My plan for 2024

In partnership with

Today’s newsletter will be a bit different, but I think you’ll appreciate it.

How will it be different?

I want to take you behind the curtain with this newsletter to understand what’s next.

And while that might seem boring, I think you’ll actually be interested.

Because it means more (free) stuff for you.

Let’s jump in:

Near future of Forecasting Performance

In the newsletter world, there are 3 main directions people go:

1. Give very little value and push people into their expensive products/services to learn more

2. Appeal to beginners and push people into their low-cost products/services to learn more

3. Teach the thing completely unfiltered and just have fun

Truthfully, I’ve gone back and forth between these 3 options (and probably will in the future!)

But this newsletter started as number 3 and I want to keep it there long term.

Here’s what that means for you:

✅ I’ll keep breaking down best practices every Saturday morning
✅ The newsletter will be free and supported by our sponsors every week (newsletters cost money too!)
✅ And my most popular/impactful part of my business (The FP&A OS ebook) will be revised to become the authority on FP&A

Right now my book is great. Super actionable, packed full of templates, frameworks, etc.

But I want it to hit a little harder.

It’ll still be The FP&A OS, but…

• I want to teach the What, Why, and How of FP&A at both the theory and the practical level for beginners and experts

• I want to dive into FP&A talent and technology (which I intentionally avoided in the first version)

• I want it to be taught in schools (probably won’t happen, but I can dream)

• I want it to be available in paperback (no idea how to do this yet)

• And more!

Newsletter roadmap

Another commitment I’m making to myself is to focus on quality.

And that means I only have 1 primary task at a time.

So I’ll be 100% focused on my book rewrite, but I’ll do it in a way that I’m also 100% focused on this newsletter.

How?

By releasing 1 section/chapter of the new book every week for free via this newsletter.

Then in 6-ish months, you’ll have a completed book in your inbox - 1 email at a time.

Full transparency - a lot of the newsletters I’ve written in the last 18 months will also be included in the new book.

Here’s the plan on what the book will cover:

Part 1: The FP&A Operating System

On a foundation of data, technology, and people, FP&A drives outcomes in the business with excellence in: reporting, analysis, forecasting, and consulting.

Part 2: The FP&A Flywheel

The 4 elements of the FP&A Operating System (reporting, analysis, forecasting, and consulting) have the potential to create a flywheel (The FP&A Flywheel) when executed to their potential. This flywheel sits in the overall corporate strategy cycle that connects the strategic plan to the financial budget and ultimately the monthly business reviews.

Part 3: How FP&A Scales

FP&A must scale along with the business to continue to drive excellence. As FP&A matures, roles become redefined between centralized and business partner support. Additional issues will arise that need to be tackled: ideal team structure, FP&A tools and technology, and where FP&A’s reach ends (operational analysis and data ownership).

1 small distraction

The last thing worth mentioning is the fact that I’m starting to develop relationships with some really cool brands in the finance space.

Some of these companies I use personally (fina.money) while others are up-and-coming FP&A tool companies that I geek out over from afar (Datarails).

The reason I’m allowing this distraction is that these companies believe in what I’m doing, I believe in what they’re doing, and you all benefit from hearing about valuable solutions to your problems (that’s a win-win-win).

Oh, and they pay the bills for this newsletter 🙂

In summary:

In the near future, you’ll see me focused on quality.

Which means newsletters that ladder up into a rewritten FP&A OS book.

The business gurus would be mad at me for making this decision, but it’s the best decision for me and for the FP&A industry right now.

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