What are effective strategies for building a strong financial planning and analysis team?

Strategies would differ based on the size and life-cycle of the company. For small but fast growing companies ~$50+ Mn annual revenue, assuming a new Head of FP&A: the strategy would be to first streamline the whole Budgeting and Forecasting cycle and defining the KPIs / targets with the business leaders. We should also agree on the Budgeting and Forecasting frequencies and timelines. Next is to create all the templates for building the budgets and tracking the variance with actuals. The last stage is envisioning a team based on the next 2 years as well as the long range plan. Given the smaller size of the company we need mini CFOs who have done different Finance stints including Controllership, Business Finance and FP&A.

Gather sharpshooters with number crunching skills, analysts with X-ray vision for hidden trends, and a leader who can wield spreadsheets like Thor's hammer. Hire for brains AND brawn: Technical skills are key but don't forget communication, collaboration, and that sixth sense for sniffing out fishy numbers. Mix up backgrounds, experiences, and thought styles. Your team should be a kaleidoscope of financial brilliance. Keep those brains sharp with continuous learning, conferences, and maybe even a team escape room with financial puzzles. Foster collaboration with other departments. Think team-ups with FP&A and marketing joining forces to conquer the market, or FP&A and operations battling budget overruns. Keep focusing on building team trust

Establish a clear vision and goals for your FP&A team, aligning with organizational strategy. Prioritize effective financial forecasting, budget management, performance metrics, and cross-functional collaboration. Embrace technology and invest in talent development. Measure performance with quantitative and qualitative metrics, communicating achievements transparently. Regularly reassess goals to stay aligned with evolving organizational priorities.

Stephen Covey advises to start with the end in mind. FP&A leaders should work together with their teams to establish a clear vision and goals for their departments. It's acceptable for them to have different values, but the key is to ensure that these align with the company's overall vision and goals. FP&A leaders should act as coaches, guiding and supporting their team throughout this process.

Building a robust financial planning and analysis (FP&A) team involves several key strategies. Firstly, hiring talented individuals with strong analytical skills and financial expertise is crucial. Secondly, fostering collaboration and communication within the team enhances efficiency and effectiveness. Thirdly, providing continuous training and professional development opportunities ensures that team members stay abreast of industry trends and best practices. Fourthly, leveraging tech and data analytics tools streamlines processes and improves decision-making. Lastly, promoting a culture of innovation and adaptability enables the FP&A team to respond effectively to evolving business needs and market dynamics, ultimately driving success.

I believe diversity is one of the key aspects in building the winning FP&A team, we have to hire someone good in data storytelling, another one good in building relationships, another one in data analytics, etc

What a lot of hiring managers still don’t understand is; you need to spend a good part of the interview selling the role, and you need to make sure you are the manager that someone wants to work for Treat the interview like a conversation, it’s as much about finding whether the role is right for the candidate as it is the candidate being right for the role You will know you are doing a good job if - people pull out during the process as it’s not the right role for them (based on honest conversations you have had with the candidate) - when you get to the final round, you always get your first choice (no counter offers or people accepting a different role)

Build a successful FP&A team by recruiting individuals with technical skills in finance and analytics, coupled with essential soft skills like communication and problem-solving. Consider diversity, team fit, and aligning career goals. Attract and retain talent through competitive compensation, benefits, recognition, and opportunities for growth and learning.

Given the evolving nature of the role, hiring for FP&A requires candidates with a specific set of skills and qualities. These include strong analytical abilities, excellent communication skills, and a strategic mindset. Candidates must be able to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, as well as present complex financial data clearly and concisely to non-financial stakeholders. In addition to technical skills, candidates must possess strong business acumen and a deep understanding of the industry and market trends. Overall, the ideal FP&A candidate is a versatile and adaptable problem-solver who can navigate a rapidly changing business environment with ease.

Numerous FP&A professional credentials exist. These are largely centered in accounting designations such as ACCA / CMA/ CIMA etc. What is important to ensure a solid FP&A team and their outputs, is to ensure that these profesional understand the business. Ensuring they understanding the mechanics of how the business generates revenue, how expenses are accrued, how cost can be allocated based on drivers and the timing of receipts and Payments of cash, are critical elements that talent in FP&A must have a deep and firm grasp of. Not only is classroom training essential for the type of business but a level of hands on exposure to the business units themselves can yield wonders for forecasting accuracy.

One of the key considerations when implementing any new software or any new technology in finance, is to ensure meeting the business requirements, and ensuring full alignment with the business model. Also the system should be user friendly, support looking forward scenarios (Scenario planning), provide good data visualization for storytelling, etc

The simplest analogy is - without a bat the best hitter in baseball will fail...same goes for FP&A as it related to tools/tech. In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, organizations are increasingly turning to their Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) teams to provide insights that drive strategic decision-making. The success of an FP&A team depends not only on the skills and expertise of its members but also on the tools and technology at their disposal. By investing in the right tools and tech stack, organizations can empower their FP&A teams to deliver actionable insights, drive strategic decision-making, and ultimately contribute to the company's overall success in a dynamic and competitive marketplace.

Not having the right tools and technologies can be a big limiting factor to the impact an FP&A team can have. I think that the opportunities for FP&A teams to really have an impact across the business have never been bigger. And with that, comes expectations and demands from people across the business. By ensuring teams have the tools to help them do their job well, they will be better equipped to manage these demands!

The incorporation of technology in our FP&A work has transformed the way we operate. It has enabled us to work smarter and more effectively by streamlining our processes and enhancing our capabilities. With the help of technology, we can now leverage data insights and analytics to make more informed decisions and provide better financial planning and analysis services. As a result, our work has become more efficient, accurate, and appealing, allowing us to deliver exceptional value to our clients.

In fortifying your FP&A team involves strategic investment in tools and technology. Provide your team with effective software and systems to automate processes, streamline operations, and integrate data. Utilize data visualization, artificial intelligence, and machine learning for insightful decision-making support. This investment not only saves time but also minimizes errors, enhancing the overall quality of the FP&A team's work.

I believe FP&A is the heart of any organisation, the only function that connects the dots. So collaboration within the team and collaboration with the other functions is a must to have mindset for any FP&A

Breaking down walls between departments and fostering an environment of collaboration is one of the most powerful ways to drive performance improvement in the long term. But don’t underestimate the time it can take to get to that place - be sure to make sure that you listen to and understand the perspectives of everyone involved!

It's all about using the right expertise in the strength areas of the team members, keeping in view the goals to achieve whether in the same department or across different departments.

In my experience I found that collaboration and innovation needs to be ingrained in company values. Acknowledge and appreciate the innovative people and praised a collaborative projects . Leaders actions toward fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration can lead to building trust and rapport ,and elevate team self esteem and contribution.

FP&A teams can drive innovation by working closely with their business partners to solve challenging business problems. For this to happen, the best organizations embed FP&A specialists in all areas: production, engineering, sales, marketing, and corporate functions such as IT, HR, Legal, etc.

"To ensure the success of a business, it's important to be open-minded and adaptable when it comes to best practices. While following them can be helpful, there may be situations where they may not be the best fit. In such cases, it's important to understand your business needs and find more flexible solutions that can help you achieve your goals. By doing so, you can create a customized framework that can help you stay ahead of the competition and drive your business forward."

Best practices provide a solid foundation and roadmap which guides the FP&A team along the correct path. To often the proper foundation is not solidified and this is reflected in improper financial modeling and forecasting. Best practices lends itself to standards for assessing revenue generation, expenses anticipated, timing of cash flow and a great sense of the factors that underpins each element of the business performance that then leads to financial outcomes. Simply put, proper standards for pricing, volume, timing, cost centers, expense allocation, and anticipated impacts of the porters 5 forces can yield wonders in the FP&A process.

Many FP&A best practices embody basic ideas: * store FP&A deliverables in a central location with secure access * mark deliverables as final and read-only and archive the working copies * clearly document periodic processes and cross-train team members for business continuity and career development Here is one of my favorites: live a day in the life of your business partner. For example, if you support the sales function, spend a day physically sitting close to the salespeople, observing how they conduct their business.

Soliciting feedback from the FP&A team and business partners timely at the end of a forecast or budget cycle can be invaluable in terms of learning and future improvements. Such feedback can be organized into 3 categories: what worked, what did not work, and what can we do better. Ideally, such feedback should be captured in a single file or online collaboration site, and saved at the same place as the final budget or forecast document.

It is crucial and important for building a sound financial planning and analysis team. It cultivates the culture of continuous growth and adaptability in a dynamic landscape. A learning mindset is necessary to saty update with the technological improvements and innovations. Comparing with the best industry practices to regularly assess and adapt is crucial and a culture of feedback & collaboration’s is the key to build a strong FP&A team.

Being in constant touch with the people who are on ground running the show. FP&A's true success is when the business/ops guys come to you with information without you having to ask them the question in first place. You always learn more about business and you essentially make yourself more approachable.

Understand stories behind the numbers and drilldown further on 'so what' to create value and contribute to the overall bottom-line.

Business partnering is crucial in Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) for several reasons: Alignment with Business Objectives: FP&A professionals need to work closely with business leaders to understand the overall strategic objectives of the organization. By partnering, FP&A can align financial plans and forecasts with the broader goals of the company. Budgeting and Forecasting Accuracy: Collaboration with different departments allows FP&A teams to gather accurate and up-to-date information. This ensures that forecasts are based on realistic assumptions. Communication and Transparency: Transparent communication ensures that all stakeholders are on the same page regarding financial goals and any potential challenges.

Establish Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Just as we create and report KPIs for our business partners, we should do this for our own teams as well! First, define and track KPIs to measure the performance of the FP&A team and its impact on the organization. Regularly assess and update KPIs to align with the changing needs and priorities of the business.

Entendendo o negócio. A Equipe de planejamento financeiro além das competências técnicas precisa realizar uma imersão nos negócios da empresa, o ideal seria fazer esse profissional fazer atuar muito próximo do negócio se possível fazer um job ration nas áreas de negócio. Essa dinâmica acelera o entendimento da estratégia da empresa e consequentemente a visão analítica da equipe.