EuroFinance

For corporate treasurers, the challenge is no longer a shortage of priorities but an excess of them. Artificial intelligence, tariffs, FX volatility, geopolitics, regulation and talent shortages all compete for attention. Yet for Sunny Gutta, Director, treasury at Reddit, the starting point remains resolutely unglamorous but essential: keeping the engine running.

“Speaking broadly, treasury is the machine that helps keep the business running,” says Gutta. “At the core, you’re ensuring the company is funded, payments are going out, banks are operating, and FX conversions are happening. Those are baseline treasury operations that remain a priority for the business and are how the doors stay open.”

Only once this foundation is secure can treasury earn the right to think more expansively. Gutta frames her priorities in three layers: core operations, alignment with corporate strategy, and finally, treasury’s own evolution to meet future business needs.

AI promised efficiency, not instant transformation

This evolution is increasingly shaped by technology, particularly artificial intelligence. AI has moved rapidly from experimentation to expectation in organisations, including treasury. Gutta sees immediate gains in productivity rather than radical reinvention.

“Even in simple instances, productivity benefits from AI can apply to treasury, too,    ”she says, pointing to efficiency gains and improved responsiveness to internal stakeholders.

It’s also important to think about the right time and place. “On my team, we’re just scratching the surface of where it makes the most sense for treasury-focused implementations,” she admits. Where she sees clearer potential is cash-flow forecasting. “It can be a  manually  intensive, error-prone process,” she argues. “That’s where I see a significant benefit from AI.”

Beyond forecasting, AI also has the potential to reduce the burden of routine work. Monitoring subsidiary balances, analysing payment trends and identifying funding needs can increasingly be automated. The aim, Gutta explains, is to free up capacity. “To give them time to focus on strategic priorities,” she says.

Still, she cautions against moving too fast. “A lot of these tools need to sit on top of your existing technology,” she notes. “You need to make sure you have the basic core tech stack first, ready for AI to sit on.” AI adoption, she adds, cannot happen in isolation. “You can’t implement AI just for treasury. It needs to be a more cohesive approach for finance.”

Investing in uncertain times requires discipline

While technology reshapes internal processes, macroeconomic forces continue to influence external ones. In such an environment, investment decisions can become harder to justify and harder to delay. “Do you protect your cash? Do you protect your balance sheet?” Gutta asks. “Or do you continue to invest amid uncertainty?”

Her approach begins with separating maintenance from growth capital expenditure. “Maintenance capex—you have to continue to invest in it,” she says. Growth capex, by contrast, offers more flexibility but demands careful assessment of risk and return.

Preparation matters as much as timing. “One of the most valuable skillsets I’ve developed is downturn planning     ,” she says. Having a playbook in place helps companies respond more quickly if conditions worsen. Still, when looking at the industry, she does not see a broad pullback. “Most companies are continuing to invest even through this volatile period,” she notes. “It’s not a downturn—it’s more about adjusting return expectations.”

A changing skillset for modern treasury teams

All of this places new demands on treasury teams themselves. For Gutta, one capability stands above the rest. “Strategic agility is a no-compromise skill set,” she says. Decisions made months earlier might no longer hold if conditions change, requiring treasury teams to remain closely aligned with evolving business priorities.

Data skills are also becoming more central. Treasury, she suggests, is evolving into “a bridge between treasury and a data analyst.” Openness to change—particularly around technology—has become essential.

Despite this expanding remit, treasury can sometimes still be poorly understood across the industry, especially among those early in their careers. “It’s an often overlooked, but very core part of the CFO team,” Gutta says. From FX and payments to M&A and capital allocation, treasury sits at the centre of financial decision-making.

“If you want to be a CFO,” she says, “having experience in treasury is pretty much a must.”

Sunny Gutta, will be speaking at the 11th EuroFinance Annual Treasury & Cash Management Summit West Coast in the session “Priorities for treasury now” alongside Susan Davis, Global treasurer at Riot Games and Jennifer Bifano, VP, assistant treasurer at Nike.