Christian Wattig, former FP&A leader at major companies, shares insights on creating the Wharton FP&A Certificate Program. Topics include FP&A in multinational companies, startup vs big FP&A, new analysis techniques, building an FP&A team, AI in FP&A, and key trends in finance. He also discusses the importance of FP&A tools and the evolution of FP&A teams towards strategic value creation.
Transition from big to startup FP&A offers diverse experience.
Building FP&A teams require progressive development phases.
Soft skills crucial in FP&A roles alongside technical expertise.
Deep dives
Transition from FP&A Leader to Teacher
Christian Waddig discusses his career transition from an FP&A leader in multinational corporations to becoming an entrepreneur and FP&A educator. Starting in large consumer goods companies like Procter& Gamble and Unilever, he learned the foundations of FP&A and the importance of starting a career in a large company to gain valuable experience and insights.
Identifying Key Metrics and Operational Partnerships
The podcast delves into the importance of shifting FP&A focus towards key operational metrics and building strong partnerships across departments. By understanding the strategies and metrics of different departments, FP&A professionals can provide valuable insights and connect operational performance to financial outcomes.
Evolution of FP&A Team Development
Four phases of FP&A team development are outlined, starting from a data-focused approach to story focus, strategy focus, and ultimately proactive value creation. Each phase emphasizes a progression towards deeper analysis, strategic alignment, and the ability to make concrete recommendations for business decisions.
Importance of Soft Skills and Change Management
The podcast highlights the significance of soft skills, relationship-building, and change management in FP&A roles. Emphasizing the need to develop interpersonal skills, communicate effectively, and drive strategic partnerships within organizations to elevate finance teams.
Future Trends and Skill Development in FP&A
Christian emphasizes the importance of focusing on key skills in FP&A, including planning, forecasting, analysis, financial modeling, business partnering, storytelling, and reporting. As the industry evolves, the integration of modern tools, automation, and advanced analytical techniques become essential for future-proofing FP&A careers.
Only our second ever returning guest, Christian Wattig, a veteran former leader of FP&A at P&G, Unilever, and Squarespace, reveals new skills he has learnt as he created the recently-launched 8 week Wharton Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) Certificate Program, one of the most comprehensive FP&A training courses on the market. He describes highlights from his career, new strategy, and analysis, and how he sees the future of the profession.
In this episode:
The common bond between FP&A educators such as Christian and former host Paul Barnhurst and Glenn
FP&A at multinational consumer goods companies P&G and Unilever
Startup FP&A vs Big FP&A
Creating FP&A Prep to the new Wharton (University of Pennsylvania FP&A) 8 week Online Course
Two great books I recommend The CFO Lens, Ravi Kumar, and Future Ready by Steve Morlidge and Steve Player
Two Fascinating FP&A Things I hadn’t come across in 14 years previously: Business Driver Tree Analysis + Differences-in-Differences Analysis
BI, financial analysis and data science vs FP&A
Building an FP&A Team through four phases explained-data focus, story focus, and proactive value creation
The importance of FP&A tools and choosing the right one
Key insights and trends for finance we will see this year