89% of firms use AI, only 6% see significant ROI — the busywork illusion
mikeflache · x · 2026-09-11
Part 2 of Rich Turrin's AI ROI series explains why most companies can't find returns. Per McKinsey, 89% of organizations use AI in at least one function and 80% of individuals say it boosts their productivity — yet only 6% report significant financial gains. Almost everyone uses it; almost nobody profits.
Rillion's report "The Finance AI Illusion" offers the explanation: companies mistake activity for transformation. If you automate a five-step approval process and keep all five steps, you gained speed on a process that shouldn't exist in its current form. 45% of companies still require complete human review post-automation — a process redesigned around humans, not around what AI does well.
The core argument: the illusion isn't that AI can't transform business; it's that firms are running their old business faster instead of transforming the work they ask AI to do. The piece uses finance back-office tasks (invoice processing, reconciliation, AP) as the test case.
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