The Value of Conditional Formatting in Cash Flow Models Even the most carefully built cash flow model can miss the mark if key risks aren’t easy to spot. That’s where conditional formatting in Excel comes in — it highlights potential issues immediately, so you can catch errors or red flags before they escalate. In monthly…
Why Returns Attribution Matters in an LBO In a leveraged buyout (LBO), generating strong equity returns is the goal. To understand how those returns were achieved, investors and analysts look beyond the bottom-line internal rate of return (IRR) or cash-on-cash metrics. They want to know what actually created the value. That’s why every LBO model…
ChatGPT-4o vs. o1: What Finance Professionals Need to Know Artificial intelligence is transforming how finance professionals work. From data analysis to risk assessment, AI-powered tools are enhancing decision-making and unlocking new efficiencies in the financial world. But with OpenAI’s recent release of different model versions, how do you know which one to use for your…
How Do Top Companies Use FP&A to Drive Business Strategy? In this episode, we break down how Tesla, Netflix, Amazon, and more leverage Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) to optimize corporate decisions. Tesla’s FP&A strategy – How it funds billion-dollar Gigafactories Netflix’s financial modeling – The numbers behind content funding decisions Airlines & real-time pricing…
Excel Model Design: Why You Should Spend More Time on Upfront Design Ever spent hours deciphering a colleague’s financial model — hunting through scattered data, tracing cryptic formulas, and wondering what these numbers actually mean? These moments reveal the true cost of poor design. Thoughtful Excel model design is the foundation that determines whether your…
How to Approach Growth vs. Maintenance Investment Analysis Imagine you’re an FP&A analyst for a consumer goods company. One day, your manager hands you two proposals — one to replace outdated machinery (a maintenance investment) and another to fund an expansion into a new market (a growth investment). Faced with two different proposals, you need…
How a Structured Capital Allocation Process Drives Better Decisions Suppose your finance manager asks you to perform a capital allocation analysis for a major investment. Without a clear roadmap to assess capital investments, a request like this can feel overwhelming. Sound business decision-making matters more than ever. Every decision is essentially an investment decision, including…
In this episode of Corporate Finance Explained, we explore the strategic power of Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) in driving business success. From dynamic budgeting to data-driven forecasting and insightful financial analysis, we break down the key pillars of a high-impact FP&A function. Learn how top FP&A teams align financial strategy with execution, leverage real-time…
Why Financial Benchmarking Skills Suppose the SaaS company you’re analyzing posts a 10% net profit margin. It looks solid until you compare it to similar SaaS businesses and the average margin is 15%. The financial performance of a single company becomes significantly more meaningful when it is compared to industry benchmarks and similar companies. Benchmarking…
In this episode of Careers in Finance on FinPod, we sit down with Nicole Lee, a former UBS executive director who navigated a remarkable career transition after 13 years in banking. Discover Nicole’s journey from a role at UBS (including the Chief Investment Office in Wealth Management) into the dynamic world of fintech, and ultimately,…
