Kaitlin Finch, MBA

The BIGGEST MISTAKES in financial reporting. (And how to overcome them) --- You can use these mistakes as a quick checklist prior to completing your report: 🚫 Mistake #1: Reporting only the revenue number “Revenue last month was $234,760.” 🚫 Mistake #2: Providing zero comparison with previous periods "No context on how the revenue compares to previous months or years." 🚫 Mistake #3: Offering zero analysis of reasons for change "No explanation for why the numbers changed." ↓↓↓ Here's how we can fix them: ✅ Include comparisons with previous periods “Revenue last month was $234,760, which represents an increase of 3% over the previous month.” ✅ Analyze and explain the variance “This increase is due to a surge in conversions from the last marketing campaign after launching the new landing page.” ✅ Provide actionable insights “We recommend increasing marketing spend in product category A and increasing prices of product Category B.” --- You can see Board-members' faces relax after reading such reports. Speaking from experience there. P.S: What do you - as executives - want to see in a Report ? Leave a comment below! ⬇️

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I was hiring for a Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) role within my team and I uncovered something shocking! Like many CFOs, I thought there was a universal definition of FP&A, and I could not be more wrong. There are as many definitions of FP&A as there are companies. I started wondering why the definition of this role isn’t common to all organizations. The more I interviewed people, the more I understood that the definition depends on the vision of the organization in terms of finance function. I’ve noticed that most companies look at the finance function as a reporting function. Thus, they turn their FP&A department into a reporting machine, spitting out reports without understanding how to leverage them. It's like using a Ferrari just to drive to the mailbox. On the opposite side, my vision as a CFO for Transformer Table is focused on building a data driven organization. The finance department is at the heart of the business, gathering data from different departments. Therefore, the finance function should become the intelligence hub of the company by turning data into insights to take better decisions. By doing so, we position ourselves as business partners with our internal clients, understand their needs, and use that to create value.  It turns out I was prone to naïve realism. It’s a cognitive bias that makes you think that you see the world in an objective way. But, my perception was far from being a reality. During the next few days, I’ll share my perspective about finance in a digestible way. I feel that too often we’re turning something simple into something complicated, and it doesn't have to be that way. What’s your thought about the FP&A function? What are the interesting definitions you came across with? #DataDrivenDecisionMaking #BusinessIntelligence #CFOInsights #FinanceTransformation #FinancialPlanning #StrategicFinance #EntrepreneurMindset

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I really enjoyed this conversation with James Suh, CFO of the Florida Panthers. He shares his experience adapting to a new environment after many years with Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment, what goes into finance operations for a sports team, and how winning impacts culture. Check out the episode on The CFO Show https://lnkd.in/gYkHXtGN

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Bad data is not FP&A's problem. Clean data is everyone's responsibility, from data entry to reporting. While unintentional, bad data can seriously mislead decision-making if not addressed. Solving root causes requires continual monitoring, validation, and quality control processes. Technology can help, but quality data still depends on people, processes, and company priorities. Bad data comes in many forms, from misspellings and incorrect dates to missing attributes and unreasonable values. Takeaway? Bad data makes decisions and insights less reliable. That’s why it’s important to work together as a team to set up governance, keep an eye on quality indicators, and clean up. Because the time we spend on data hygiene now will pay off in the long run. Great FP&A starts with having data that you can trust. P.S. Hi, I’m Erik, CEO of Aimplan, and we are building an FP&A tool that lets you plan, budget, and forecast directly inside Power BI. It was never possible before, but our team made it possible.

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Whether you're adjusting an allocation to $400K or implementing other changes, you can easily track all your financial actions. Every change you make is recorded, creating a great audit trail. This leads to better accountability and transparency. Aimplan is the go-to tool for FP&A, with scenario planning, real-time adjustments, financial projections, and detailed audit trails. And you don't have to leave Power BI. You can plan, forecast, and budget directly inside Power BI. Once, FP&A was challenging. But now we are here to make FP&A easy so you can have a better life and a great business. P.S. Hi, I’m Erik Lidman! I have spent 25 years of my life working in the FP&A, EPM, and CPM spaces. I share daily FP&A tips and talk about finance trends and doing FP&A within Power BI.

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FAKE NEWS: Brutal Truth of FP&A Is this the brutal truth about FP&A and finance business partnering❓ 80-90% of what finance business partners do is: ➡️ Reporting ➡️ Forecasting ➡️ Budgeting ❌ those are not FBP activities. They are FP&A activities. Finance transformation over the last 25 years hasn’t really been about transforming finance. It’s been about saving money. So all that’s happened is: ➡️ Accounting is moved to a cheaper country ➡️ Finance managers who used to do budgeting, reporting and forecasting are renamed as FBPs, but continue to budget, report and forecast. The only thing ‘transformed’ really is the cost-base. Finance’s impact will only be transformed when we spend less time reporting, budgeting and forecasting, and more time: ✅ building relationships ✅ turning the WHAT [data] into the SO WHAT [insight] ✅ bringing numbers to life Those are the activities of finance business partnering, whatever your job title is. FBP isn’t a job title. Most people with a FBP job title, don’t do much of it. ➡️ Everyone in finance, whatever their title, can do FBP activities. And if you do, your career will take off, wherever you start from… #thefinancebusinesspartner #financebusinesspartner #financebusinesspartnering #tFBP #financetraining #financetransformation #fpanda

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What transforms FP&A is your vision, not the tools. But I don't just mean implementing new systems or processes. I mean this: → Align FP&A goals to the overall business strategy → Celebrate FP&A successes and the impact they drive → Empower FP&A teams to be strategic business partners → Break down silos between FP&A and other departments → Foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation → Embrace new technologies to modernize the FP&A function → Automate repetitive tasks to free up time for higher-value work → Leverage data and analytics to support forward-looking insights → Provide FP&A with a seat at the executive decision-making table → Invest in upskilling FP&A talent with the latest tools and techniques ...on top of making sure FP&A has the right resources and support. Because vision is what transforms FP&A from a back-office function to a strategic advisor of business growth. So think about that - it's the only way to truly unlock the potential of your financial planning and analysis. P.S. Hi, I’m Erik, and I'm building an FP&A tool called Aimplan that lets you plan, budget, and forecast directly inside Power BI. It was never possible before, but now we have made it possible.

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When your CFO leaves: relying on an interim CFO for financial stability The departure of a CFO can cause turbulence in a company, and until a new one is hired, it might make sense to bring in an interim CFO. Here is a brief article that discusses this topic. https://lnkd.in/gnpbHrfH

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Gartner recently surveyed leaders from nearly 900 finance departments to determine where they are spending their finance budgets in 2024. Explore the results to benchmark your finance budget allocations across functional categories. #GartnerFinance #Budgeting #Allocation

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From CPA to CFO 1. Master the CPA-to-Controller transition first Gain broad financial leadership experience as a controller or assistant controller before making the leap to CFO. Learn how to be a business partner and advisor, not just an accountant. 2. Work for a CFO committed to mentoring you Seek out opportunities to work under a CFO who takes an interest in creating future finance leaders. Leverage their experience and observe how they operate as strategic advisors. 3. Expand your business acumen beyond Accounting While technical accounting skills are foundational, you need a bigger-picture understanding of the drivers of business success. Take the initiative to learn about sales, marketing, operations, IT, and HR, and how they connect to financial performance. 4. Learn to communicate, negotiate and influence A CFO must be able to convey financial information clearly to diverse audiences and influence executive decision-making. Step outside your comfort zone to improve public speaking, executive presence, and emotional intelligence. 5. Build your strategic mindset As CFO you will help shape overall corporate strategy and long-term vision. Stretch your thinking beyond near-term results to understand how finance can identify and evaluate strategic opportunities and risks. The bottom line? The CPA to CFO journey takes time and intention. So approach it as a marathon, not a sprint. With hard work and perseverance, an aspiring CPA can climb the ladder to the CFO chair.

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It's so important for all Finance leaders to transform and announce the arrival of Finance as a co-creater of the future of business in any organisation

Build data chops because FP&A isn't just finance - it's business science. FP&A sounds dry to a lot of folks, but to me, FP&A is using data skills to form ideas on how to innovate and use your findings to solve real business problems.  And in my experience, FP&A excellence really comes from blending business sense with strong data skills. The best FP&A teams I’ve seen are the ones that take the time to build data expertise, understand their tools (learn SQL!), and take ownership of their data, whether from overly bureaucratic IT departments or from the unruly swamps of Excel spreadsheets and Access notebooks that sprout when you don’t have an intentional data strategy in place. #FPNA #DataScience #Finance #BusinessStrategy #CFO #Data

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As I have been pouring over LinkedIn the last three weeks and thinking about my future, I am wondering what my other friends in Finance think of when it comes to FP&A and AI. Does AI help us focus more on the Why? or How? or is AI going to make FP&A obsolete because it will build budgets and forecasts and the focus will be "Strategy"? #Budgets #FinancialPlanningandAnalysis #AI, #Finance

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Accounting for every dollar has largely been no more than an elusive aspiration in finance circles. Until now that is. As Seth Catalli writes in CFO Dive, CFOs and other finance leaders can use new AI-powered spend management technology to finally utilize Zero-Based Budgeting and relentlessly drive value out of all their company spend. Read the full article here https://lnkd.in/ekymYUcY #CFOs #SpendManagement #AI #Automation #ZeroBasedBudgeting

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What the critical 100 days after closing a PE deal are often about: ☑️ Finishing legal docs ☑️ Getting financial reporting set up ☑️ Working on the purchase accounting This housekeeping stuff is important, but NOT value-generating. What the critical 100 days post-closing SHOULD be about: ✅ Building TRUST ✅ Building ALIGNMENT ✅ Building MOMENTUM You only get one chance to start strong. Don't squander it. Wrote an article about how to win the first 100. Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/e-ChKQYk #PrivateEquity #First100 #ValueCreation

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Unleash the Untapped Potential of FP&A Learn the secrets to transforming your FP&A team into strategic powerhouses Key Points: 1. Prioritize Insights Over Processes FP&A teams often get stuck in the challenge of handling complicated models and writing long reports. The emphasis needs to shift from those methods to generating insights that may be useful. By doing this, FP&A teams may increase their strategic influence and give leadership the data they need to make quick, well-informed decisions. 2. Manage Expanding Roles Effectively The skill set of the FP&A team must change as the responsibilities expand. This entails providing insightful guidance, strategic direction, efficient resource management, and thorough decision support. The success of the team depends on establishing a balance between these growing duties. 3. Embrace Technology and Advanced Data Management Advanced data management methods and technologies must be included due to the increase in data and the move away from outdated systems. FP&A specialists must go beyond manipulating spreadsheets in the conventional sense and use technology to automate procedures. 4. Develop a Strategic Mindset Technical skills alone are no longer sufficient. FP&A professionals must also excel in storytelling, strategic vision, and business partnerships. These skills are essential for transforming data into stories that captivate readers and influence long-term planning and business decisions. 5. Focus on the Why, How, and So What The ability to stay focused on the big picture is essential for effective time management in FP&A. Comprehending the logic behind data, the analytical process, and the implications of insights guarantees that teams operate more intelligently rather than more laboriously and enhances the position of finance in the company. Ready to elevate your team's FP&A skills? Sign up for our next FP&A Boot Camp preview event: https://lnkd.in/eiT67dF9 #financialplanningandanalysis #FPandA #FPandATeam

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If you're interested in a deeper look into what FP&A is all about and what a non-linear journey through the profession looks like, enjoy this discussion with Drew Murphy at FP&HEY. Here are some of the key points: Careers are journeys: Mine went from bagging donuts, to starting a guitar tutoring business, to majoring in health sciences, to stumbling into management consulting. It's okay to take steps back to move forward: Life isn't a series of wins or losses — they're a bundle of successes or learning opportunities that help you grow. Focus on the evergreen skills early: Start your career learning skills that apply to a number of disciplines — like communication, professionalism, and managing people/processes. Over time learn what comes naturally to you and what others value — double down on those things. Humans are resilient: Have a “figure it out” mentality when starting your own business or starting a new job. https://lnkd.in/eeJUVbvt

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Automation is key, especially when it comes to massive amounts of data. Implementing financial planning and analysis (FP&A) software into your company will allow your finance team to focus on higher-level strategic projects, rather than data entry or other manual tasks. The FP&A function should not only maintain and evaluate the forecast/budget, but should also meet with decision makers to analyze trends or provide strategic analysis. If you do not have the budget for an FP&A team, hire an accountant who also has finance experience. Implementing FP&A software will require some upfront investment, but will pay huge dividends in the long run.

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