Problem

Manual operations strained resources and limited strategic decision-making

The finance organization at Airbus North America spanned four departments: accounting, controlling, tax, and treasury. Processes from team to team naturally varied, making it difficult to maintain consistency. To add to the challenge, each team needed help managing the highly manual work, often brought on by unique spending parameters by departments, teams, and managers. 

In 2018, they launched a global initiative to digitalize their operations and automate their accounts payable process. With innovation as a core of Airbus' company vision, Waqas Aman, Head of Financial Systems in North America, and Richard Masci, Head of Financial System Services, decided to invest in AppZen to reduce manual work and strengthen compliance controls. This implementation would need to include a business intelligence system that could aid strategic decisions at the executive level.

While we had strong processes, we were still missing key elements in automation, compliance, and comprehensive expense report auditing. AppZen filled this gap with artificial intelligence, which was truly transformative for Airbus.

 

Waqas Aman

Head of Financial Systems, North America at Airbus

Solution

AI automation elevated T&E operations without disrupting processes

"Airbus has always been at the cutting edge of technology," shares Masci, "to stay competitive in the market, we have to innovate not only in the industry we're working in but also within our organization." Starting with their existing travel and expense solution, they seamlessly integrated AppZen with their existing systems. Auditors and employees were able to continue following the same processes while AI-fueled operations began to be built behind the scenes. 

AppZen's impact on Airbus was immediate. Aman shares, "It significantly reduced the workload for our T&E analysts, allowing them to focus on more strategic activities. The platform helped us identify ambiguities in our T&E policies and eliminate inconsistent micro-policies throughout the company." 

What's more, cross-team collaboration strengthened across internal teams. With improved transparency within T&E spend, their audit team was able to foster more trustworthy relationships backed by data. 

 

Result

$200K in savings and 350 hours redirected to strategic initiatives

With AI enabling reviews of 100% of expenses, the savings were tangible. In their first year of using AppZen, the team uncovered policy gaps and the source of high-risk expenses, saving the company over $200K, which could be invested back into the business. 

Stronger alignment across teams allows for consistency between auditor reviews. Low and medium-risk expenses no longer require an auditor, giving the team over 350 working hours to reallocate to more meaningful tasks.

Artificial intelligence enables employees to move away from low-value tasks and focus instead on high-impact activities that drive company growth, which is especially crucial in highly competitive markets.

 

Richard Masci
Head of Financial System Services at Airbus

The partnership between Airbus and AppZen demonstrates how AI approached thoughtfully and collaboratively can transform businesses and empower employees. By automating routine tasks and enabling teams to focus on higher-value activities, Airbus has highlighted that the strategic implementation of AI isn't about replacing workers—it's about elevating human potential. The company's experience is a compelling example for organizations looking to embrace digital transformation and maintain their competitive edge.

As Airbus continues leveraging AI solutions to drive innovation and efficiency, its experience is a compelling example for organizations looking to embrace digital transformation and maintain their competitive edge in today's rapidly evolving market landscape.