AI with Financial Intelligence: Turning Hype Into Measurable Value (with Ajay Patel, GM Apptio/IBM)

A practical framework for AI ROI: visibility, accountability, and value Episode description / show notes Last week, you probably caught my chat with Ajay Patel, GM of Apptio and IBM IT Automation. If you missed it, this episode breaks down how a layer of financial intelligence turns AI from experiments into measurable business value. We walk through a simple framework that leaders can actually run with. First, visibility across every AI initiative and its real costs, including people, data preparation, governance, and change management. Second, accountability that ties projects to business objectives, not activity. Third, value that tracks both hard returns and soft returns so the story holds up with finance and the board. Adoption and trust matter just as much. AI programs don’t stall for lack of models. They stall when people can’t trust the data or see the wins. Start with accurate, contextual data and repeatable outcomes. Build confidence with useful insights that remove busywork. Then let automation follow. Listen in for what CIOs and CFOs need to align on the same page and move faster with less risk. What you’ll learn How to inventory AI initiatives and total cost drivers How to link projects to measurable outcomes that matter How to measure hard and soft ROI without hand-waving How to build trust so automation becomes a natural next step Key quotes “AI starts with the productivity tool. It starts providing me rich insight and making smarter decisions. It starts taking away some of that mundane work, and you kind of walk into building that trust… till you get to a point where the user says, ‘I trust it — can you automate that action for me?’” “What if you could have a series of financial experts available at your fingertips? That’s what enterprise financial intelligence is all about — building those experts from your own data so every decision gets smarter.” Links LinkedIn clip of the conversation: [add link] ClearTech Research episode page: [add link] Apptio and IBM IT Automation: https://www.ibm.com/apptio Apptio FinOps Framework: https://www.apptio.com/solutions/finops/ Subscribe to ClearTech Loop: https://form.typeform.com/to/EESYYt4a About the guest Ajay Patel is the General Manager of Apptio and IBM IT Automation, leading Apptio, Turbonomic, Instana, and AIOps across hybrid environments. His leadership spans VMware, Oracle, BEA Systems, and Apigee. He focuses on using financial and operational intelligence to optimize technology investments and outcomes. Chapter markers 00:00 Intro and why financial intelligence matters 00:23 Guest welcome 01:47 From AI hype to ROI 02:53 Financial intelligence vision inside the enterprise 04:58 The framework: visibility, accountability, value 06:39 Adoption, governance, and responsible AI 07:29 Data quality, trust, and building confidence 10:35 Fourteen years of customer data and lessons learned 11:04 Benchmarking, unit economics, and practical guidance 12:43 Closing and conference note 

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