面向企业领导者的2025年专业人士未来报告

Report2025 Actionable insightsfor corporate leaders A defining moment for corporate functions Corporate functions — from legal, tax, trade, riskand compliance to every enabling department —are navigating an increasingly complex landscapewith rising demands. In a world where bothcompliance and commerce are organizationalimperatives, artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer justa technological advancement. It is a fundamentalrequirement for managing this environment and Notably, these corporate functions are leadingthe way in AI adoption. Our research shows thatcorporate tax, accounting, and trade departmentsare at the forefront of AI investment, a trend alsoseen in corporate legal departments, with 54%of respondents saying their departments wereinvesting in new AI tools. This far surpasses the significant investment not only in technology butalso in the in-house talent. Our findings highlightthe importance of ongoing training and skilldevelopment. Professionals must be prepared notjust to operate AI tools but also to critically assesstheir outputs, building the judgment necessaryfor trust and compliance. Addressing skill gaps — However, our research also uncovered a crucialstrategy gap, a jagged edge of AI adoption.While nearly half (48%) of respondents said theyexpect transformational AI-driven changes in theircorporate functions this year, only 19% said theyhave a departmental AI strategy in place. This cleardisconnect supports our main point: Organizationswith well-defined, deliberate AI strategies are muchmore likely to achieve a significant return on their Those organizations adopting this holisticapproach — combining strong AI strategies withcomprehensive talent development and a relentlessfocus on strategic deployment and measurableoutcomes — will not only survive but thrive. Theywill redefine professional services and business This paper provides crucial insights to guidecorporate in-house teams along their essential Crucially, AI’s potential depends on the peoplewho use it. Effective deployment requires Forces impacting corporations Top forces predicted to impact in the next 5 years Over the past three years, during which ThomsonReuters conducted the surveys supporting theFutureof Professionalsreport, one factor — the potentialimpact of AI and AI-driven solutions on corporatefunctions — was seen as the most likely to have atransformational or high impact on their work over the As noted in the recently released2025 C-Suite Survey from Thomson Reuters Institute, perhaps nowhere isthat sentiment more evident than among corporateC-suite leaders, who are increasingly paying closeattention to how in-house functions are contributing According to the C-suite survey, enabling functionssuch as legal and tax sit low on the list of contributorsto the success of their companies’ overall objectivesas these functions are most commonly perceived Further, many in-house professionals see AI as itsown pressure point, one that is likely to increase thepace, volume, and complexity of work that in-houseteams are expected to handle. Yet, they also see AIas potentially introducing a level of efficiency into C-suite leaders would be wise tocontinue theirfocuson leveraging advanced technology toimprove the efficiency and effectiveness of theirin-house functions. This is especially true for As many C-suite leaders continue to focus more ondigital transformation, they are seeing AI as the mosttransformative force that could help these functions Transformation in enabling functions Much like the sentiment seen in their outside legalor tax providers, many in-house professionals in thelegal, tax, compliance, and trade areas — which areoften ahead of their outside-firm counterparts inAI investment and usage — predict that AI willbring a much higher level of change for the futureof their profession than what they are expecting Broken down further, just 41% of in-house legalprofessionals and 42% of in-house risk andcompliance professionals said they expect highor transformational change in their departmentsthis year. And interestingly, while 61% of in-housetax and accounting and global trade professionalssaid they expect high or transformational change intheir departments this year, there is a stark regional believe that AI will have a high oreven transformational impact on their81% Just48%expect to see transformational or highlevels of change in their departmentthis year. KEY ACTION: This gap between the transformational impactof AI that corporate professionals see in theirprofession and the much smaller impact theysee within their own departments may be a challenge. C-suite executives and departmentleaders need to address this — throughincreased investment and communication— What does thistransformationalchange look like? Responsive change driven by wider businesstransformationin which individual in-housedepartments must pivot to align their needs with Proactive change driven by departments, focusing