FP&A Today

Anna Oblakova has spent 15 years in FP&A - it is the only job she ever wanted. 

She started her career in large Russian companies. Beginning her career at VMHY Holding her first taste of FP&A was being pushed into the deep end of M&A, due diligence and business valuations.

Future accomplishments include building an FP&A function from scratch at Bank Zenit where she eventually managed a team of 10 FP&A professionals. Following a career break, Anna moved to France where she is manager of FP&A at Sodastream (bought by Pepsico for $3.2 billion in 2018). In this interview Anna discusses some of the highlights of her career including:

The reasons for setting up the online resource and blog FPANDA CLUB

The 50 shades of FP&A Maturity and why it is important to measure FP&A progress

How FP&A teams can use personas to build better business partnerships 

Why it is vital that key metrics to follow should be aligned with the strategic objectives of the company

The constantly growing gap between expectations of stakeholders and FP&A teams

The need for continuous learning to succeed in FP&A

Follow Anna on LinkedIn

Check out the FP&A Club website founded by Anna Oblakova

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Read the Full Program Transcript

Watch the Full Episode on YouTube

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

For Stéphanie Herbots, a finance perfectionist, everything was going to plan. Stéphanie got her masters degree. Sailed into a career in finance. Controllership and FP&A roles for the most prestigious companies followed This included budgets and forecasting for a division of telecoms giant, Orange. 

Then it struck.

Stephanie faced a series of challenges in the midst of the 12th revision of the annual budget (no exaggeration!). Becoming a mum. Staff leaving. Being forced to pick up the slack for FP&A challenges with strict deadlines. Stephanie could not cope. 

Stephanie faced burnout and a spiral of low mental health she describes as “slow and vicious.She had no option but quit finance

In episode 8 of FP&A Today, discussion Stephanie speaks about her journey, with Zoe Cooke, FP&A Director at We are Social, who has been a powerful advocate of mental health in finance throughout her career. 

Leading the discussion FP&A Today host Paul Barnhurst, who himself has seen the impact of mental health first hand and is among those leading the drive for better recognition and transparency  among the FP&A profession. This wide-ranging conversation discusses

The specific mental health challenges within the FP&A profession

Proven advice to lead and cope with stress, burnout and mental health in finance

The limits and challenges of forecasting in uncertain times

How challenges with data and manual processes can be overcome

Follow Stéphanie Herbots on LinkedIn

Follow Zoe Cooke on LinkedIn 

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Read the Full Program Transcript

Watch the Full Episode on YouTube 

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

Kenneth Fick, had it in his background to be in FP&A: His father spent 40 years in FP&A at Fisher Price.

Ken is now Vice President of Financial Planning Analysis at Citrin Cooperman which is a $350 million accounting tax and advisory firm based in New York. In this interview Kenneth discusses:

Being a 20-year-old watching the chaos unfold at Circuit City which is now taught as an example of corporate failure in America

While technical skills get you first roles, you get promoted through skills in influence and storytelling

Becoming a leading name in FP&A through his writing – including a viral article about how to exactly define to a stranger what FP&A is, at a cocktail party

His budget process and love of budgeting as a means of listening to the company

Why it angers him that FP&A is being judged on predictions

How fuzzy data is at the core of FP&A

Linear regression and statistical modeling in Excel

 

Follow Kenneth on LinkedIn

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Read the Full Program Transcript

Watch the Full Episode on YouTube

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

FP&A veteran Cameron Janke has spent most of the last decade working at HealthEquity, the largest health savings account in the US. Cameron played a large part in the company  going public in 2014. As HealthEquity took off so did Cameron’s career –  he rose up the ranks from SEC Reporting and Analysis Manager to VP of FP&A at the company which now has assets of $20.3 billion and Cameron oversaw 32 consecutive quarters of the company meeting or exceeding EBITDA consensus.

In this masterclass for anyone in finance, Cameron explains:

How he took the initiative to move from accounting to FP&A by building his own forecasts and sharing them with management

Why anyone involved in an IPO Needs to Worry more about Day Two – not just Day One 

How FP&A can best manage ongoing M&A opportunities and not get sidelined

The secret to building the best performing FP&A teams 

Plus how a Kind CFO's words gave him a leadership lesson to remember

Follow Cameron on LinkedIn

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Read the Full Program Transcript

Watch the Full Episode on YouTube

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

Gemma Davie, Associate Director, Performance (FP&A) leads a team of 12 in her FP&A function at comparethemarket.com, one of Britain’s best loved finance brands. Speaking to FP&A Today she reveals her secrets for producing excellence.

Gemma defines excellence in FP&A as driving action and leading to better customer outcomes or a tangible benefit. Gemma reveals her unusual “squiggly” career path to Director, the importance of prioritizing her FP&A team’s development, how FP&A has moved from scorekeeper to top coach in business, and why most FP&A teams are only thinking about cash flow when it's too late.

Plus, a surprising hobby that not many people know about.

Follow Gemma on LinkedIn

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Get the full program transcript 

Watch the full YouTube video 

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

Francesca Valli is highly sought after when CFOs come calling to discuss high-priority transformations (their top priority right now). With both a finance  accounting background and training, Francesca, combines decades of expertise in finance, IT and technology and AI and machine learning. Her experience of complex finance transformations underpinned by technology, include leading a digital transformation supporting a £1 billion ($1.26 billion) spend for multinational beverage alcohol company, Diageo.

However even at the biggest, most well-run finance teams the complex and misunderstood issue of change management remains an expensive and difficult challenge.

 

In this wide ranging-interview for FP&A Today, Francesca reveals the essential things CFOs, and FP&A teams need to know in undergoing any type of transformation. As well as sharing their horror stories of change management programs (Paul reveals a $12m mistake in a deeply flawed change management he observed) the interview also reveals:

What "putting your house in order first" means for finance teams before undertaking any finance technological transformation

The biggest common problems of misalignment

How to avoid overhyped promises of some finance technologies and the questions to really ask vendors

Whether AI and robots will really steal FP&A jobs and what you can do to remain relevant?

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

Follow Francesca on LinkedIn

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Get the full program transcript 

Watch the full YouTube video 

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

Bryan Lapidus has more than 20 years of experience in the corporate FP&A and treasury space working at organizations like American Express, Fannie Mae and private equity-owned companies. At AFP he is the staff subject matter expert on FP&A, which includes creating and curating content to meet the needs of the profession and membership. Bryan also manages FP&A Advisory Councils in North America and Asia-Pacific that act as a voice to align AFP with the needs of the profession.

 

Bryan speaks to Paul Barnhurst aka The FP&A Guy giving the benefit of everything he has learned speaking to thousands of practitioners of FP&A at the AFP’s conferences, roundtables and interview sessions. He discusses everything from the importance of a finance passport, FP&A certifications, core skills to be an effective challenger, how budgets have changed - and not changed - since COVID-19, and the one change that FP&A pros all need to master.

Follow Bryan on LinkedIn 

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

 

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Get the full program transcript 

Watch the full YouTube video

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

Jack Alexander is an in-demand speaker, author and advisor coaching the world’s leading finance teams, specializing in creating world-class FP&A teams. Jack has been a CFO of companies, such as Mercury Computer systems, and EG&G, before becoming a best-selling author of the FP&A handbook, Financial Planning & Analysis and Performance Management (Wiley Finance). 

Drawing on more than 40 years of experience, Jack speaks to Paul Barnhurst aka TheFP&A Guy about the origins of FP&A; the essential things that CFOs are looking for in their FP&A functions; how to immediately start more effective scenario planning in uncertain times; how to get - and keep - your seat at the top table and become a Top Gun: Maverick; and the rookie mistakes he continues to see from FP&A teams.

Follow Jack on LinkedIn

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

 

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Follow DataRails on LinkedIn to find out about upcoming episodes and the latest FP&A news

Get the full program transcript 

Watch the full YouTube video

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

Jordan Goldmeier started out with a degree in accounting, and went on to become one of the leading experts in data science and Excel. Recipient of the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional Award, Jordan is one of the leading global minds on data science, data visualization, and analytics. Jordan currently works with Fortune 500 companies and institutions. His latest book, Becoming a Data Head: How to Think, Speak and Understand Data Science, Statistics and Machine Learning is a #1 Best-Seller across multiple categories.

In this wide-ranging interview for FP&A Today, Jordan gives his outspoken views on whether FP&A pros need to know coding; the first stages to awesome analysis; the best Excel joke of all time;  the problems with Excel education; and the Excel function he would die on a hill for.

Follow Jordan on LinkedIn.

FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.

 

Datarails is the financial planning and analysis platform that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning, while enabling finance teams to continue using their own Excel spreadsheets and financial models.

With Datarails on your side for FP&A you get improved data integrity and visibility helping your relationships with your internal business partners and external stakeholders; real-time latest version of all your company’s data in one place, with version control, audit trail and records, ensuring errors and multiple versions are avoided; the ability to let your data tell your story through proprietary, built-in visualization of critical KPIs in real-down; and drill-downs to answer questions on underlying data on the spot.

Get in touch at www.datarails.com

Get the full program transcript

Watch the YouTube video 

To suggest a great guest for the show, or if you would like to be the FP&A Pro being interviewed contact [email protected]

FP&A Today is the podcast for Financial Planning and Analysis. The weekly show dives into the challenges and opportunities within the world of FP&A, interviewing FP&A leaders, CFOs and other finance pros in order to give you the freshest insights and takeaways. Each week our top guests provide actionable advice about financial planning and analysis – from career goals to navigating challenges, and powerful Excel tips.

 

Our weekly show provides unrivalled insights for navigating FP&A.