FP&A Today

Casey Woo: My Adventures in Finance from Wall Street to Silicon Valley

Casey Woo is a serial high Tech CFO turned investor. The Harvard educated financier “escaped” a life as an Investment Banking Analyst, at Morgan Stanley to take a big pay cut and join a 10-person startup (“If you wanna do tech, you gotta go to the Bay Area”).
Since then, he has held finance at CFO roles including at WeWork and property tech company Landing before founding an “operators community” turned investment fund FOG ventures.
 In this episode Casey talks to Paul Barnhurst about his journey: 
How finance was seen as a “second class” citizen when he entered Silicon Valley and how he had to “learn a new language”
How he built up the Operators Guild “a club of number twos” ( finance, ops, HR, talent, legal, IT) into an exec community of 700 leaders who now run the FOG VC
What good FP&A looks like at an early stage company
When early stage companies are making $200,000 $300,000 total is when FP&A can be a powerful addition
Why FP&A leaders need to focus on business first rather than finance first 
The CFO’s future as the Office of Business Intelligence that will separate the The Ancien Régime CFOs with those who can adapt
If CFOs are not “pounding their fists on the table” asking to own data they will not survive
Watch the full show on YouTube
Read the full transcript and blog
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Ian Schnoor: Going from Good to Great in Financial Modeling

This episode is all about financial modeling from one of the world’s experts. Ian Schnoor is  
Executive Director at the Financial Modeling Institute (FMI) & President and Founder at The Marquee Group. In this episode he provides frank assessment of why most financial models fail and how you can take instant actions to instantly transform your financial modeling.
This is absolutely essential listening for anyone considering taking the Financial Modeling Institute’s world-respected accreditation program. The program is recognized by companies like Goldman Sachs, Moody’s KPM and Morgan Stanley as the most rigorous validation of financial modeling skills and ranges from foundational, to advanced, to Chartered Financial Modeler and Master Financial Modeler. 
In this episode:
From investment banking to creating the world’s only accredited financial modeling training
The skills you will need to pass the robust accreditation by the Financial Modeling Institute
Why employees are increasingly requiring proof of financial modeling skills
The multi-disciplinary skills required to excel in modeling including design, data flow, communication and storytelling
How the integrated 3 statement model is the table stakes for being considered a good financial modeler
How you can get your financial model humming smoothly - you should not have to pop your car hood to show the engine
The power of a committee approach to modeling and design in a company
Nixing our favorite function question: There should be no favorites in Excel, but pick the tools that will help you to get the job done you have in front of you
Watch the full show on YouTube
Read the full transcript and blog
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com

The Complete Year in Review with Top FP&A 2023 Predictions

In this special jam-packed episode Paul Barnhurst looks back on 2022 (and with special guests) reveals the biggest predictions for FP&A in 2023.
 
This episode looks back at one year of FP&A Today and how our dedicated audience helped us reach more than  40,000 downloads in our first 35 episodes across 100 countries.
 
In between we hear Paul’s favorite FP&A guest insights from the first 35 episodes interspersed with new hot takes on everything you need to know in FP&A for 2023 from FP&A leaders, Soufyan Hamid, Hector Rubalcava, and Mario Vasquez.
 
In this episode:
The winner of the yearly question of FP&A Favorite Excel function revealed 🥇
The best Excel jokes you need to know 
The favorite Excel functions of Jordan Goldmeier, Lance Rubin, Kathy Svetina, Francesca Valli, Jon Laudi, Chris Reilly and Paul Barnhurst 
The #1 advice to make your FP&A journey better in 2023  from Jack Alexander, Zoe Cooke, Stéphanie Herbots, Chris Reilly, Carl Seidman, and Paul Barnhurst
Predictions for FP&A in 2023 from Soufyan Hamid, Hector Rubalcava, and Mario Vasquez 
How to move from accounting to FP&A with Cameron Janke
The revolution with Gen Z FP&A with interns at Credit Suisse and American Express entering the finance workforce for the first time
 
Watch the full show on YouTube
Read the full transcript and blog
Follow Paul Barnhurst on LinkedIn
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Glenn Snyder: The Secrets to Building World-Class FP&A teams

Glenn Snyder, builds high performing FP&A teams from scratch. 
Now VP of FP&A at Mobileum, a telecom analytics leader, Glenn continues to enhance a reputation for transforming FP&A into an engine for Silicon Valley growth earned over nearly two decades. 
Previously he has built finance partnership teams At Charles Schwab, followed by  revamping annual budgeting, forecasting and financial reporting at $4B global Real Estate company Digital Realty, restructuring  a15-person FP&A team at Global Growth Holdings,  and leveling up the FP&A and Data Analytics teams at online design marketplace Zazzle before his latest FP&A adventure at Mobileum .
In this episode Glenn reveals the secrets to building high performance FP&A teams. Glenn discusses:
His reason for sticking with FP&A over 18 years (not least the ability to strategically interact with every aspect of a company)
The power of quarterly forecasts to secure alignment in a business and transform a business direction
Why building a new FP&A team will see you work 80 hours a week and considerable “mental awareness”
The power of creating a three-year FP&A Strategy in your first 90 Days which sees 95% of goals hit
The power of eliminating manual work in FP&A
How to powerfully speak up in FP&A (even as an introvert)
How to differentiate a leader’s role in FP&A vs those you manage 
The secrets to hiring  someone for an FP&A role and how to find the things that can be taught vs those that can’t 
Why FP&A and data analytics need to work better together 
The real way to approach build a successful finance business partnership that lasts
His most valuable lessons after achieving several finance software implementations 
The failure that forced Glenn to work on his soft skills and transformed his career
His secret life as a lifelong baseball fan and published  author 
 
Watch the full show on YouTube.
Read the full transcript and blog
Follow Glenn Snyder on LinkedIn 
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com
 

Data Visualization & Storytelling: All your Questions Answered

In this special LinkedIn Live/ FP&A Today, join Paul Barnhurst and our all-star panel to answer your questions about hard-won experiences about data visualization and storytelling to get FP&A a seat at the table.
Our special guests joining Paul Barnhurst are:
Pooja (Laddha) Jaju, Lead Financial Analyst (6Sense and Accenture)
Soufyan Hamid, Independent FP&A Professional (Proximus, Deloitte)
Ron Monteiro, Founder KICT Inc (Campbell Soup Company,
The questions they tackle from around the world, include:
How data visualization is important for your career and growth in the business?
The first dashboard you created and what you  learnt from that experience?
Your favorite chart for making an impact
The Absolute Worst chart in  FP&A
Getting your finance team to better understand the importance of data visualization when in a leadership role?
How improving your presentation skills can advance  your career?
How can you best present month end financials using principles of storytelling?
Most powerful advice to ace your next presentation
 
Watch the full show on YouTube.
Read the full transcript and blog
Follow Pooja (Laddha) Jaju on LinkedIn 
Follow Soufyan Hamid on LinkedIn
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
 
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

Jeff Marx: How to Land your Dream Job with a Finance Passport

Jeff Marx, VP and Treasurer of large global chemical manufacturing company Hexion, reveals how anyone in finance can land their dream job. His method is to encourage anyone in finance to adopt a method called “the finance passport”.
Rather than chasing “shiny titles that look good on LinkedIn” anyone in FP&A should consider the concept of a “finance journey” to become an all-round player. This means taking a trip through Treasury, tax, audit, and investor relations to be rounded and be able to talk confidently about all aspects of finance, improving your impact on whichever role you are in, but is especially powerful for anyone with CFO ambitions. “I've had roles in internal audit, financial planning and analysis, controllership” says Jeff revealing how this journey has transformed his mindset.
In this episode Jeff talks to Paul Barnhurst about:
Understanding the finance passport and how to adopt this shift in your career
Moving from a promotion-based to a growth-based mindset in finance
The difference between a finance “athlete” and a finance “specialist”
How Treasury and FP&A can work most effectively together to drive business efficiency
His favorite Excel formula
Why ability to communicate effectively remains the best advice for anyone in FP&A
Watch the full show on YouTube.
Read the full transcript and blog
Follow Jeff Marx on LinkedIn 
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Joseph Clayton: The outsized role of FP&A in big real estate deals

68 Ventures is a holding company for numerous operating entities transforming the Alabama Gulf Coast and Florida Panhandle.
FP&A is central to this mission, says Joseph Clayton Business Analyst at the company. At 68 Ventures the  FP&A team is tasked with analysis that is fueling multiple big ticket real estate deals. Specifically, FP&A oversees a due diligence process to “ensure we're getting land at the value that we need in order to sell those lots at a profit to pay back our lenders, pay back our investors” alongside “tracking the schedule of the project.”
But Joseph’s career actually started in basketball.
With aspirations of playing in the NBA,  Joseph played college basketball until  injury cut this career short. After  being warned off law as a profession, he found a passion for finance after a series of roles showed him the powerful role of “financial data is in the decision-making process."
This inspiration of game-changing finance remains at the core of his mindset at 68Ventures. He discusses the central role of finance in providing storytelling and business partnering in a complex holding company which has 17 different entities. The 68 Ventures brand comprises an entity purchasing land, another developing the projects, home building, to a landscaping entity and pest control company (companies include Truland Homes, Vault Mortgage, Southeast Plumbing and Gopest).  
In our first episode tackling FP&A and the real estate sector, Paul Barnhurst talks to Joseph Clayton about:
The key metrics real estate FP&A leaders need to obsess over
The role of FP&A as interest rates rises impact homebuying after a sustained period at  rock bottom
The partnership and decision-making process of FP&A across a company with 17 different entities
The whys, and how’s as 68Ventures went through a process of replacing manual Excel processes to choosing an FP&A software company - and the lessons learnt
How to overcome an instinct to achieve complete accuracy in forecasting
Watch the full show on YouTube.
Read the full transcript and blog
Follow Joseph Clayton on LinkedIn 
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com
 

Cole Dixon: How Cotopaxi uses FP&A in its Mission

You may not have heard of Cotopaxi. But you have likely heard of similar companies doing something different- Ben & Jerry’s, Allbird, Patagonia, and BrewDog.
What these companies have in common is B Corp certification. This is awarded to businesses for meeting the highest standards of accountability when it comes to social and environmental impact. Last year Cotopaxi also gave away $1.3million in donations as part of its pledges.
But how does an FP&A team work to advance this mission? How can FP&A work to achieve goals which are ultimately not about maximizing shareholder wealth.
Cole Dixon is FP&A Director at outdoor sports company Cotopaxi which has a tagline of Gear for Good on its high performance and eye-catching gear. For Dixon, the FP&A function at the company is central to “upholding a mission of our founders Davis Smith and Stephan [Jacob] that Cotopaxi can get us exploring and make a positive impact on other people’s lives. So we’re really truly committed that all of our products can be repurposed and that we prioritize human rights.” 
Every FP&A metric – units per transaction, average order value, average store volume, the inventory returns for stores – also incorporates the company-wide mission.
Listen to the fascinating story from Cole Dixon in this week’s FP&A with Cole Dixon and Paul Barnhurst.
In this episode Cole reveals:
The Ecommerce metrics and FP&A role that helped Cotopaxi to open stores during the pandemic
How FP&A partners with marketing to succeed in new ventures, such as the outdoor gatherings (Questival)
How Cotopaxi handled scenario planning and cash flow planning as stores closed during the pandemic
How he dealt with his biggest failure at Skullcandy, the lifestyle audio brand where he managed FP&A prior to Cotopaxi
How to build an FP&A team from scratch as he did at Cotopaxi
The importance of constantly “looking forward” to finding new values for in FP&A
Watch the full show on YouTube.
Read the full transcript and blog
Follow Cole Dixon on LinkedIn 
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Sruthi Lanka: Why Top Startups see FP&A as Central to Strategy

Engineer-turned-CFO Sruthi Lanka  was drawn  into finance after seeing her parents - themselves brilliant engineers - losing money in the markets. “I couldn't understand how people who could solve incredible math puzzles in their head could not figure out how to make a return in the markets. And so that's what led me down this path of navigating into finance.”
Today she is CFO at investing app, Public.com, the biggest competitor to Robinhood, famous for the “GameStop Frenzy which rattled markets in January 2021. 
 
In this episode Sruthi reveals
Her vision for FP&A as central to business and executive leadership  
Her experience of The GameStop Frenzy in late January 2021 which coincided with her joining Public.com, helping it explode from “a relatively young startup to having over a million members”
The centrality of data or analytics partnering with finance and why some engineering and SQL is an important skill set for CFOs
Her founding membership of FSuite in which StartupCFOs meet to discuss everything from the best tools to complex challenges they are facing 
Why a regular monthly meeting with FP&A is “sacrosanct” - in order to optimize what is measured and show  progress against targets 
The importance of FP&A doing the “hard work” of building “simple” financial models
Watch the full show on YouTube
Read the full transcript and blog
Show Links
FSuite (A thriving, invitation only community where CFOs turn to excel in their career and day-to-day) 
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Chris Reilly: Simplifying Private Equity, FP&A, and Financial Modeling

Chris Reilly's first finance experience was historic. He worked on the Lehman bankruptcy at the height of the financial crisis in 2008 unwinding the investment bank's portfolio with "sights of empty offices and employees being laid off". This period at management consultancy FTI Consulting occupied days and nights dealing with the aftermath of the financial crisis.
Following his consultancy days, Reilly moved to  Hilton Worldwide  in a more traditional FP&A treasury senior analyst role. Here he learned to love private equity and ended up pursuing middle market PE in Denver for nearly a decade. In 2020, made his "pipe dream" of setting up his own consultancy business a reality, founding Mission Capital Consulting where he provides custom built M&A and FP&A models. He also runs a successful course Financial Modeling for Private Equity ("I started saying to myself, I wish I could have coached myself or coach an analyst or something like that on how to do this the right way because of all the sleepless nights I spent doing it the wrong way.")
Chris is a leading voice in finance on LinkedIn, providing his more than 25,000 followers with insights and practical advice each day.
In this episode he talks to Paul about:
How he became skilled in finance through “sink or swim”  encounters that taught him modeling and FP&A
How mastering the Three Statements changed his career trajectory 
The brutal response from a boss that changed his attitude to financial modeling forever 
His worst model? (Or why is still haunted by 7,000 rows on multiple tabs)
Why every financial model starts with the end user in mind (and how to do this practically) 
Why the model itself should not be considered only a means to a “conversation”.
Why building a model of their own lives” can be the most powerful  beginning training 
His new courses including financial modeling for private equity which have attracted five-star reviews
How he went from fine arts and Spanish double major to a career in finance
Watch the full show on YouTube
Read the full transcript and blog
Show Links
Link to Chris's course: financial modeling for private equity
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FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.
Get in touch at www.datarails.com