Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) Foundations

Course details

Thrive as a finance professional by conquering best practices in planning and analysis, and upskilling in Excel and AI. Unlike traditional Excel tutorials, this course goes beyond knowledge and theory to show what FP&A experts actually need to do in Excel. Plus, it covers the interpersonal and strategic techniques that can transform data into actionable insights. First, it covers the six core pillars of FP&A and provides practical strategies you can apply immediately in your role. Then, review how to foster strong cross-functional relationships and future-proof your career in the age of AI. Each section of the course concludes with practical tips for leveraging AI to improve decision-making and optimize workflows. Join Wharton Director of FP&A, Christian Wattig, as he equips you for today’s finance roles.

Learning objectives
Explain the six pillars of FP&A and how each drives organizational performance.
Apply best practices for budgeting, forecasting, analysis, modeling, reporting, and business partnering.
Describe different AI-driven methods that can be used for completing FP&A tasks in Excel.
Demonstrate strategies for influencing stakeholders, resolving conflicts, and strengthening professional relationships.
Integrate AI tools into core FP&A processes to enhance efficiency, insight generation, and career resilience.

Concepts

Introduction

The new wave of FP&A
Understand the strategic role of FP&A

Learning Excel with AI

Prompt AI effectively to solve FP&A tasks
Learn essential Excel formulas in FP&A
Analyze Excel formulas and macros using AI
Analyze Excel formulas and macros using AI

Annual Planning

Create a budget with top-down and bottom-up planning
Navigate the kick-off phase
Set the budget timeline
Bring leaders together in the joint planning phase
Challenge the bottom-up budget
Consolidate the budget
Avoid long nights during the iteration phase
Get everyone on the same page

Forecasting

Create forecasts that add business value
Decide between a rolling forecast and a year-to-go forecast
Apply an incremental forecasting approach
Learn zero-based budgeting (ZBB)
Develop driver-based forecasts
Use statistical methods in forecasting
Select the right forecasting method
Use AI to build a statistical forecast

Analysis

Compare actuals against budget, forecast, and prior year
Apply a framework for variance analysis
Find the root cause through business driver tree analysis
Use AI to accelerate analysis

Modeling for Decision Support

Build financial models to support decisions
Evaluate investments with ROI and payback models
ROI and payback exercise
Value projects with discounted cash flow models
Assess profitability with break-even models
Break-even exercise
Estimate customer value with LTV models
LTV solution
Select the right model type for a business decision
Use AI to support financial modeling
AI for financial modeling

Finance Business Partnering

Develop strong finance business partnerships
Apply the flywheel of effective business partnering
Build business acumen as a finance professional
Use AI to improve finance business partnering

Reporting and Storytelling

Design financial reports that achieve clear objectives
Manage the monthly reporting calendar
Prepare a flash report
Lead a monthly performance review
Visualize the financial story effectively
Use AI to improve reporting and storytelling

Conclusion

Envision the bright future of FP&A