

FP&A Today
Glenn Hopper
FP&A Today is the podcast for Financial Planning and Analysis. The weekly show dives into the challenges and opportunities within the world of FP&A, interviewing FP&A leaders, CFOs and other finance pros in order to give you the freshest insights and takeaways. Each week our top guests provide actionable advice about financial planning and analysis – from career goals to navigating challenges, and powerful Excel tips.
Our weekly show provides unrivalled insights for navigating FP&A.
FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the AI-powered Financial Planning and Analysis platform for Excel users.
Our weekly show provides unrivalled insights for navigating FP&A.
FP&A Today is brought to you by Datarails.
Datarails is the AI-powered Financial Planning and Analysis platform for Excel users.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 23, 2025 • 51min
Chikako Tyler FP&A lessons getting from CFO to COO at California Bank & Trust
Chikako Tyler, COO at California Bank & Trust, transitioned from a math PhD to banking, revealing insights about her path from analytics to leadership. She discusses stress testing and the importance of efficiency ratios in driving growth. Chikako highlights the significance of aligning diverse teams with corporate strategy and shares lessons learned from crises like COVID. She also emphasizes inclusion in banking and the evolving role of AI, showcasing her passion for mentorship and technology.

Oct 16, 2025 • 53min
Fire Drills, Fractional Work, and AI Reality Check: Carl Seidman
Carl Seidman, a seasoned Fractional CFO and instructor, shares insights from his experience with top companies and his FP&A Mastery Program. He recounts a nail-biting story of building a cash flow in just five days. Carl discusses the growing demand for fractional CFOs, especially for companies under $50 million. He highlights key FP&A skills like cash flow management and warns about the limitations of AI in finance, emphasizing the need for critical thinking and domain expertise. Plus, he reveals his favorite Excel function, LET, for simplifying complex calculations.

13 snips
Oct 8, 2025 • 53min
Secrets to a Simple Model: Peter Lynch
Peter Lynch, founder of ASimpleModel.com and Chief Strategy Officer at Stephen Gould, shares his journey from investment banking to simplifying financial concepts. He explains the nuances of private equity, common modeling mistakes, and his innovative approach to teaching. Peter discusses the importance of mastering three-statement models, and how AI influences his work. Plus, he reveals his strategies for capital allocation and insights from the global financial crisis, all while emphasizing the value of community engagement in learning.

Sep 30, 2025 • 54min
From Big Four CPA to Building a Lean Finance Function Driving 500% Growth – Andrew Polito
Andrew Polito is VP, Controller at Go HQ which provides a suite of back office services, including recruiting to delivery companies. The Fort Worth-based company provides back office support for transportation and logistics, seeing 500% growth in five years, earning a spot on the Inc 5,000 list of fastest- growing private companies in America.
In this episode:
From audit to shifting to a private company finance team
Building FP&A from the ground up
Power of the 13 week cash forecast
How I introduced automation in an initial two-person finance team
How our finance tech stack delivers the data and insights to succeed

Sep 21, 2025 • 45min
$300 and a Suitcase to AI-Powered Finance: Mariya Guttoh
Mariya Guttoh is Director of FP&A and Treasury at PayJoy, a global FinTech company expanding credit access through smartphones to underserved customers in emerging markets. Celebrating 10 years this year , the company has served over 15 million customers and is on track to reach $650 million in revenue and $110 million in profit by the end of 2025.
In this episode Mariya traces her steps from cosmetic marketing in Ukraine to arriving in the US with $300 and working three jobs while earning her MBA to becoming a finance leader.
My finance journey working three jobs to pay for my MBA
Becoming an advocate for AI in finance
Two finance camps– “excited but clueless” and “cautious but clueless”
Using AI to automate vendor reporting across 10 countries
Identifying high impact AI wins (forecasting)
My ideal magic FP&A solution
How I turned myself into a self-created extrovert
Offset in Excel

Sep 17, 2025 • 45min
Top Quant Akhil Khunger on what FP&A teams are missing
Akhil Khunger, VP Quantitative Analytics, Barclays, has more than ten years of experience in the field. Akhil develops statistical models to forecast balance sheets, revenue and probability of default. He has experience with time series modeling, statistical modeling, machine learning and building implementation frameworks using Python and other programming languages. Akhil, who has a master’s in Financial Engineering from UC Berkeley and London School of Economics, has worked in CCAR and Bank of England stress testing and know the Basel III/IV framework, SR 11/7, SR 15-18, and SR 15-19. He also has experience managing junior model developers.
In this episode:
The worst year for modeling?
Diving into models
Working with big datasets
Getting to the real reasons behind trends and data
The power of stress testing
What human judgement can bring to the table
The AI component in forecasting

6 snips
Sep 9, 2025 • 47min
From Big Four to Fiverr: How Esti Levy Dadon scaled Finance at the Gig Marketplace
Esti Levy Dadon, the Executive VP Finance at Fiverr, transitioned from public accounting at Ernst & Young to build Fiverr’s finance team from scratch. She shares her insights on preparing for the company's IPO in 2019 and establishing a robust forecasting model for a rapidly changing marketplace. Esti discusses the challenges of balancing aggressive growth with solid controls and the importance of hiring talented FP&A professionals. She also emphasizes the value of a mindset shift for finance leaders to truly connect with the business.

Sep 3, 2025 • 41min
From Data to Decisions - How Wasabi's FP&A and BI Teams Execute at Scale
Marcos Bento, Director of BI at Wasabi Technologies, and David Suter, Director of FP&A, share insights into their successful collaboration. They discuss the evolution of net retention metrics and the significance of storytelling in communicating complex data. The duo highlights their journey from manual to automated data processes, resulting in improved efficiency. They emphasize the importance of problem-solving skills in team dynamics and explore the challenges of measuring ROI while ensuring effective communication within lean teams.

10 snips
Aug 25, 2025 • 43min
Building a high functioning partnership between BI & FP&A
Marcos Bento, Director of Business Intelligence, and David Suter, Director of Financial Planning and Analysis, share insights from their work at Wasabi Technologies, a leading cloud storage company. They discuss building trust between BI and FP&A teams for better collaboration. Key topics include improving forecasting accuracy, utilizing KPIs like dollars per terabyte, and the role of predictive analytics in financial planning. They also delve into the transformative impact of AI in automating variance analysis while emphasizing the importance of clear communication in data management.

28 snips
Aug 14, 2025 • 52min
A "Systems Thinking" Mindset for FP&A Success - Daniel Gardner
Daniel Gardner, operational finance business partner at FirstGroup Plc, shares insights from his diverse finance career with brands like L’Oreal and the Body Shop. He emphasizes the power of 'systems thinking' in understanding organizational dynamics and the importance of collaboration in finance. Gardner discusses his transformation projects, the shift from lagging to leading indicators, and how philosophy enhances financial decision-making. He also touches on the integration of Python within Excel for improved data analysis, all while navigating the evolving landscape of AI in finance.


