FP&A Course

Lesson 1 • The FP&A Function Defined

Covers FP&A's mandate, organizational placement, and key stakeholders. Establishes context for every subsequent planning and analysis skill.

Lesson 2 • The FP&A Calendar and Cycle

Maps the annual planning cycle from budget kick-off through close and reporting. Helps practitioners anticipate workload and coordinate cross-functional timelines.

Lesson 3 • Key Financial Metrics and KPIs

Introduces profitability, liquidity, and efficiency ratios used in FP&A reporting. Connects metric selection to business model and strategic goals.

Lesson 1 • Dynamic Assumptions and Drivers

Teaches how to isolate business drivers in a dedicated assumptions section. Enables rapid scenario testing without restructuring the model.

Lesson 2 • Essential Excel Functions for FP&A

Covers lookup, logical, date, and aggregation functions critical to financial modeling. Builds formula fluency needed for all subsequent modeling chapters.

Lesson 3 • Model Architecture Best Practices

Establishes principles for layout, color coding, and separation of inputs, calculations, and outputs. Reduces errors and improves model maintainability.

Lesson 4 • Scenario and Sensitivity Analysis

Builds scenario managers and one- and two-variable data tables to stress-test plans. Directly supports the variance analysis and forecasting chapters ahead.

Lesson 1 • Budget Consolidation and Submission

Covers rolling up departmental budgets, resolving gaps, and preparing executive presentations. Produces a board-ready budget package with supporting commentary.

Lesson 2 • Revenue Budget Construction

Builds a revenue budget using volume, price, and mix drivers. Establishes the top-line foundation that all expense and headcount budgets depend on.

Lesson 3 • Budgeting Methodologies Compared

Contrasts zero-based, incremental, activity-based, and beyond-budgeting approaches. Equips practitioners to recommend the right method for a given business context.

Lesson 4 • Expense and Headcount Budgeting

Covers cost categorization, headcount planning, and departmental expense templates. Connects expense budgets to revenue drivers and strategic initiatives.

Lesson 1 • Driver-Based Forecasting

Links forecast outputs to operational drivers such as units, headcount, and conversion rates. Produces forecasts that update automatically when business assumptions change.

Lesson 2 • Rolling Forecast Design and Maintenance

Builds a 12- or 18-month rolling forecast that replaces actuals each period. Reduces reliance on the static annual budget and improves decision-making agility.

Lesson 3 • Statistical Forecasting Techniques

Covers moving averages, exponential smoothing, and linear regression applied to financial data. Builds quantitative rigor into revenue and cost projections.

Lesson 4 • Forecast Accuracy and Continuous Improvement

Establishes a post-forecast review process to diagnose bias and refine assumptions. Closes the loop between forecast performance and model improvement.

Lesson 1 • Cost and Expense Variance Analysis

Decomposes cost variances into spending, efficiency, and volume components. Enables FP&A to pinpoint cost overruns and support corrective action.

Lesson 2 • Storytelling with Financial Data

Translates numbers into a coherent business narrative using charts, annotations, and structured commentary. Elevates reports from data dumps to decision-support tools.

Lesson 3 • Revenue Variance Deep Dive

Applies variance decomposition to revenue lines across products, channels, and regions. Connects revenue variances to sales team performance and market conditions.

Lesson 4 • Management Reporting Package Design

Structures a monthly management report with executive summary, KPI scorecard, and variance commentary. Balances data density with readability for senior audiences.

Lesson 1 • Mergers and Acquisitions Modeling Basics

Introduces accretion/dilution analysis and synergy modeling for M&A evaluation. Provides FP&A professionals with tools to support corporate development teams.

Lesson 2 • Integrated Three-Statement Modeling

Constructs a fully linked income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow model from scratch. Serves as the foundation for all advanced modeling in this chapter.

Lesson 3 • Make-vs.-Buy and Build-vs.-Partner Models

Structures decision models comparing internal build, outsourcing, and partnership options. Applies incremental cost and benefit logic to operational investment choices.

Lesson 4 • Model Presentation and Decision Support

Packages model outputs into concise decision memos and executive presentations. Ensures analytical rigor translates into clear recommendations for leadership.

Lesson 1 • Communicating the Long-Range Plan

Structures board and investor presentations of the long-range plan with supporting financials. Develops skills to defend assumptions and respond to strategic challenges.

Lesson 2 • Linking Strategy to Financial Plans

Converts strategic objectives into quantifiable financial targets and resource requirements. Bridges the gap between executive strategy and operational financial planning.

Lesson 3 • Capital Allocation and Portfolio Prioritization

Applies return-on-investment and strategic fit criteria to rank competing capital requests. Produces a prioritized investment portfolio aligned to long-range financial capacity.

Lesson 4 • Long-Range Plan Model Construction

Builds a three-to-five-year integrated financial model driven by strategic assumptions. Extends the three-statement modeling skills from Chapter 6 to a multi-year horizon.

Lesson 1 • FP&A Technology Stack Overview

Surveys EPM platforms, BI tools, and data integration solutions used in modern FP&A. Prepares practitioners to evaluate and implement planning technology upgrades.

Lesson 2 • Data Analytics in FP&A

Introduces descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, and prescriptive analytics applied to finance. Expands analytical capability beyond traditional spreadsheet-based FP&A.

Lesson 3 • Business Partnering and Influence

Develops skills to challenge assumptions, influence decisions, and build cross-functional credibility. Positions FP&A as a strategic advisor rather than a reporting function.

Lesson 4 • FP&A Leadership and Team Development

Covers FP&A team design, talent development, and performance management for finance leaders. Prepares senior practitioners to build and lead high-performing FP&A functions.