Even as geopolitical and economic turmoil rages on worldwide, CFOs are confident enough of their financial standing that they’re planning stronger spending and fewer budget cuts.
In fact, in Grant Thornton’s first-quarter 2026 survey of 233 finance chiefs, 68% said they expect their IT and digital transformation costs to increase in the next year. That was the highest percentage in the survey’s 21-quarter history, inching past the 67% of CFOs who said the same in the fourth quarter of 2025.
“Companies can’t afford to treat AI as optional,” said Paul Melville, chief growth officer for Grant Thornton.
Regarding digital transformation in the finance function, respondents cited technology and data constraints as the top challenge, followed by competing priorities and skills gaps.
However, AI spending is part of a broader shift, the firm wrote in its survey report, with companies rather suddenly refraining from cost cuts “more boldly” than at any time in the past five years.
For example, where 52% of surveyed CFOs said in the recent fourth quarter that they were planning cuts to professional consulting support, just 32% said so this quarter. Similarly, those expecting to cut human capital expenses dropped from 43% to 29%, while vendor/supplier costs went from 42% to 29%.
Given a detailed list of costs, a notable 28% of those surveyed said they didn’t plan to cut any. Over the previous 15 quarters of Grant Thornton’s survey, the previous high was 18%.
Overall, companies are balancing short-term profitability requirements with a long-term view, the report noted.
The slowdown in previously expected cuts to human capital spending is particularly interesting, given the workforce reductions announced by major technology companies in recent months. According to the report, just 29% of finance leaders said they expect potential layoffs over the next six months, tying a 15-quarter low in the GT survey.
The findings show that “CFOs do not broadly view AI investments as a catalyst for layoffs,” Grant Thornton wrote.
Expectations for AI-driven revenue expansion and productivity gains might partly explain the low layoff expectations. In some cases, the report noted, “headcount retention — or even expansion — is needed to support the growth that AI is delivering.”
Meanwhile, the survey asked participants whether growing affordability concerns among consumers are influencing their pricing strategy. Almost three-quarters (73%) said such concerns have caused them to either reduce prices, keep them stable or limit pricing increases as much as possible.
About two-thirds of those polled (65%) said they have dynamic or segmented pricing models in at least the pilot stage “as they work to balance margin protection with customer price sensitivity,” the report said. In particular, more staffing might be needed in strategy, quality control, sales or other functions “as the workforce is restructured to support rising production capacity.”
