If the last year has taught us anything, traditional financial planning and analysis approaches did not work (or at least proved suboptimal) when navigating through uncharted landscapes. The pandemic forced FP&A practitioners to reassess and adapt our approach to planning, forecasting, and bringing to the forefront the importance of scenario planning. 

There is no doubt that the COVID-19 crisis brought a huge challenge for any business but it also brought a unique opportunity. FP&A professionals continue to play an essential part in navigating through the uncertainties.

In this digest, you will learn the biggest advantages that the FP&A team have in a post-pandemic business world, why business acumen is a must-have for all finance professionals, and how to optimise your decision-making process.

The power of Finance Business Partnering enables Finance to step outside of their traditional Performance Management roles (setting budgets and reviewing actuals) in order to contribute to real value creation initiatives.  

Simply put, spending more time working together is mutually beneficial for both Finance and the business.  
But what is the best way to structure that relationship?  Should Finance operate as an advisor, a consultant or perhaps even an investor?

Annual Operating Planning is an important activity in many organisations.  Some refer to it as budget season and every organisation has its own nomenclature such as AOP, OB, LRBP, etc. This article covers best practices for a successful planning season, explains what best-in-class organisations do to create a solid annual operating plan and answers three burning questions.