5 GenAI tensions corporate tax departments should address

Highlights: 

Corporate tax leaders express strong enthusiasm for generative AI but face significant challenges in its effective adoption.
A substantial gap exists between corporate tax professionals’ belief in GenAI’s utility and its actual widespread implementation.
Departments rarely measure GenAI’s return on investment and often lack essential governance policies for its use.
Organizations largely fail to prioritize GenAI skills in hiring and training, despite its anticipated central role in future tax operations.

As corporate tax leaders navigate an increasingly complex regulatory landscape, a new challenge has emerged that demands thoughtful attention. Our latest research reveals that while corporate tax departments show strong enthusiasm for generative AI adoption, several important gaps need to be addressed to improve their resource allocation and strategic planning.

The 2025 Generative AI in Professional Services Report reveals five key tension points that should guide every corporate tax leader’s strategic planning.

Why understanding these AI tensions matters

Before diving into each tension point, it’s crucial to understand why addressing these gaps is essential for corporate tax departments in today’s rapidly evolving business environment. If corporate tax departments fail to address these tensions, they may face various risks, including difficulties in recruiting skilled individuals, operational inefficiencies, complications in vendor relationships, and challenges in justifying budgets without appropriate frameworks for measuring return on investment. Understanding these tensions allows corporate tax leaders to make informed decisions about where to focus their efforts and resources for maximum impact.

Tension point 1: The vendor transparency gap

The most striking disconnect in our research reveals a fundamental communication breakdown between corporate tax departments and their external service providers. 77% of business tax departments want their tax service providers to use GenAI. But 59% aren’t sure if their companies are using GenAI.

This lack of transparency creates many business risks. Without knowing if your tax service providers are using GenAI, you can’t accurately measure the true efficiency gains or cost benefits you should be getting. This makes it difficult to benchmark performance, negotiate appropriate fee structures, or make informed decisions about which services to keep in-house versus outsource. Your department may be missing chances to use AI-enhanced insights and services that could greatly improve your tax function’s strategic value to the organization.

Tension point 2: The adoption-implementation gap

The most significant tension facing corporate tax departments is the massive disconnect between belief and action. Our research shows that 92% of corporate tax professionals think GenAI can be used in their work. 75% think it should be used in their work, but only 20% are using it all over the company.

This 55-percentage-point gap between recognition and implementation creates several critical challenges: While your department recognizes GenAI’s potential delays in moving from recognition to action could result in missing efficiency gains, accuracy improvements, and strategic capabilities that could improve your department’s value to the organization. The gap shows that resources may not be used correctly to help GenAI get started. This could mean problems with budgeting, change management, or executive support.

Tension Point 3: the ROI measurement gap

Despite the growing adoption of GenAI tools across professional services, only 20% of organizations are measuring return on investment. For corporate tax departments handling sensitive financial data and strict regulatory compliance requirements, this measurement gap creates significant governance and strategic challenges.

Without measuring ROI, corporate tax departments can’t show the value of their GenAI investments to top leaders or explain why they need more funding. Among organizations that do measure ROI, 79% focus on internal cost savings, followed by employee usage rates (64%) and employee satisfaction (51%). Corporate tax departments that don’t measure these metrics are missing chances to improve their AI strategy and find the best ways to use it.

Tension Point 4: the policy and governance development need

Our research reveals a worrying lag between GenAI adoption and organizational governance. While 92% of corporate tax professionals believe GenAI can be applied to their work, the governance infrastructure remains underdeveloped: Only 17% of corporate tax departments have specific AI and data policies, 21% have GenAI covered under general technology policies, and 45% lack any relevant policies at all.

This means that 62% of corporate tax departments lack adequate policy frameworks for GenAI governance, a significant gap for departments handling sensitive financial data and operating under strict regulatory requirements.

For corporate tax departments, this governance gap creates several critical risks: Corporate tax departments handle highly sensitive financial information, including proprietary business data, tax strategies, and confidential financial details. Without proper policies governing GenAI use, there’s significant risk of inadvertent data exposure or misuse. Tax work must meet strict regulatory standards and be defensible in audits or disputes. Without clear policies on AI usage, departments risk creating work products that don’t meet compliance requirements or can’t be properly documented for regulatory purposes.

Tension Point 5: the skills development opportunity

A notable disconnect exists between long-term expectations and current preparation strategies. While 95% of professionals believe GenAI will become central to their operations within five years, only 24% of organizations consider GenAI skills “nice to have” in new hires, and just 2% make it a requirement.

This skills gap creates several strategic challenges for corporate tax departments. Corporate tax departments that don’t pay attention to GenAI skills in hiring and training may have workforces that aren’t ready for an AI-enabled future. As GenAI becomes more central to tax work, professionals with these skills will become increasingly valuable. Departments that aren’t actively seeking or developing these skills may struggle to attract and retain top talent.

The path forward for corporate tax departments

The corporate tax profession is at an important inflection point. Departments that thoughtfully address these tension points will be well-positioned for success. Those that delay may find themselves at a disadvantage in terms of operational efficiency and strategic value delivery to their organizations.

The question isn’t whether GenAI will transform corporate tax work—it’s whether your department will thoughtfully lead that transformation within your organization. Leaders who act on these insights strategically will help shape tomorrow’s corporate tax landscape.

Dive deeper with the 2025 Generative AI report

Download the full 2025 Generative AI in Professional Services Report that offers a comprehensive look at these GenAI tensions and much more. Packed with detailed benchmarking data, it’s an essential resource. By reviewing these insights and addressing tensions thoughtfully, corporate tax professionals can harness the power of AI – not just to keep pace with change, but to lead it.