FP&A careers are essential in today’s complex business world. Financial planning and analysis are crucial as organizations grow and financial systems become more intricate. Companies rely on FP&A professionals to help them make better financial decisions and stay on track.ย
The field is always changing, with new tools and technologies like automation and AI improving efficiency and accuracy. However, the job’s core remains: understanding financial data, forecasting, and working closely with other teams.
Dhawal Parvatikar, Co-Founder of FP&A Professionals Institute, shares his valuable insights on how early career experiences shape this field. With over 20 years of experience in finance leadership roles, Dhawal has worked across India and the Middle East.
He has held CFO positions and now mentors over 5,000 finance professionals through his FP&A Professional Institute. Dhawal’s advice emphasizes the importance of building strong relationships, understanding business needs, and using technology to improve efficiency.
This article will explore how early experiences in FP&A help shape careers, the challenges professionals face, and the skills needed to succeed. We will also discuss how automation and AI are changing the landscape of FP&A and how professionals can prepare for the future.
How Early Experience Shapes FP&A Careers in Complex Environments
Starting a career in FP&A can be challenging, especially when handling complex business operations. Early career experiences can help build a solid foundation for dealing with these complexities.
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Gaining Experience in a Large Corporation
Dhawal Parvatikar’s journey began at Bharat Petroleum, one of India’s largest oil and gas companies. He worked in the Industrial Fuels department, handling pricing and FP&A for a department with a turnover of five to six billion dollars.
Although the FP&A team was small, Dhawal worked with advanced technology and a supportive senior team, which laid the foundation for his future in FP&A.
Transitioning from Audit to FP&A
Switching from audit to FP&A requires a shift in thinking. You focus on reports with clear start and end points in an audit. But in FP&A, it’s a continuous role. You’ll need to understand more than just numbers.
You’ll focus on profitability, managing stakeholders, and how business finance works. The transition involves learning to look at the bigger picture, not just the rules.
Overcoming Challenges in FP&A Roles
Moving into FP&A brings its challenges. Here’s what to expect:
- The role is continuous: Unlike audits with clear timelines, FP&A involves ongoing support and team involvement.
- Data from many sources: You’ll need to combine data from different areas into one clear picture. This helps make better decisions.
- Building strong relationships: It is key to understand what stakeholders need and deliver reports that fit their needs.
The early experiences and guidance from mentors help you build the skills to succeed in FP&A. The key is to stay adaptable and focus on the numbers and the relationships.
Benefits of Automation and Forecasting in FP&A Careers
Automation, forecasting, and consolidation are essential tools for any modern FP&A team. These tools help save time, reduce mistakes, and allow teams to focus on more important tasks.
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The Power of Automation in FP&A
Automation brings several benefits to FP&A:
- Saves time by handling repetitive tasks like generating reports.
- Reduces errors by minimizing manual work and calculations.
- Improves efficiency, letting teams spend more time analyzing data.
Optimizing Profitability Reporting with Automation
Automation is especially useful in profitability reporting. For example, calculating territory profitability, which used to take one to one and a half days, can now be done in under an hour. Automating this process eliminates manual allocation of costs, allowing more time for analysis and better decision-making.
Scaling Without Increasing Headcount
With automation, businesses can grow without hiring more staff. As companies expand, automation can take on more tasks without increasing the size of the finance team. This helps control costs and ensures high-quality reporting and analysis without additional resources.
Essential Skills for FP&A Leaders
In addition to technical skills, FP&A leaders should focus on two key areas:
- Business acumen: Understanding how financial data impacts the business.
- Relationship building: Developing strong connections with stakeholders to influence decision-making.
FP&A leaders can provide valuable insights and help guide important business decisions by focusing on these skills.
How Automation and AI Are Transforming FP&A Careers
Automation and AI are changing the way FP&A teams work. These tools improve efficiency and help finance teams make better decisions.
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The Role of Automation in FP&A
Automation is key in saving time and reducing errors in FP&A tasks. It can handle repetitive work, so finance teams no longer spend hours creating reports. Instead, teams can focus on important tasks like analyzing data and offering insights.
The Growing Impact of AI in FP&A
AI will simplify tasks even further in the future. Tools are already available to generate reports and charts with a simple prompt. AI will also allow teams to reduce their headcount without losing productivity. Instead of needing ten analysts, automation and AI might allow two to three analysts to do the same work.
What FP&A Leaders Should Focus On
As automation and AI become more common, FP&A leaders should focus on:
- Building strong relationships with other teams in the business.
- Developing business acumen to connect financial data with business goals.
- Improving communication skills to turn complex data into clear insights.
- Adapting to technology and learning how to use AI tools effectively.
- Staying flexible and open to learning new things as the landscape changes.
AI can handle data processing, but human insight is still needed to make sense of that data and guide decisions.
Preparing for Future Changes in FP&A
FP&A teams must balance technology with human judgment as more AI tools are adopted. Even with AI, ensuring that the results make sense and align with business goals is important. By using AI and keeping an eye on the big picture, FP&A can become more efficient and impactful in the future.
Essential Skills and Certifications for FP&A Careers
The role of FP&A is changing. To stay ahead, professionals need to focus on certain skills and certifications.
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Essential Skills for FP&A Professionals
To excel in FP&A, professionals must focus on two key skills:
1. Analytical Skills
FP&A professionals need to understand how different financial metrics connect to business goals. This involves spotting trends and patterns in data and knowing how these affect the company’s performance.
2. Relationship Building
Building strong relationships with other departments is essential. Working closely with teams like marketing, sales, and operations helps FP&A professionals understand the business better. These relationships allow them to offer insights that guide decision-making and make FP&A a valuable partner in the business.
3. The Role of Certifications
Certifications are becoming more important in FP&A. Having a solid FP&A certification helps professionals stand out. It shows they have the budgeting, forecasting, and financial analysis skills.
But it’s not enough to just have the certification. Continuing to learn and adapt to new tools and technologies is essential. A mix of technical skills and business understanding is key to staying relevant.
4. Building Strong Cross-Functional Relationships
Finance professionals often focus on numbers, but to build strong relationships, they must shift from just providing data to offering solutions.
When working with other departments, suggesting ways to solve problems is important. Instead of saying “no” to requests, offering alternatives helps build trust and strengthens those relationships.
In the future, FP&A will require professionals to blend analytical skills with strong interpersonal abilities. By focusing on both, you can make a bigger impact and become a valuable business partner.
Conclusion
To sum up, FP&A careers offer great growth opportunities, especially for those willing to learn early on. Gaining experience in a complex environment, like Dhawal Parvatikar’s time at Bharat Petroleum, builds a strong foundation. His move from audit to FP&A shows that adjusting and focusing on more than just numbers is important.
As technology continues to shape the field, automation and AI make tasks faster and more accurate. These tools free up time for more important work, like analysis and forecasting. However, even with these tools, human judgment still matters in making sense of the data.
Looking ahead, FP&A professionals should stay flexible and keep learning. Building strong relationships across teams and understanding how financial data connects to business goals is important. Those who focus on technical and people skills will thrive in this field.
In short, FP&A careers can be rewarding for those who embrace change, keep growing, and stay adaptable. If you’re ready to put in the effort, FP&A careers offer a path to success and meaningful work.
FAQs
How can automation improve FP&A careers?
Automation in FP&A streamlines repetitive tasks like report generation. It reduces human errors, saves time, and allows teams to focus on more strategic work, like analysis and forecasting.
What skills are needed to succeed in FP&A careers?
Key skills include strong analytical abilities, business acumen, and relationship-building. FP&A professionals should also be adept at using financial tools and understanding how data connects to business goals.
Is AI impacting FP&A careers?
Yes, AI is changing FP&A by automating tasks and providing insights faster. It allows FP&A teams to focus on higher-level analysis, making decision-making more efficient and accurate.
How does relationship-building affect FP&A careers?
Building strong relationships with other departments helps FP&A professionals understand business needs better. It also enables them to provide relevant insights and influence decision-making across teams.
How do early experiences shape FP&A careers?
Starting in a complex environment helps build a solid foundation for an FP&A career. Early roles often teach problem-solving, adaptability, and managing numbers and relationships effectively.
