begin with a spectacular revolution. It can start with a very practical question: how much time could a finance team devote to strategy if it spent less time searching for, consolidating and reformatting data?
At MTN Ghana, this reflection has already become an operational reality. And as trust in AI grows, the technology could help bring about a faster, more available finance function—and, above all, one that is closer to the decisions shaping the company’s future.
source: Vena Solutions
