From Pymnts · PYMNTS · · 1m 50s
AI Agents Could Fill Treasury’s Looming Talent Gap
AI agents may solve treasury staff shortages as experienced workers retire.
In brief
AI agents may solve treasury staff shortages as experienced workers retire. AI agents can maintain treasury operations when experienced staff retire by automating disconnected payment processes. Originally reported by Pymnts.
Treasury workforce shortage
Corporate treasury departments face a talent gap as experienced staff retire after decades of handling payment processes.
Experienced staff knowledge
Staff know which systems don’t talk to each other, which exceptions require workarounds, and which processes depend on memory.
Retirement urgency
Companies need to replace staff who are retiring after 20-30 years in treasury roles.
Katherine Weislogel’s view
Fifth Third’s head of Commercial Payments Client Success says AI is a practical solution for treasury staff shortages.
30-year staff example
One client has employees with 30 years of experience approaching retirement with no replacement confidence.
AI for process coordination
AI agents can connect payment steps without requiring manual handoffs between systems.
Five-step payment process
A payment travels through five separate steps involving different people, technologies and decision points.
Retirement impact
Losing experienced staff makes it harder to redesign payment processes that depend on their knowledge.
Account onboarding example
AI can move customer account information from submission to live status in hours versus days.
AI doesn’t control money
AI agents collect information and coordinate workflows but leave financial decisions to authorized employees.
Gradual AI permissions
Companies evaluate AI permissions incrementally based on risk, starting with analysis rather than payment execution.
Human oversight remains
Human checks and verifications will stay part of the process even with AI agents.
First payoff
The first meaningful return on AI agents may be operational continuity, not autonomous treasury control.
The bottom line
AI agents can maintain treasury operations when experienced staff retire by automating disconnected payment processes.
