The Strategic Finance Assessment: Developing

Grow your FP&A prowess

At this stage, you should look to standardize annual planning processes, implement advanced modeling techniques like scenario planning and modeling, and automate non-value-added tasks to focus time on strategic analysis and decision support.

Define annual planning

Document your annual planning process, including activities like data gathering, forecasting, budgeting, and reporting. Create templates, formats, and timelines for each activity, define roles and responsibilities, and implement SOPs.

Explore advanced modeling

Use rolling forecasts to provide better projections, scenario planning to model potential outcomes, and advanced analytics or ML to improve forecasting accuracy.

Leverage a full driver-based model

Include key factors driving your business, not just past data, to make more accurate and flexible forecasts. This helps finance and operations work better together, improving decision-making and planning.

Where are you on the path to strategic finance mastery?

Foundational

Laying groundwork

Not yet fully aligned with the broader strategic goals of your company
Work to be done to standardize the planning process outside of the annual budget
Basic financial model and reporting
Operating with unstructured data and no formal model or static model

Developing

Iterative improvements

Finance part of decision-informing processes at a broader level
Annual planning process (not clearly defined) but with occasional reporting to stakeholders
Non-value-added tasks are automated. Starting to implement basic best practices, along with an annual planning process
Leveraging a partially driver-based model

Defined

Holistic FP&A

Finance provides critical insights and analysis that drive decision-making
Defined planning process with regular reporting cadence and communication with stakeholders
Clearly defined reporting, planning and performance management, and company-wide collaboration
Fully driver-based model

Refined

Optimized XP&A

Finance is fully connected to the strategy, and drives innovation, helping to shape strategic direction
The annual planning process is defined where owners can drive updates and changes to/from finance independently with approvals
Standardized performance management that reduces cost, improves speed, accuracy, and transparency of forecasts and reporting
Leveraging a fully driver-based model with automation from users and systems

Masterful

XP&A mastery

Finance is a key driver of change and is recognized as a strategic partner at the highest levels of the business
Predictive / statistical forecasting is combined with performance management and iterative planning, replanning, reporting, analytics, and reforecasting
Fully driver-based and in real-time

The guiding principles of strategic finance

Foresight

The proactive anticipation of future financial trends and challenges, enable companies to make informed decisions and strategic plans. This principle emphasizes the use of data analytics, scenario planning, and forecasting techniques to predict potential outcomes and mitigate risks.

Alignment

Financial strategies and goals should closely align with your business objectives and operational plans. Strategic leaders foster collaboration across departments, ensuring everyone works towards a common mission.

Storytelling

Storytelling in FP&A transforms complex financial data and analyses into compelling narratives that stakeholders can easily understand and act upon. Effective storytelling bridges the gap between financial experts and non-financial stakeholders, facilitating better decision-making.

Balance

FP&A involves managing the trade-offs between short-term financial performance and long-term strategic goals. Careful evaluation of risks and opportunities is a heavy weight on a finance leader’s shoulders. By striving for balance, organizations can navigate financial complexities while achieving both immediate and future objectives.

Learn from finance professionals just like you

“I think being a human in finance is a sometimes forgotten skill.”

Julia Coto

CFO, Chartspan Medical Technologies

"It's important that we reach across the line and talk to the stakeholders who are driving the revenue."

Rajat Wali

Director of Accounting & FP&A, Lawnstarter

“If you think that BvA is the only thing that finance does, you're missing a lot of what finance should be doing.”

Allen Michaelis

Senior Director of Finance, Bluewind Medical

“I think being a human in finance is a sometimes forgotten skill.”

Julia Coto

CFO, Chartspan Medical Technologies

"It's important that we reach across the line and talk to the stakeholders who are driving the revenue."

Rajat Wali

Director of Accounting & FP&A, Lawnstarter

“If you think that BvA is the only thing that finance does, you're missing a lot of what finance should be doing.”

Allen Michaelis

Senior Director of Finance, Bluewind Medical

Congrats on your score!
Your FP&A is Developing.

Grow your FP&A prowess

Define annual planning

Explore advanced modeling

Leverage a full driver-based model

Where are you on the path to strategic finance mastery?

Foundational

Developing

Defined

Refined

Masterful

The guiding principles of strategic finance

Foresight

Alignment

Storytelling

Balance

Learn from finance professionals just like you

Bookmark these FP&A
 and finance resources

When is a rolling forecast the right strategy for my business?

Building a Foolproof Operating Budget

6 biggest headaches for FP&A teams (and how to fix them)

Got big plans? Get the right planning tools.

Congrats on your score!Your FP&A is Developing.

Grow your FP&A prowess

Define annual planning

Explore advanced modeling

Leverage a full driver-based model

Where are you on the path to strategic finance mastery?

Foundational

Developing

Defined

Refined

Masterful

The guiding principles of strategic finance

Foresight

Alignment

Storytelling

Balance

Learn from finance professionals just like you

Bookmark these FP&A and finance resources

When is a rolling forecast the right strategy for my business?

Building a Foolproof Operating Budget

6 biggest headaches for FP&A teams (and how to fix them)

Got big plans? Get the right planning tools.

Congrats on your score!
Your FP&A is Developing.

Bookmark these FP&A
 and finance resources