Your weekly go-to guide to transform your finance function into a strategic powerhouse.

Welcome CFO Techstack Community 👋,

In last week’s newsletter, we asked: How do you build on AI momentum without creating a mess? This week, we’re getting practical. In the first edition of our new AI in Action series, we spotlight Martin Goodwin from Open Box Software.

With no prior experience in Power BI or SQL, Martin taught himself to automate reporting using ChatGPT, DataSights, and domain knowledge, turning days of manual work into on-demand dashboards. It’s a real-world look at how AI can empower finance teams to move faster, without losing control.

FEATURED ARTICLE

AI in Action: From manual spreadsheets to automated dashboard

How Martin Goodwin used ChatGPT, Power BI and DataSights to transform reporting at Open Box Software.

In the last few weeks, we’ve focused on where to start with AI and how to scale its use across your finance function without turning it into chaos. But theory can only take us so far.

It’s time to go practical.

This week, we’re kicking off a new series in CFO Techstack: AI in Action. Each edition will feature a finance professional who used AI in one very specific way, whether to remove manual work, fix a pain point or completely transform a workflow.

We’re starting with Martin Goodwin, Group Finance Manager at Open Box Software.

From spreadsheets to on-demand reporting

Martin joined Open Box Software with a clear mandate: “clear backlogs, find automation wins and improve finance processes.” Like most finance teams, the usual suspects came first: fixing bank feeds and tightening up how Xero was used. But the real challenge? Reporting.

Open Box operates across multiple entities and currencies. And while Xero and Syft got them part of the way there, finance couldn’t solve a very specific need: standardising reporting at a fixed exchange rate using the source currency of each transaction. As Martin explains:

“We like to report at a standard exchange rate, so every year we use the same exchange rate, so that you can see the actual growth without the impact of currency movements”

The workaround was tedious. Export from Syft, manually manipulate the data. Strip out converted revenue. Recalculate everything manually using custom exchange rates. “It took days,” Martin says.

He needed a new approach, one that could automate this process, provide flexibility, and work securely with sensitive data. That’s when he came across a post from Tyler Caskey, whose name he recognised from the CFO Techstack community, recommending DataSights as a powerful way to extract and manipulate financial data from Xero for reporting.

The learning curve: ChatGPT as an AI-powered tutor

Martin had never used Power BI or SQL before. But he knew this was the stack he needed.

Rather than hand it off to the dev team or bring in someone to do it for them, which wasn’t an option due to data sensitivity, he decided to upskill himself, with the help of ChatGPT.

“I did a short Udemy Power BI course, but it’s not very practical... It taught me the basics and where to click, but not how to write the code. So I started using ChatGPT.”

Initially, the answers were rough. “Terrible,” in Martin’s words. But with repetition and structured prompts, providing full context, table structure, column names, he started getting better results.

“Eventually I learned how ChatGPT gives you a proper answer. You have to treat it like a developer and give it every bit of info you have so that it has context.” 

ChatGPT became a sounding board and tutor, helping Martin think through problems, identify mistakes in logic, and iterate. Even when the outputs were wrong, they pointed him in new directions.

“Now I don’t use it as much, I can write the SQL myself. But back then, I wouldn’t have been able to do any of it without AI.”

Why domain knowledge still matters

What stood out in Martin’s process wasn’t just the AI prompts, it was the judgment behind them. As he put it:

“It didn’t give me the right answer a lot of the time, but it gave me the start… and when it’s wrong, you still have to know, okay, why didn’t it work?”

This is a crucial insight. AI can generate answers, but only someone with domain knowledge can judge if those answers are any good. It takes experience to know whether the output makes sense, where it’s falling short, and how to refine it. Even when the output wasn’t usable, Martin says it helped him approach the problem differently, think through the logic more clearly, and better define what he was actually trying to achieve. In many ways, the biggest value came from how ChatGPT made him think, pushing him to sharpen his understanding and improve the way he communicated his problem.

From scratch to scalable

Martin built a custom reporting system using DataSights (for extraction and transformation), SQL (for logic and structure), and Power BI (for visualisation). The result?

A fully custom Reporting and FP&A platform, built in-house, with hundreds of live reports, built exactly how each user requires it:

• Fully consolidated P&Ls and Balance Sheets
• Divisional and departmental P&Ls
• Actual vs. budget vs. prior year
• Currency impact analysis
• Revenue Analysis by division, customer, location, service type, currency
• Customer concentration tracking and growth
• Debt ageing and working capital metrics
• Live dashboards for each division & department with full access control
• All reports have full transaction level drilldown 

It’s fast. It’s automated. It’s secure. And, most importantly, it’s now the platform used by leadership to review the business.

“Our Exco meetings start with Power BI. It’s not just reporting anymore. It’s where we do FP&A.”

Where it’s going next

With the success of the reporting rebuild, Martin’s now moving further upstream, connecting project, billing, CRM, and payroll data into a central SQL database. The goal is to create a single source of truth that is all connected.

Eventually, that foundation will allow for more advanced AI tools that can analyse, detect patterns, or even flag anomalies before humans spot them.

But none of that happens without clean data.

“The data has to be good before you can actually use AI. Garbage in, garbage out.”

Final thought

Martin’s story isn’t about buying a fancy AI tool. It’s about using the tools already available, ChatGPT, SQL, Power BI and applying them to a real, everyday finance problem.

He didn’t wait for the perfect software or a dedicated AI budget. He started with a pain point, figured out what needed to change, and learned the skills required to make it happen.

That’s what this series is about.

One process. One tool. One win at a time.

Next week, we’ll feature another finance professional solving a different problem with AI. Until then, if you’ve got a use case worth sharing or just want to learn how others are doing it, join the conversation in The Stack Exchange.

COMMUNITY INSIGHTS

🎤 How I stacked it

Martin Goodwin, Group Financial Manager at Open Box Software, reveals their tech stack

Open Box Software is a trusted partner in the dynamic landscape of PropTech for the global Real Estate industry. Since 2001, they’ve provided high-profile clients with intelligent, practical, and cost-effective technology solutions. Their expertise includes custom development, digital transformation, data and analytics, MRI and Yardi support, Salesforce services, modern workplace solutions and more. 

No matter the project’s size or scope, they are committed to delivering an exceptional experience, guided by their motto: “There’s always a better way.” Operating across seven entities in South Africa, the UK, and the US, they have offices in Cape Town, London, and New York.

Martin told us, “I am the Group Financial Manager and joined the company a year ago. After finding that NetSuite didn’t fully meet their needs, they transitioned to Xero two years ago. Over the last year I have focused on maximising automation, boosting efficiency, and delivering real-time FP&A insights to the management team.”

Here’s what Martin and his team are using:

 
1. Mayday for Intercompany: Mayday has been instrumental in managing intercompany billing, multi-currency loans, related interest, and inter-divisional cost allocations. Despite our unique requirements, it has managed everything seamlessly, ensuring that all balances are accurate at month-end.
2. Datasights to Power BI for Reporting: Datasights has improved our reporting by offering the flexibility to use Xero source data per transaction, whereas most systems only provide transactions in reporting currency. Kevin and his team were invaluable during setup. While we had to work around some challenges to ensure that we could use it for our unique needs, the end result is powerful Power BI dashboards for management accounts, financials, budget/trend analysis, consolidations, and more. These dashboards allow detailed analysis tailored to management levels and divisions, through access controls, saving four days of report preparation each cycle.
3. Projectworks for Employee Timesheets, Projects, and Billing: Projectworks is central to our operations, projects, and timesheets. It offers superior access controls compared to Xero, ensuring appropriate access for time logging and other tasks. Project managers oversee team utilisation and timesheet approvals, while finance approves and posts to Xero. Integration with Xero allows the team to view invoices and payment statuses without needing direct Xero access. Additionally, Projectworks connects to Power BI for comprehensive tracking dashboards, further integration with payroll and Xero will enhance its capabilities.
4. Power BI for Reporting: We use Power BI as our central reporting platform, pulling data from Xero, Projectworks (projects and timesheets), Dynamics 365, Deel Local Payroll (Payspace), and FX rates, to deliver interactive, real-time consolidated P&Ls, balance sheets and dashboards that combine actuals, budgets, forecasts and more. This empowers our finance and operations teams across South Africa, the UK and the US to slice and dice results by division, customer, project, or employee, while automating previously manual P&L and intercompany processes for faster, data-driven decision-making. Access is fully customised, ensuring users only see the information they’re authorised to view.
5. Xero Expenses for Employee Expense Claims: While Xero Expenses are effective and cost-efficient for processing expenses, we are looking for a solution with better approval workflows. The challenge is finding an add-on that works in RSA, the UK, and the US. While there are many options for the UK and US, choices for RSA are limited. Airwallex seems ideal but doesn’t operate in RSA, and we manage numerous FX payments, intercompany transfers, and expense claims.
6. Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM for CRM: Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM manages client information and forecasting. Integrated with Projectworks for project management, it connects to Power BI for comprehensive dashboards, though it is not directly linked to Xero.
7. Deel Local Payroll for Payroll: Deel Local Payroll is an excellent cloud payroll solution in RSA that  integrates with Xero to post monthly payroll journals. It also connects directly with Power BI, allowing us to link payroll with timekeeping, projects (via Projectworks), and Xero. This integration helps us automate company, divisional, project, and customer P&L’s, ensuring all levels of our business remain profitable and efficient.
8. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Copilot for AI assistance: I use ChatGPT (free), Claude (Free), Gemini (Free), Copilot (Paid) to help with SQL and Power BI DAX coding when I get stuck. They act as a tutor, pointing me in the right direction when I’m trying to fix or automate a problem. While they’re not always accurate and can sometimes lead you in circles, with the right prompts they add huge value to my process.
  

Keen to share how you stack it? Email to  hein.vanzyl@getmayday.com

THE STACK EXCHANGE

🧵 This week's top threads, from The Stack Exchange

1. Looking for some help on reporting/analysis.
2. Looking for anyone with insight into why Xero might still be showing unrealised forex on bank accounts with $0 balance?
3. Anyone here using Xero in a manufacturing environment?
    

NEW IN THE WORLD OF CFO SOFTWARE

🗞️ News from the stack-o-sphere

• Telleroo releases new Telleroo mobile app. Learn more.
• Xero to acquire Melio: A payments game-changer for small businesses across the US. Learn more.
• Xero releases new navigation and homepage. Learn more.

WHAT THE DATA SAYS

📊 Stat of the week

Only 26% of companies rate their visibility of multi-entities as very good.

Research by Pleo

UPCOMING EVENTS

🗓️ Save the date

Advisory in the Agent Era: Prompting, Positioning, and Partnering With AI

Wed, 02 Jul, 12pm AEST

AI isn’t replacing advisors but it is reshaping how clients arrive at your door. Like patients showing up to the doctor with a self-diagnosis, clients will increasingly come with a clearer idea of what they want to achieve and how they think they’ll get there. We believe that’s a good thing.

The Cost of Doing Nothing: FX Risks in the Age of Instability

Thu, 03 Jul, 8:45am BST

Every day you wait, your FX exposure grows. But when does it become too expensive to ignore? In today's unpredictable macro environment, CFOs in startups scaling internationally face a critical challenge: currency risks can no longer be ignored, but traditional financial institutions aren't equipped to help you manage effectively. The reality? Most banks and FX brokers design their solutions for enterprise clients, leaving startups with tools that are either too complex, too expensive, or completely misaligned with your operational needs and risk profile.

Work that works. Unlocking Productivity in 2025.

Thu, 03 Jul, 1pm BST 

UK productivity has been puzzling experts for years. But what’s really driving productivity in SMEs and more importantly, what’s getting in the way?

Today’s small businesses face real challenges: Keeping up with AI, tech overwhelm, admin overload and constant pressure to grow with limited resources. But what if we’ve been looking at productivity the wrong way?

Join our session with Employment Hero’s Insights Lead and expert guests as we unpack the key findings from our new report ‘Work That Works’. 

MORE OF THE GOOD STUFF

And lastly, our top picks!

🎧 Podcast: How to Fund a Fast-Growing B2B SaaS Startup with Janelle Gorman, ep 239, GrowCFO

📝  Article: What is an expense report, and how do you fill one out?

😆  Joke: Why did the accountant break up with the calculator? She felt like he was just using her for her figures.

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