In this episode, Paul Barnhurst dives deep into practical frameworks and leadership strategies for finance professionals with guest Brett Hampson. Brett discusses what he believes constitutes great FP&A and how grassroots finance transformations, rather than top-down technology implementations, can foster a proactive, value-creating FP&A culture.
Brett Hampson has spent over a decade in corporate FP&A, working with some of the world’s largest companies. He is the author of The FP&A Operating System, a book that outlines his approach to establishing a high-functioning FP&A department. Brett is also the founder of Forecasting Performance, a platform that promotes best practices in financial analysis and forecasting.
Expect to Learn
- What grassroots finance transformation entails and why it’s preferable to technology-centric approaches.
- How to implement Brett’s FP&A Operating System and FP&A Flywheel framework to drive efficiency and value.
- The importance of setting a clear vision and objectives for FP&A teams to move from reactive to proactive operations.
- How to leverage attribution analysis and storytelling to enhance FP&A’s influence on business decisions.
- Tips on creating a culture of continuous improvement within FP&A by focusing on people, processes, and technology in that order.
Here are a few relevant quotes from the episode:
- “Grassroots finance transformation happens when each person on the team has their own vision and works towards solving specific challenges.” - Brett Hampson
- “Technology alone doesn’t solve problems. It might fix one, but often creates new ones if cultural issues aren’t addressed first.” - Brett Hampson
- “Our greatest challenge in FP&A is often ourselves – we need to avoid being too introspective and focus on the business.” - Brett Hampson
With insights into creating effective FP&A systems and teams, Brett Hampson provides a refreshing perspective on FP&A transformation. He highlights the importance of people, process, and then technology, in that order, as the foundation for a high-performing FP&A team.
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Follow Brett:
Website - https://bretthampson.gumroad.com/l/proactive
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brett-hampson/
Newsletter - https://blog.forecastingperformance.com/subscribe
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Website - https://www.thefpandaguy.com
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/thefpandaguy
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Earn Your CPE Credit
For CPE credit please go to earmarkcpe.com, listen to the episode, download the app, and answer a few questions and earn your CPE certification. To earn education credits for FPAC Certificate, take the quiz on earmark and contact Paul Barnhurst for further details.
In Today’s Episode
[02:12] - Brett’s Background and Introduction
[05:17] - The Creation of The FP&A Operating System
[08:04] - Developing a Proactive FP&A Culture
[13:22] - Grassroots FP&A Transformation
[16:32] - People and Process Before Technology
[29:28] - Building the Right Team and Culture
[35:11] - Establishing Efficient Processes with the FP&A Flywheel
[39:52] - Case Study: Turning Around Forecast Accuracy
[52:16] - Final Advice and Wrap-Up
