Why Does Negative Working Capital Matter in Financial Analysis? Imagine performing financial analysis on a national grocery chain. You notice low account receivables and fast-moving inventory, but accounts payable are stretched to 60 days. When you calculate working capital, the result is negative — a red flag? Not necessarily. Encountering negative working capital might initially…
In this episode of FinPod, we introduce our latest course: Making Effective Business Decisions—designed to help FP&A professionals and finance teams evaluate capital investments. We walk through the course structure, including a four-step decision-making framework (idea generation, analysis, planning, and monitoring), NPV, IRR, and Excel Solver to prioritize projects under budget constraints. We also explore…
The Challenge of Building Financial Dashboards That Drive Action After weeks of work, you unveil your meticulously designed financial dashboard to the executive team. Your dashboard features strong visualization, an on-brand color scheme, and precise data. But the room falls silent as they take it in — then the CFO asks a simple question: “So…
Building Strategy Into Your Financial Models: Core Methods for Analysts Have you ever created a financial model that looked perfect on paper but somehow missed the mark when it came to driving real business decisions? You’re not alone. Technical accuracy is foundational to any good financial model. But even the most precise models can fall…
How Headcount Forecasting Errors Lead to Financial Planning Issues Accurately planning for employee compensation is essential for managing labor costs, budgeting, and financial planning. But even small headcount forecasting errors can have ripple effects across payroll, cash flow, and workforce planning. Forecasts that don’t reflect real scheduling constraints, benefits costs, or payroll timing can lead…
FP&A Explained: How Financial Planning & Analysis Drives Business Strategy Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) is more than just number crunching—it’s a strategic function that helps businesses plan for the future, optimize decision-making, and drive growth. In this episode of Corporate Finance Explained, we take a deep dive into how FP&A teams forecast, analyze trends,…
Breaking Into FP&A: How Data, Finance, and Leadership Shape Careers How do you transition from data analytics into FP&A? What skills make FP&A professionals successful? In this episode of CFI’s Careers in Finance series, we explore how data, finance, and leadership intersect in corporate FP&A, featuring Smith Lordeus, an FP&A leader with a background in…
How AI KPIs Define AI Success Can AI really make better financial decisions than humans? Without clear key performance indicators (KPIs), your organization may implement an expensive AI model only to leave your stakeholders wondering what impact it actually makes. With the right KPIs, you can confirm that AI actually meets objectives — like efficiency,…
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are complex transactions requiring deep financial analysis and strategic planning. While corporate development teams and investment banking advisors drive deal execution, FP&A teams often provide critical financial analysis and insights. The level of FP&A involvement, however, varies widely by company and deal structure. This FAQ answers key questions about FP&A’s role…
Debt vs. Equity: How Companies Make Capital Structure Decisions How do companies decide between debt and equity financing? Every corporate finance professional needs to understand capital structure—the mix of debt and equity that funds a company’s growth, operations, and strategic moves. In this episode of Corporate Finance Explained, we break down the key concepts, trade-offs, and…
