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The Most Useful Graph Ever
March 13, 2018

By Randall Bolten, longtime Silicon Valley CFO, author of "Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You,” and adjunct professor at U.C. Berkeley Extension​

RANDALL BOLTEN grew up in Washington, D.C., the son of a CIA intelligence officer and a history professor. He is passionate about the importance of presenting financials and other numerical information in a cogent and effective way, and in his current life is the author of Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You (John Wiley & Sons, 2012).

He is a seasoned financial executive, with many years directing the financial and other operations of high-technology companies. His experience includes nearly twenty years as a chief financial officer of software companies.

He has held the CFO position at public companies BroadVision and Phoenix Technologies, and at private companies including Arcot Systems, BioCAD, and Teknekron. Before his CFO positions, he held senior financial management positions at Oracle and Tandem Computers.

He received his AB from Princeton University, headed west to earn an MBA at Stanford University, and ended up staying in Silicon Valley. 

In addition to writing Painting with Numbers, he currently operates Lucidity, a consulting and executive coaching practice focused on organizing and presenting complex financial information. He divides his work time between Glenbrook, NV and Washington, DC, and maintains an office in Menlo Park, CA.

FP&A Tags:
Data Visualisation, FP&A Storytelling

Well-designed incentive compensation plans – especially sales commission plans – are an incredibly powerful way to motivate great performance. But designing a great plan is both an art and a science.

Read more
FP&A Data Vizualization: Showcase Your Critical Thinking Skills!
January 31, 2018

By Randall Bolten, longtime Silicon Valley CFO, author of "Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You” and adjunct professor at U.C. Berkeley Extension.

RANDALL BOLTEN grew up in Washington, D.C., the son of a CIA intelligence officer and a history professor. He is passionate about the importance of presenting financials and other numerical information in a cogent and effective way, and in his current life is the author of Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You (John Wiley & Sons, 2012).

He is a seasoned financial executive, with many years directing the financial and other operations of high-technology companies. His experience includes nearly twenty years as a chief financial officer of software companies.

He has held the CFO position at public companies BroadVision and Phoenix Technologies, and at private companies including Arcot Systems, BioCAD, and Teknekron. Before his CFO positions, he held senior financial management positions at Oracle and Tandem Computers.

He received his AB from Princeton University, headed west to earn an MBA at Stanford University, and ended up staying in Silicon Valley. 

In addition to writing Painting with Numbers, he currently operates Lucidity, a consulting and executive coaching practice focused on organizing and presenting complex financial information. He divides his work time between Glenbrook, NV and Washington, DC, and maintains an office in Menlo Park, CA.

FP&A Tags:
Financial Planning and Analysis, Data Visualisation, FP&A Skills

You will be considered a great FP&A professional only if you can communicate clearly, effectively, and eloquently. The most basic of those choices is whether a use a table or a graph. To make that choice intelligently, it’s critical that you answer four questions that are described in this article. 

Read more
The Most Useless Visualisation Ever
December 16, 2017

By Randall Bolten, longtime Silicon Valley CFO, author of "Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You” and adjunct professor at U.C. Berkeley Extension.

RANDALL BOLTEN grew up in Washington, D.C., the son of a CIA intelligence officer and a history professor. He is passionate about the importance of presenting financials and other numerical information in a cogent and effective way, and in his current life is the author of Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You (John Wiley & Sons, 2012).

He is a seasoned financial executive, with many years directing the financial and other operations of high-technology companies. His experience includes nearly twenty years as a chief financial officer of software companies.

He has held the CFO position at public companies BroadVision and Phoenix Technologies, and at private companies including Arcot Systems, BioCAD, and Teknekron. Before his CFO positions, he held senior financial management positions at Oracle and Tandem Computers.

He received his AB from Princeton University, headed west to earn an MBA at Stanford University, and ended up staying in Silicon Valley. 

In addition to writing Painting with Numbers, he currently operates Lucidity, a consulting and executive coaching practice focused on organizing and presenting complex financial information. He divides his work time between Glenbrook, NV and Washington, DC, and maintains an office in Menlo Park, CA.

FP&A Tags:
Data Visualisation, FP&A Storytelling

Let’s take a look at some of the most messed-up, incomprehensible recent examples of quantation. Not surprisingly, all are graphs. But some come from sources that definitely should know better.

Read more
FP&A Professional, Are You Choosing the RIGHT Graph for Your Story?
October 23, 2017

By Randall Bolten, longtime Silicon Valley CFO, author of "Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You” and adjunct professor at U.C. Berkeley Extension.

RANDALL BOLTEN grew up in Washington, D.C., the son of a CIA intelligence officer and a history professor. He is passionate about the importance of presenting financials and other numerical information in a cogent and effective way, and in his current life is the author of Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You (John Wiley & Sons, 2012).

He is a seasoned financial executive, with many years directing the financial and other operations of high-technology companies. His experience includes nearly twenty years as a chief financial officer of software companies.

He has held the CFO position at public companies BroadVision and Phoenix Technologies, and at private companies including Arcot Systems, BioCAD, and Teknekron. Before his CFO positions, he held senior financial management positions at Oracle and Tandem Computers.

He received his AB from Princeton University, headed west to earn an MBA at Stanford University, and ended up staying in Silicon Valley. 

In addition to writing Painting with Numbers, he currently operates Lucidity, a consulting and executive coaching practice focused on organizing and presenting complex financial information. He divides his work time between Glenbrook, NV and Washington, DC, and maintains an office in Menlo Park, CA.

FP&A Tags:
Financial Planning and Analysis, Data Visualisation

There are so many ways to graph information, and many of them are not just labor-intensive, but cognitively ineffective. But even if you’ve chosen one of the more effective ways of graphing information, also remember that graphs work best when you’re trying to make a single, critically important point. 

Read more
Visual FP&A: Is Graphing the Right Choice?
October 7, 2017

By Randall Bolten, longtime Silicon Valley CFO, author of "Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You” and adjunct professor at U.C. Berkeley Extension

FP&A Tags:
Financial Planning and Analysis, Data Visualisation, FP&A Storytelling

In my last article, I listed four questions you should ask yourself, and the order you should ask them in. In this article, we address Question #1: Which is the most effective way to impart your key information? 

Read more
FP&A Data Visualisation: Does Your Graph Actually WORK?
October 7, 2017

By Randall Bolten, longtime Silicon Valley CFO, author of "Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You” and adjunct professor at U.C. Berkeley Extension.

RANDALL BOLTEN grew up in Washington, D.C., the son of a CIA intelligence officer and a history professor. He is passionate about the importance of presenting financials and other numerical information in a cogent and effective way, and in his current life is the author of Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You (John Wiley & Sons, 2012).

He is a seasoned financial executive, with many years directing the financial and other operations of high-technology companies. His experience includes nearly twenty years as a chief financial officer of software companies.

He has held the CFO position at public companies BroadVision and Phoenix Technologies, and at private companies including Arcot Systems, BioCAD, and Teknekron. Before his CFO positions, he held senior financial management positions at Oracle and Tandem Computers.

He received his AB from Princeton University, headed west to earn an MBA at Stanford University, and ended up staying in Silicon Valley. 

In addition to writing Painting with Numbers, he currently operates Lucidity, a consulting and executive coaching practice focused on organizing and presenting complex financial information. He divides his work time between Glenbrook, NV and Washington, DC, and maintains an office in Menlo Park, CA.

FP&A Tags:
Financial Planning and Analysis, Data Visualisation, FP&A Storytelling

When the graph is the right way to present your FP&A information, several important questions should be asked.

Read more

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Future Meetings

Face-to-Face Oslo FP&A Board
The Launch of the Oslo FP&A Board Modern Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A): Latest Trends and Developments

September 16, 2025

Register for FP&A Trends Webinar: Five Essential FP&A Team Roles that Power Strategy and Transformation
The FP&A Trends Webinar Five Roles Every High-Performing FP&A Team Needs

September 17, 2025

The Face-to-Face Stockholm FP&A Board: Creating Your Transformation Map with the FP&A Trends Maturity Model
The Face-to-Face Stockholm FP&A Board Creating Your Transformation Map with the FP&A Trends Maturity Model

September 18, 2025

The Face-to-Face Amsterdam FP&A Board
The Face-to-Face Amsterdam FP&A Board Debunking FP&A Myths: Agile Strategies for Forecasts and Scenarios

September 23, 2025

Register The Digital North American FP&A Circle: The Winning Formula for FP&A Storytelling
The Digital North American FP&A Circle FP&A Storytelling: Craft Stories That Influence and Impact

September 24, 2025

The Face-to-Face Boston FP&A Board: Debunking FP&A Myths: Agile Strategies for Forecasts and Scenarios
The Face-to-Face Boston FP&A Board Transforming FP&A Together: Human & AI Synergy

October 7, 2025

register for the FP&A Trends Webinar:From What-If to What’s Next: Scenario Management for Modern FP&A
The FP&A Trends Webinar From What-If to What’s Next: Scenario Management for Modern FP&A

October 8, 2025

The Face-to-Face Chicago FP&A Board: Dynamic Shift: Mastering Predictive Planning & Forecasting
The Face-to-Face Chicago FP&A Board Dynamic Shift: Mastering Predictive Planning & Forecasting

October 9, 2025

The Face-to-Face Houston FP&A Board: Creating Your Transformation Map with the FP&A Trends Maturity Model
The Face-to-Face Houston FP&A Board Creating Your Transformation Map with the FP&A Trends Maturity Model

October 21, 2025

The FP&A Trends Webinar: Mastering Data in FP&A – Building Analytical Capabilities for Strategic Growth and Informed Decision-Making
The FP&A Trends Webinar Mastering Data in FP&A: Turning Analytics into Strategic Advantage

November 12, 2025

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