Finance teams are stuck: individual desire for AI efficiency versus institutional fear of data leakage. Most AI training is either too visionary (“The Future of Work”) or too reckless (“Paste your P&L here”).
This solves the privacy blocker through operational architecture.
The Shell Model
Not “chatting” with AI. Running a secure data pipeline.
Extract & Load (Local): Raw data from ERPs and final results stay local. PII never leaves.
Transform (Remote): Only the model—logic, formulas, structure—goes to the AI. Controllers separate inputs from logic in Excel, swap real data for sample/rounded data, and create a “Shell” safe to upload anywhere.
If you wouldn’t email it, don’t paste it. Upload a sample copy, never the working workbook.
Setup → Work → Critic
Models write 12x faster than you read. Stop babysitting the work phase.
Setup: Pre-load the conversation with external guidance—IFRS/ASPE standards, Big-4 memos.
Work: Let the model churn through drafts. You don’t read these.
Critic: Flip the AI to “Hostile Auditor” or “Skeptical CFO.” Find logic holes before a human does. Skim work, read critic carefully.
The Four Workflows
Policy / Standards Audit: AI as junior technical accountant. Check treatments against public standards without sharing client names.
Stream → Structure: Turn a voice note or Teams rant into a rigorous SOP, checklist, or handover doc. Capture expertise without the formatting tax.
Meeting Notes: Transcripts into structured decision logs and action items. Note-owner listens instead of scribbling.
Red Team: Force the model to argue the opposite stance. LLMs flatter—make them find your blind spots before someone else does.
The 30-Minute Rule
Enterprise seat: ~$40 CAD/month. Senior finance professional: ~$60–100/hour loaded.
If a workflow saves 30 minutes a month, the seat is cost-neutral. Everything above that is bonus capacity—reinvested into architecture, structural fixes, and business partnering that never fit into the month.
Pick one pattern. Run it once on live work. Did it save 10–30 minutes or prevent a bad explanation? Keep what proves itself. Cross off the rest.