After a long hiatus related to the COVID-19 restrictions, the meetings of the International FP&A Board in Stockholm have finally been restarted. The first post-pandemic event was held on the 25th of April in the beautiful Regus venue. 27 senior FP&A leaders from leading companies such as Coca-Cola, Scania, Saab, Pirelli, J&J, SEB, Jones Lang LaSalle and many others reflected on lessons learned from the Pandemic.
Figure 1: The Stockholm FP&A Board Members (April 2023)
We are grateful to representatives of such companies for joining the meeting:
- SEB,
- J&J,
- Scania,
- Pirelli,
- Saab,
- Coca-Cola,
- Jones Lange LaSalle Inc.,
- Assa Abloy Global Solutions,
- Barilla Sverige AB,
- and many others.
Larysa Melnychuk, the founder of the International FP&A Board, facilitated the conversation at this forum.
The agenda of the event included the following points:
- FP&A for the Next Normal,
- Top lessons learned from the Pandemic,
- Practical experience of the lessons learned from the Pandemic, shared by Ji-Hyun Hwang, Ph.D., Business Control at Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, Stockholm FP&A Board member,
- Small groups work, conclusions and recommendations.
After a short introduction, the attendees shared the biggest lessons the Pandemic taught them. They are:
- everything can happen,
- agility is key,
- creating value is another way to manage uncertainty,
- collaboration should be one of the primary concerns,
- digital transformation can help stay afloat,
- Scenario Planning has become crucial,
- fast adaptation was needed,
- and many companies had to be mature to work remotely.
What Have FP&A Professionals Learned from the Pandemic?
Larysa Melnychuk asked the forum about how we can plan for uncertainty. This question ignited a forward-looking discussion, during which the FP&A Board Members agreed on the suitable approaches to navigate the ever-changing business environment. According to the event attendees, these were as follows:
- Scenario Management,
- moving to xP&A,
- the crucial FP&A team roles,
- and digital FP&A.
Lesson 1 – Scenario Management
Figure 2: Scenario Management can help handle uncertainty
Lesson 2 - Extended Planning and Analysis
It is a journey to analytical excellence that involves:
- x - cross-functional planning and moving beyond finance,
- aligning strategic, financial, and operational plans,
- Digital Transformation (tools & processes).
Furthermore, the forum discussed adopting a cross-functional FP&A strategy and six success factors for integrating the three abovementioned plans.
Lesson 3 – Critical Roles for Best-in-Class FP&A Team
Traditionally, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) teams were made of analysts. Today, synergistic teams must be multi-skilled in this incredible environment of constant change and uncertainties.
We can see five critical FP&A roles that are necessary to fulfil demands from the business and the wider environment:
- FP&A data scientists,
- FP&A architects,
- FP&A analysts,
- FP&A storytellers and
- FP&A influencers.
Two emerging roles, the FP&A Interpreter and FP&A Connector, are gaining popularity, and not all have these specialists in their teams.
Lesson 4 – Digital FP&A
Figure 3: FP&A Teams’ Time Distribution
Digital FP&A trends were the last item on the list of crucial learnings. Larysa Melnychuk explained why many FP&A teams still spend their time on low-value activities based on the recent FP&A Trends Survey findings.
Practical Insights from the Field
Figure 4: Ji-Hyun Hwang shares her insights during the Stockholm FP&A Board, April 2023
Ji-Hyun Hwang, Business Control at Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, was invited to be a speaker. In her presentation, she outlined what SEB has learned, emphasising the necessity of creating a business continuity plan for your FP&A team.
Figure 5: Key takeaways, Ji-Hyun’s presentation at the Stockholm FP&A Board, April 2023
Right after it, Ji-Hyun shared her insights on Performance Management. According to her presentation, FP&A teams can be sustainability ambassadors of the business. Moreover, wise leadership, agility, and implied technology become important factors for organisational success.
Summary
Figure 6: Group Work, the Stockholm FP&A Board, April 2023
At the end of the meeting, the FP&A Board attendees were split into three groups to discuss three following aspects:
- Moving from traditional planning to Scenario Management,
- Practical steps to implement xP&A, and
- How can organisations prepare for analytical transformation?
After vivid discussions, it was clear that many professionals face the same issues that must be addressed on our journey towards better FP&A practices. The session ended with networking, where all participants could share their thoughts with fellow industry experts.
We are grateful to Jedox for sponsoring this meeting. Many thanks to IWG and Michael Page for their tremendous support with the event organisation.
