r/FPandA

Been exploring what's realistically possible with our M365 Copilot licenses in a consumer goods FP&A setting. No ERP connector approved so I'm working within the standard stack, mostly Excel and whatever Copilot Studio can do without live system integrations.

Curious what others have actually built and use regularly. A few things I've been thinking about:

On the Excel side: are you using it to write or audit formulas, generate variance commentary, or help structure models? I'm genuinely curious whether it holds up on messier, real-world spreadsheets or if it's mostly impressive in demos and frustrating in practice.

On the automation side: has anyone put together a simple Copilot Studio agent for something like routing close inputs, flagging missing submissions, or drafting a standard accrual memo? I'd love to know how long it took to build and whether people actually ended up using it.

I'm putting together an internal business case and want to go in with real examples rather than marketing material. Even partial wins or honest 'it didn't really work' experiences would be super helpful.

What's worked for you?

TLDR: what are entry-mid level skills or certifications someone without a business degree should earn to have the best chance of being successful as a financial analyst? How could I continue to grow and develop into a sr or manager lever role at a large company?

I (23) have a bachelors degree in Biochemistry and found myself hating working as a biochemist in a lab. I somehow found myself as a temp HR generalist at a small (100-150 people) company with no prior experience and while in a temp role- I automated a ton of processes, found a way to present data more clearly, etc. long story short, i blew them out of the water. The expectation was never that i stay in the HR role permanently and so when the time came for them to hire an actually qualified HR manager, they created a new, open job description, role of “help the VP” in order to keep me in the company.

Im super grateful that they found value in my drive and attitude and over the last year i have taken on a ton of projects that required heavy reporting and analytic skills. I’ve YouTubed and ChatGPTed myself into becoming highly proficient in excel (power pivot, data query, indexing and Xlookups, building dashboards, etc)

I just had my annual review cycle and the company came to me with a 10% raise and told me that they are very impressed and want to push me further to become a qualified financial analyst for the company. They are willing to pay for certifications, courses, or tools I may need to bring the reporting to the next step in the company. I have no clue where to start or what to ask for. I am vaguely familiar with SQL but don’t know how to implement it day to day in my job.

What courses or certifications would you recommend for someone who accidentally fell into the career and is making the most of it? What skills or tools do you find most useful at your job and what skills are employers most often looking for?

To my fellow UK FP&A community I am trying to understand how are you finding the market. I am struggling to land an interview. I have tailored my CV to the roles. But not getting any interviews. Is there something you are doing that has helped you land a job. I have LinkedIn premium as well sent dms to job posters but nothing.

I just graduated and landed a job as a junior FP&A analyst at a scale-up, where I'll have a lot of ownership from day one.

My question is : How widespread is the use of machine learning to model revenue drivers in a SaaS/FP&A context?

I had a work-study contract during my studies, so I've already applied these algorithms in a previous role (operational controlling). But since I'm moving into a new role, I'd like to know what the most common ways are to improve forecast accuracy and whether you've seen any more "creative" forecasting approaches.

One example I had in mind : a hybrid 3-statement model using machine learning outputs as short-term revenue inputs, then switching to a more classical, judgment-based forecast (bear/base/bull cases) after month 3.

Another specific example : model the churn rate using leading indicators (how the customer is using the product, frequency/volume of plan features) rather than a general assumption based on historical statistics.

Thanks for your help!

Hello everyone,

We are an IT company specializing in Outsourcing, Software Development, and Advisory, the usual. Currently our company reached 250 employees, we just finished our second year. We use excel for our financial forecasting (individual sheets for revenue forecast, expense, capex, etc all leading to one excel sheet "Financial Data" where the magic happens)

This currently works and is managed by the CFO & Financial Controller. Me personally, im not very involved in it and don't really understand much of how its set up (fresh into the job, first year accountant)

We recently implemented Odoo for our accounting and its going great and everything. Our CFO saw this and wants us to find a financial forecasting tool but is very vague about what the actual requirement is. My assumption is balance sheet, profit&loss, cash flow statement forecasting which are not available in Odoo unless we go for a custom solution (if there is one that is highly known and suggested, we are interested).

We approached Abacum but it will cost us 50k USD for our first year which isnt something we currently have budget for.

The problem with our Excel at the moment is that it requires a lot of manual revisions and consumes a lot of time.

What would you recommend? We have a squad of 3 accountants, financial controller, CFO, and an account for the CEO just so they could review.

Was in the process for a VP FP&A role at a PE-backed company. HR mentioned they have two open reqs, VP and Sr Director, and hinted my comp number and age(might be reading into this one) might put me closer to the Sr Director band. Next I talk to the CFO.

Trying to figure out how hard to push for VP vs just seeing where the conversation goes. Anyone dealt with something like this? Don’t want to shoot myself in the foot either way.

What do you all that do analysis with python use to distribute self service dynamic reporting in a secure way? Internal network servers, cloud hosting …? I’m using python to make automated and bespoke analytics that I want to share with people but its a bit difficult. I’m assuming hosting this would be cheaper than using PowerBI licenses with self service dashboards etc. I’m just curious what you all’s experiences have been as Im new to python with llms helping me use it.

I’m getting ready for an interview with Apple and this is my first interview with any faang company. What should I expect and prepare for? Interview questions they might ask, how they do interviews, anything is helpful and thank you in advance.

For some background about the role specifically, it mentions fpa and forecasting experience with familiarity with revenue and margin concepts. Evaluating commercial deals and partnerships including pricing; discounts and elasticity. And just other typical analytics skills like sql.

I worked for the state as a fin/reimbursment student assistant for a few years just to give an idea of where I’m coming from.

Update from a post a couple months back (took the Senior FP&A Manager job over the counter-offer)

About two months into the new role. It's a small-ish site, US-listed parent, and I report directly to the FPA Director. I'm effectively the senior finance person on the ground here.

My boss has already floated that he sees me as someone who could step into his knowledge/responsibilities if he ever moved on. Nothing formal, no timeline, just a clear signal. My goal is Director-level within 1-2 years. I know that's ambitious for someone a month into the seat, but I'd rather build toward it deliberately than wait and hope it happens.

For those who've made Director or manage that transition - what actually moved the needle for you?

Was it: Owning a specific high-visibility project/initiative Building relationships upward (with his boss, with corporate) Formal signals (asking directly, timeline conversations) Just outperforming and letting it be obvious Something else entirely

Curious what worked vs. what was just noise.

¡Hola!

Soy de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Tengo unos 20 años y recién este semestre comencé en la UBA. Mi idea, pensando a futuro, siempre fue apuntar al sector financiero. Me empezó a gustar este mundo en el último año de la secundaria. La rama que más me llama es la de Corporate Finance. Tuve un pequeño paso por la UTDT, por medio de una beca, pero por motivos de disparidad con lo laboral, renuncié, y estuve obligado a dar un parate y reorganizarme. Finalmente, este año, me incliné por Lic. en Contabilidad/Accoutant, que siento que es lo más parecido a la carrera de Finanzas en cuanto a lo técnico. Pero luego me comentaron sobre la actualización del plan de Lic. en Economía en mi universidad, con nuevas orientaciones, como Economía Empresarial, y pensaba si en verdad valdría la pena cambiarme ahora.

Me gustaría saber la opinión de la comunidad en general, pero sobre todo de aquellos que ya están viviendo ese día a día financiero y cómo lograron construir esa vida. ¡Muchas gracias!

Hi everyone, I was wondering if anyone would like to share their career story pivots after working in FP&A. Has anyone moved into a different area, such as Corp Dev recently for example, or found a new path in finance?

I’m feeling a bit burned out with FP&A, and although I have obtained a diploma in Risk Management and I’m considering moving into something more quantitative, or I’m also exploring Corporate Development as second path and have already secured a few interviews ( but failed them already ) .

I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience and what helped you make the transition and get some inspiration or insight . Thanks!!

Been using Claude plugin for excel very successfully. Anyone testing copilot? What’s the difference?

Hey guys,

I completed a 1-year leadership development program at a fortune 200 company and started my new role as an analyst about 2 months ago. However, I took a gap year in university and would be considered “behind” by a year in terms of workforce experience etc. In theory, this leadership development program looks good on a resume from what I’ve heard, and I wonder if a year of this + few months of my current analyst role is sufficient to start considering senior analyst roles. My company has an 18-month guideline around which point analysts generally move to sr. Analyst, which would take a while but I’ve worked on some high impact projects throughout my time, which I think could make me eligible for a move up.

My question is, is it worth leaving the company where you went through a leadership development program for the sake of a faster promotion elsewhere?

​

I've got over 10+ years of experience in Oracle EPM support from various product companies, but I've never actually worked on an EPM implementation project since most of my roles have been support-focused. I'm looking for advice from experts: with my background, should I aim for an implementation role, or keep pursuing EPM support positions at product companies?

$260+ million company, very complex org operations wise. Super interesting to learn.

Lean team - currently two, expanding to three.

Routine tasks include:

some data prep work (a couple hours a week, not a ton)

Support new contract setup in the accounting system (ensure structure and revenue recognition is correct before handing off to accounting )

Maintain and improve FP&A system - Adaptive Planning - we’ve been in the system for over 15 years

Monthly reforecasting, variance analysis, annual budgets, etc.

Bulk of work once you are up and running is honestly non-routine ad hoc analysis, process improvement, automation, special projects etc.

Extremely good WLB, must be generally available core business hours in Alaska defined as 9am-3pm.

Min requirements are a relevant 4 year degree and a few years relevant experience

Posted as an analyst role but will consider the right senior level person. Comp range expected to be $80-100k, DOE. Federal employee health benefits (tribal employer), 401k match, decent PTO.

Comment any questions or DM for info to apply.

Second year audit manager at a big 4 in a big city, wanting to transition to FP&A role because I find it more interesting. Curious from a hiring perspective, how somebody with my experience will be looked at. I want to know how reasonable or achievable it is. My resume and experience proves I can manage people and volume of projects so that shouldn't be an issue. However I don't have direct modeling experience (even though I can interpret them pretty well with my accounting background). Any insights on the feasibility of the move at this level?

Hello,

I feel like Claude has had the biggest impact on FP&A roles in finance. It can build financial models, analyze data, and even create PowerPoint presentations. I work in FP&A, and lately I've started to feel disappointed about where the field is heading. I understand that this is the reality of a new AI-driven world, but I'm not sure what my next steps should be if I want to remain valuable in the industry.

Recently interviewed with Amazon and wanted to share some takeaways.
Big realization: I misunderstood driver-based modeling. I framed it as variance analysis when it’s really operational inputs driving forecast outputs. Good learning moment.

Concern is I kinda feel like I won’t make it to the next round. I’ve been working role right now that doesn’t require no real finance to be done. I haven worked on a did a budget for large business in awhile. It’s been 1 year finance I’ve had a SFA job

Why Amazon / SSD?
Focused on finance partnering, operations support, inventory, spoilage, and fast-turn environments.
STAR Questions
Exceeded expectations
Used my DSO improvement story (59 → 45 days).
Created a metric that drove change
Used overtime-to-FTE analysis in a call center.
Identified excessive OT, tied it to staffing shortages, converted it into headcount needs, and supported 4 hires.
Unanticipated obstacles
Used a RIF planning error tied to global notice periods.
Removed HC too early, missed severance timing, and created budget variance.
Corrected it through hiring freezes, vendor cuts, delayed backfills, and attrition.
Biggest follow-up:
What would you do differently?
My answer:
Ask more questions.
Technical finance (hardest part)
What is driver-based modeling?
I answered with bridge analysis (headcount misses, RIF impact).
Issue: wrong framework.
What he wanted:
Operational inputs → forecast outputs
Follow-up:
Give me an operational metric tied to budget.
I pivoted to a chargeback model:
Inputs: hours, labor cost, billing rates, utilization.
Outputs: revenue, margin, profitability.
That was the better answer.
Overall, strong behavioral rounds, but the technical side exposed where I need to sharpen up. Good interview, better learning.

Update:

I didn’t make it to the next round disappointed but with every failure, it's my chance to try again more intelligently.