Paul Barnhurst

Founder of The FP&A Guy | Providing training and content that helps FP&A and Finance Professionals be better at their job today and tomorrow.

I am a passionate teacher and creator of FP&A content. I enjoy helping FP&A professionals become more effective creators of value for their businesses. Today, I provide content and training on important subjects, including FP&A, Excel, Power Query, Data Visualization, Storytelling, and more. 

I host three popular podcasts, FP&A Tomorrow, Future Finance, and Financial Modeler’s Corner, which bring you the best and brightest people in finance and FP&A. 

I am a Microsoft MVP and have earned the AFP FP&A Certification and the FMI Advanced Financial Modeler Certification. 

I am a big advocate of FP&A planning tools and share research on FP&A software. I have also published several market guides to help buyers understand the landscape. 

☛ Feel free to contact me – Pbarnhurst@thefpandaguy.com

Podcast Host

Paul Barnhurst, The FPandA Guy

More Learning Resources Coming Soon

Something I have been really proud of is the fact that I have helped nearly 200 students through affiliate resources, educate themselves, and earn FP&A Certifications while getting a discount. 

On my website today, you will find links to the following programs:

➡️ AFP - Certified Corporate FP&A Professional
➡️ CFI - Financial Planning and Analysis Professional
➡️ Wharton Online - Financial Planning & Analysis Certificate Program
➡️ Financial Modeling Institute - Advanced Financial Modeler
➡️ FP&A Professionals Institute - Certification and discount on all courses

New stuff coming soon

➡️ AI Finance & Business Cert from Columbia
➡️ AI Finance Club
➡️ Copilot Course
➡️ CFO Tech certification from CFO Leadership Council
➡️ Financial Modeling Training from people such as Carolina Lago and Giles Male
➡️ Copilot training
➡️ Power BI and Power Platform Training

and I have my own new course dropping soon. 

I am excited to offer exclusive discounts on nearly 20 programs in the near future.  I continue to look for great programs to add, and the ones I have added, I either built part of the program, completed it, or I know the people responsible for it personally.  

I work to ensure every one of these is a quality program; I do not just add a program for the affiliate commission.  I also work to get you a discount with these programs.  If you know of a great training program I should add to my website DM me and let me know. 


In the meantime, here is my table comparing the most common FP&A Programs.

FP&A Guy Hot Takes

➡️ Finance is not nor ever will be a revenue center

➡️ ChatGPT will lose the enterprise market to other LLM tools and become primarily a consumer tool

➡️ FP&A will become the most common career path to becoming a CFO

➡️ Dashboards overrated, Data Storytelling underrated

➡️ Budgeting is overrated, planning and target setting is underrated

➡️ Excel is overrated and spreadsheets are underrated

➡️ Pies are only good for two things eating and playing Pac-Man

➡️ FP&A tool selection is overrated and implementation is underrated

➡️ Youtube is overrated, Podcasting is underrated

➡️ Excel formulas are overrated, modeling design principles underrated

➡️ Cafe Rio Sweet Pork is overrated and Crow Burger is underrated

➡️ Water with lots of ice is best

➡️ Jordan over Lebron

➡️ Clean-shaven is overrated and big beards are highly underrated

➡️ VBA is overrated and Power Query is underrated

Friday Humor

1. How do you describe an FP&A Professionals Job?

It is 80% cleaning data and 20% complaining about cleaning data

2. What is the difference between an FP&A Professional and an Accountant?

When an accountant gets creative they go to jail. When an FP&A Professional gets creative they get promoted. 

3. Not all CFOs use a MAC but all CFOs who go to jail used a MAC

4. What is the best place to store an Excel error message?

Column FU row 2 - FU2

5. What do Gold diggers and Cell References have in common?

If you want them to stay in place you need to throw money at them. 

6. Why was the spreadsheet constipated?

Because it could not BUDGET :)

7. What Does EBITDA really stand for?

Earnings Before It Tumbles Down Again

Earnings Before I Tricked the Dumb Auditor

Earnings Before Interest Therapy Depression and Anxiety

Earnings Before I Totally Deny Actual profits

Earnings Before Imaginary Things Disappear Again

Everyone Brags, Ignoring The Debt Altogether

8. What does Adjusted EBIDTA stand for? 

Earnings without any of the bad stuff

New job, a big, visible project, I was not sure how to solve. I turned to Power Query and the rest is history.

➡️ Within 4 years, I received 4 promotions

➡️ I fell in love with Excel for the first time and craved learning more, and today I am a Microsoft MVP

➡️ I impressed my boss countless times by, in the words of Oz du Soleil whooping up on crap data and providing value-added insights 

I owe a lot of my success today to that decision to learn Power Query. It was one of the best investments I ever made in my career. Still have my early books from Rob Collie and Ken Puls. 

If you do not know Power Query, stop waiting and get started learning today. 

Let me know in the comments what is holding you back? How can I help you on your journey? 

It is time to make Power Query one of the most utilized tools in Excel.

Most finance people hate their ERP.  

As my Future Finance Co-host often says, there are two things that will get you fired as a CFO

1. Fraud
2. Mentioning you want to replace your ERP

That is why it is so exciting to see what people such as John Glasgow are doing in this space.

John quit his job and built Campfire because he believed a better option existed.  

I have had the privilege of meeting John personally multiple times, interviewing him for my podcast, and attending Campfire's AI Summit. I can say I have come away impressed with him and what he has accomplished at Campfire every time. 

On a personal level, I am very grateful for Campfire as they have been the exclusive sponsor of FP&A Unlocked for the last six months.  Their sponsorship has allowed me to continue to bring the best and brightest guests in FP&A.  It has also allowed me to continue offering CPE credits for my accounting friends. 

That is why I am so excited to announce I will be hosting a webinar with John and Hank.

In this webinar, we will introduce you to what John and team have been building at Campfire, "Ember Agents." It is AI agents built for the modern accounting team, and they just released it in the last few days.

We will be discussing how Ember agents automates work for your teams, from flux analysis to accruals.  This webinar will include a live demo so you can see Ember Agents in action. 

Register today so you do not miss this exciting event. 

📅 Date: March 31st, 2026
⏱️ Time: 10 - 11 AM PST
🔗Register Here: https://lnkd.in/gZREc3zU


Sponsored by Campfire

After 40 years, Excel is not DEAD; in fact, it is getting a new intelligent layer that will help transform the future of finance.
 
An intelligent coworker is on every desktop. Microsoft Excel is leading the way in the era of AI. Brian Jones, Excel product team lead, shared his thoughts this week on Financial Modeler's Corner.
 
Anyone who tells you Excel is dead is not paying attention or a liar. Claude ChatGPT, Microsoft, and lots of startups are pumping hundreds of millions into building an intelligent layer for Excel.
 
That is why I wanted to bring Brian on and talk firsthand about Excel and Copilot. Below are some takeaways about how to use Copilot to get the most out of it in Excel.
 
➡ Use Copilot to Understand Workbooks You Inherit - Ask Copilot "What is this workbook about and how does it flow?" before diving into an unfamiliar model. It's like having a knowledgeable colleague walk you through someone else's work.
 
➡ Use AI for Tedious, Time-Consuming Tasks First
→ Broken formula references, reformatting, restructuring layouts,
→ adding documentation and comments
These are high-value, low-risk starting points. Let AI handle the grunt work so you can focus on analysis and judgment.
 
➡ Build a skill sheet. A dedicated worksheet inside your workbook that tells Copilot how you work. Tell it your layouts, formatting, formula preferences Tec. Great for teams with their own modeling standards. Think of it as an advanced template that guides the AI to work the way your team works.
 
➡ Model Choice Matters - Copilot in Excel lets you toggle between Anthropic (Claude) and OpenAI models. Each has a different awareness of finance concepts and workflows. Test both for your specific use case Remeber outputs can differ meaningfully it takes time to get the most out of AI.
 
➡ Prompt Differently, Get Different Results - How you phrase a request significantly changes what you get. Experiment with different approaches to the same task. This is a new muscle finance professionals need to build.
 
➡ Keep retesting what failed. Unlike traditional software, Copilot improves continuously. Something that didn't work six weeks ago might work today.
 
Brian put it well: every spreadsheet is essentially an app. And for the first time, there's an intelligent coworker sitting beside you helping you build it, understand it, and improve it.
 
Excel isn't going anywhere. Learn it deeper, then let AI take you further.
 
Listen to the full episode: https://lnkd.in/gsQkvFcH
 
 
🎓 Master the fundamentals so you can be better at AI​ and modeling earn your Advanced Financial Modeler accreditation from the Financial Modeling Institute (FMI) today at https://lnkd.in/gQV55MxS (Use code Podcast to save 15%)

Rey (Reinaldo) del Valle came up through the ranks of FP&A at Disney, MTV Networks, FedEx, Norwegian Cruise Lines. He then leveraged his FP&A experience to become a CFO and has worked on several major turnarounds and scale-ups during his career. He was even nominated for Los Angeles CFO of the year due to the amazing work he is doing.
 
Key highlights from the conversation:
 
→ Great FP&A transforms data into actionable insight. Always ask "what do we do with this information?"
→ Benchmarks matter more than people think (Rey saved $500K+ in audit fees by knowing what "normal" looked like)
→ You can't cost-cut your way to profitability in a turnaround—find the growth levers
→ Strategic messages need 7+ touches before they penetrate the organization → Active listening beats having all the answers (even as CFO)
 
Rey shared his FP&A as architects' framework. We work with leadership to understand their vision, then design the financial roadmap to get there. Accountants ensure structural integrity, but we're creating the blueprint.
 
Speaking of turnarounds, Rey stressed that nobody ever turned a business around by just cutting cost. While working at ABC Family, the business grew operating profit from $20M to $200M over 4 years. Not through aggressive cost-cutting, but through strategic collaboration efforts across the business to grow profitability.
 
Listen to the full episode to hear Rey's take on making the FP&A-to-CFO transition, why subtotal functions are his secret Excel weapon, and what he learned from managing through entertainment industry strikes.
 
Listen here: https://lnkd.in/gd42bApE
 
Campfire sponsors FP&A Unlocked. It is the AI-first ERP powering next-gen finance & accounting teams. General ledger, revenue automation, close management, and so much more—all on one unified platform.
 
What are you waiting for more learn more at:
https://lnkd.in/dKxnyDNV

In this episode of FP&A Unlocked, host Paul Barnhurst sits down with Rey (Reinaldo) del Valle to discuss what it really takes to move from reporting t

Open article: FP&A Career Path for Finance Professionals to Become Strategic CFOs with Rey Del Valle by Paul Barnhurst • 2 min read

FP&A Career Path for Finance Professionals to Become Strategic CFOs with Rey Del Valle

Exciting Announcements 🏀🏀🎓🛜

1. Market Resources - Several new training programs from trusted resources, including three focused on AI and finance, are on my website, all with exclusive FP&A Guy codes to give you even more value 

2. My website has had an overhaul with a new design and several new pages. Check it out at TheFPandAGuy. Let me know what you think, and thanks, Claude, for helping me it :) 

3. March Madness Brackets are here

🔵 FP&A Software Bracket - Vote for your favorite FP&A software and let us see if Runway can defend its title. This year, we have new upstarts, including

➡️ Claude for Excel
➡️ Copilot in Excel
➡️ ChatGPT for Excel
➡️ Una Software 
➡️ FinQore 
➡️ Pluvo 
➡️ and more

We also have traditional programs like

➡️ Workday Adaptive Planning 
➡️ Oracle 
➡️ Board 
➡️ Prophix 
➡️ and more poised for a deep run

If voting for your favorite software isn't your cup of tea, then fill out your March Madness bracket and prove you know basketball. Prizes for winners. 

Head on over to my website, fill out your bracket, and find a great learning resource. 

Go Cougars win it all!

AI tool consolidation will accelerate. 

This morning, I got an email saying Superhuman had acquired Rows.com. Superhuman was acquired by Grammarly last summer. 

The goal of these acquisitions is to create an AI-based productivity platform. 

Companies are racing to make the right AI acquisitions to create AI platforms. 

I expect to see more of this type of acquisition in finance and FP&A in 2026.

I think we will see companies focus more on platforms than on best-of-breed point solutions.

This has been HG Capital's investment thesis in the space. Look at who they have large ownership stakes in insightsoftware, Lucanet, Prophix, and OneStream. 

All these companies offer a platform of solutions, and all focus 100% on the office of the CFO. 

My prediction is that we are quickly heading toward tool consolidation, and it will be more of a platform consolidation than the same type of tool buying a similar product in the same space. 

I think for many AI ideas, the ship has sailed, and it will be a difficult road for many new players. The AI finance market is fragmented, and I believe consolidation is on the horizon. 

I talk to multiple companies weekly and stay close to the space. If you are interested in some of the research I have put together feel free to reach out.  I will share an update soon on some of the new tools I have seen.

Open article: Rows — The AI Analyst Platform by rows.com

Over 5,000 CPE hours earned from FP&A Unlocked 🥳 🎆 🪅 

I am proud to offer CPE credit. I have done that since the beginning as a service to others. I did it with FP&A Today, early on with Financial Modeler's Corner, and today with FP&A Unlocked. 

I am the only podcast I am aware of that offers both.

➡️ CPE credit for accountants
➡️ Continuing education credit for people who have the FPAC

I wanted to share a few stats I am proud of related to my podcast and CPE hours earned:

1. 103 Episodes all with CPE credit available
2. 5,233 CPE hours earned to date
3. Over 50 hours earned per episode
4. 142 hours earned from the highest episode
5. 4.9 average ratings for episodes on Earmark
6. 725 people have rated episodes

I am incredibly proud that, in addition to offering a valuable educational experience, I can help people earn CPE and FPAC credit. In the near future, my courses will also be eligible for FPAC credit. 

Huge thanks to Earmark and Blake Oliver for creating such an amazing platform that allows me to offer this service.

The life of a LinkedIn content creator as told through his DMs. These are all real message summaries some with a little sarcasm most without 


➡️ Dear Steven

➡️ Dear Amanda

➡️ Can you find my husband a job?

➡️ Will you do my homework I do not understand it

➡️ We have a family fund that wants to invest in The FP&A Guy Vertical 

➡️ Will you collaborate with me and sell my product even though you know nothing about my product or me 

➡️ Can I promote your podcast I will get you millions of views 

➡️ Will you hire me to do FP&A

➡️ Do you need random software designed for a company with lots of employees?

➡️ You seem nice can we chat offline always with an American name, a pretty photo and a fake job

What is your story?

Seeing an expert share an "AI Prompt Pack" for the 10th time on LinkedIn today then close LinkedIn and consult an expert. Prompts are one small part of optimizing what you get from AI.  

#STOPTHEMADNESS

A watershed moment for modeling with AI in Excel has arrived!
 
This week on the ModSquad, Ian Schnoor, CFA, CFM, Giles Male, and I tested the new Claude Excel add-in.
 
This week we tested Claude on:
 
→ A deferred revenue schedule
→ The AFM FMI Henderson Case Build
→ A CFM FMI Debt Build
 
For the Deferred Revenue Schedule the build was a 9 out of 10 and included documentation better than what 95% of modelers would have provided. There were still some small issues like formatting, documentation layout, and using different functions each time but the results were impressive.
 
Ian had Claude build a full 3-statement model from an AFM case study in 15 minutes, and a complex quarterly debt sculpting model from a CFM case in 10 minutes.
 
For both cases, the results were amazing. Balance sheets, balancing, debt schedules, accurate, correct IRR, etc. There were still minor issues emphasizing the need to know what you are doing to find them, but output was light years ahead of where it was six months ago.
 
Here is where I landed after this episode:
 
→ The mechanical build is being solved — start using AI for it when it makes sense and saves you time
 
→ You still need to know your craft:
 
1. Because catching the subtle errors is more important than ever
2. Because AI often uses more complex formulas and functions then we would use
3. Because your boss expects you to validate the model and understand the assumptions deeply
4. There are times it makes sense to build on your own, just because AI is better, does not mean it is always the solution.
 
→ Don't outsource your judgment. Augment it.
 
→ Documentation and scoping are high-value, low-risk places to start today
 
We've come a long way from our early episodes, where we debated whether to even show the output or not, it was so bad.
 
🎙️ Watch the full episode:
https://lnkd.in/g9mUHSyK

"I didn't understand a single word. We're not doing any of it."
 
This was said by a CEO to Jeff Greenfield after they both witnessed a marketing expert give a presentation.
 
It is a reminder that if people do not understand what you are doing, it does not matter how good it is. This week, Jeff shares advice on marketing attribution, how people need to understand the attribution model, and how marketing and finance can work better together.
 
Key Takeaways:
 
→ Don't rely solely on Google Analytics. It's built to measure Google channels, which means it consistently undervalues upper-funnel channels like social, CTV, podcasts, and display. Finance should understand this structural bias before accepting marketing's numbers at face value.
 
→ Expand your marketing data model beyond clicks. Add an impressions column alongside clicks and sales in your tracking sheet. Graph all three over time and look for lagged correlations. For example, clicks today often result from impressions from days or weeks ago.
 
→ Separate base sales (what you'd get with zero advertising) from incremental sales (what advertising actually drove). A platform like Google may "take credit" for organic or word-of-mouth sales. FP&A should push marketing to isolate true incremental impact.
 
→ Finance and marketing need to agree upfront on how success will be measured before a budget is submitted. When the CFO and CMO are using different models and definitions, budget meetings become adversarial rather than strategic.
 
→ Use regression-based models (e.g., Facebook's open-source Robyn tool) to evaluate marketing spend. These aren't perfect, but they put marketing on the same methodological footing as finance.
 
→ Finance has the fiduciary responsibility for marketing spend. If marketing can't produce rigorous models, FP&A should run their own. Some organisations even place analytics directly under the CFO for this reason.
 
🎙️ Catch the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gFziK2u8
 
FP&A Unlocked is sponsored by Campfire.

Campfire is the AI-first ERP that powers next-gen finance and accounting teams. With integrated solutions for the general ledger, revenue automation, close management, and more, all in one unified platform.
 
Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dKxnyDNV

In this episode of FP&A Unlocked, host Paul Barnhurst is joined by Jeff Greenfield , an entrepreneur, advisor, and founder of Provalytics, a leading a

Open article: The Marketing Attribution Strategy for FP&A Teams to Take Control of Marketing ROI with Jeff Greenfield
 by Paul Barnhurst • 2 min read

The Marketing Attribution Strategy for FP&A Teams to Take Control of Marketing ROI with Jeff Greenfield

AI is a magnifier

Before you run off and master AI make sure you know the fundamentals well so AI magnifies you in the right way. 

If you want an FP&A Certification to help with mastering th fundamentals. Check out my website I have reviews and discount codes for all the major programs.

Open article: Compare Top FP&A Certifications: AFP, CFI, Wharton & More — The FP&A Guy by thefpandaguy.com

Compare Top FP&A Certifications: AFP, CFI, Wharton & More — The FP&A Guy

Are you doing exciting things with AI?

If so, DM me and let us chat. I am looking for guests who can walk through how they are using AI on the job.  I am not looking for software vendors who have a solution or people testing something in pilot mode.  I am looking for practitioners who have used AI in their day-to-day job to help automate workflows or who have built agents. 

If that is use please reach out and let us chat.

Move byeond reporting by using the 1:3:1 rule

Businesses want FP&A professionals who can tell the business what to do with data, not just deliver analysis and reports.  

I recently interviewed a recruiting professional who mentioned that one of the most common requests is to find candidates who can tell the business what to do with the data, rather than just throwing it at them and letting them figure it out. 

This is where the 1:3:1 rule comes into play.  When conducting an analysis and delivering your results, use this rule to help guide

1 - Focus on one problem/or one question you are trying to answer
3 - Come up with 3 potential solutions to the problem
1 - Provide your recommended path forward

If you want to move from reporting to delivering information that gets used, make sure you include Calls To Action and recommendations in your deliverables.  Leadership is looking for your opinion, not just a summary of the data. 

Join me next Thursday for a webinar where I will talke more about the 1:3:1 rule and data in general:

Turning Data into Decisions: FP&A's  Guide to High-Impact Analysis  

We will cover:

✅ How to turn analysis into insights with actual calls to action 
✅ How to structure your work around what leadership is really asking 
✅ What separates a real analysis from just another report

Sponsored by insightsoftware

🗓️ Date: March 26th, 2026
🕰️ Time: 12:30 PM - 1:00 PM
👉 Link to Register: https://lnkd.in/gVKBj2fE

Fama-French anyone?
 
 
Can't say I expected a deep discussion on Fama-French, felt like I was back in my finance class in grad school.
 
But that's what happens when your guest has been doing this for 20 years, and the random number generator picks question 17 ﻿
﻿
 
John Thomas Foxworthy M.S. Data Science joined us on Future Finance this week, and I learned a lot from him.
 
He has spent the last two decades watching people overcomplicate AI. His solution!? Ask better questions.
 
Key Takeaways:
 
→ The #1 reason AI projects fail isn't the technology; it's because no one asked the right questions before deploying it.
 
→ Before any AI initiative: run a feasibility study. Assess your data maturity. Know your org's readiness. Let the problem define the solution, not the other way around.
 
→ There are really only three things AI does: describes what happened, predicts what will happen, and recommends what should happen. Everything else is marketing.
 
→ "All models are wrong, but some are useful." If you can't sit with uncertainty and probability, AI will frustrate you. The shift from deterministic to probabilistic thinking is the hardest and most important shift.
 
→ For planning specifically: AI can help you find the scenarios you haven't thought of yet. That's where the real planning value lives.
 
John also shared the Sephora story about how they spent two full years collecting data before deploying a single model, and then tripled revenue in three years.
 
Patience + Process = Results.
 
His book, The Augmented Intelligence Revolution, drops later this year.
 
🎧 Full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gRB7UDzr
 
🎓 Check out our sponsor QFlow.ai at https://lnkd.in/gWYnU9uz GTM Finance CoPilot

Happy to share that I'll be speaking at Turning Data Into Decisions: FP&A's Guide to High-Impact Analysis! Make sure to attend it on March 26.

FP&A teams have more data than ever. So why is leadership still asking "now what?"

The gap between data and decisions is a real business problem, and Paul Barnhurst is breaking it down live on March 26th.

He'll cover: 
✅ How to turn analysis into insights with actual calls to action 
✅ How to structure your work around what leadership is really asking 
✅ What separates a real analysis from just another report

👇 Register now and start the shift from reporting data to driving decisions.

#FPandA #FinancialPlanning #SAPData #insightsoftware #LinkedInLive

Turning Data Into Decisions: FP&A's Guide to High-Impact Analysis

Your Finance Progression + Resilience Partner | Helping New Hires and Managers' Transitions in Finance Teams | VP of Finance | Keynote Speaker | 40 Under 40 CPA Practice Advisor

Finance teams should be able to do more strategic work to support the expanding CFO role, and still have a life outside of work. That is what my work is all about.​

Through Wharton Online, workshops, and The Diary of a CFO podcast, I share practical tools to reset how finance teams work so they can think ahead, partner with the business, and avoid burning out in the process.​

The reality is that most finance functions are still built to report, not to lead. That creates blind spots for CEOs, delays decisions for boards, and leaves CFOs without a real pipeline of ready successors.​

Over the last 15+ years, I have led finance teams across manufacturing, technology, pharmaceuticals, and now a nonprofit CDFI. The pattern is the same: strategy stays with the CFO and maybe FP&A, while the rest of the team is stuck in transactions and constant urgency, with very little time or support to actually think like executives.​

What boards and CEOs value is not more reports. They want finance leaders who can spot signals early, frame choices clearly, and influence outcomes, while staying grounded and human in high pressure environments.​

That is how I build and lead teams, and it is the lens I bring to every class, talk, and episode: practical, realistic ways to grow your impact, develop your team, and build a bench of future CFOs without losing yourself in the process.​

If you are building a pipeline of finance leaders or aiming for the CFO seat yourself and want to do it in a more sustainable way, let us connect.​

🌐 WassiaKamon.start.page
📧 Info@WassiaKamon.com

Wassia Kamon, CPA, CMA, MBA

It was during my first 90 days as a CFO that I realized how wide the gap was between the expectations for my role and what my finance team was actually set up to do.

See, most of the conversations with my CEO, my peers, and the board were about strategy, growth, and risk.

But most of the work and systems inside finance was about transactions, reconciliations, and compliance.

The reality is the CFO role has evolved, 
but the finance function hasn't kept up.

If the CFO is going to be strategic, the rest of finance has to be strategic too.

That means accounting, FP&A, treasury, tax, plus the processes and systems they use need to level up.

Otherwise, we are asking the CFO to work in the future while the rest of finance is still operating in the past.

No wonder, so many CFOs feel stretched, and everyone around them is frustrated.

What I recommend is to stop treating this as a “CFO problem” and start redesigning the whole finance stack around the new expectations of the role.

1️⃣ Start by redefining each finance role in terms of decisions it supports, not tasks it completes.

2️⃣ Upgrade processes so data moves in real time to the people making decisions, not just into reports.

3️⃣ Invest in systems that give you one clean source of truth instead of spreadsheet gymnastics every month.

4️⃣ Train and coach your team to see the bigger picture and translate numbers into insights for the business.

That is how you close the gap between a strategic CFO and a finance function that can effectively support them.

-------

This visual is just a starting point for rethinking accounting to support a more strategic CFO role.

I will share what that looks like in real life at the upcoming AICPA CFO Conference with my good friend Paul Young, CFO at Liberty Bank.

If you are attending, make sure to stop by our session on April 13.

In the meantime, let me know ⤵️ 
 
Do you feel that same tension between your role and how your day-to-day is set up?

CFO | Helping leaders build high‑performing finance teams without losing themselves | Wharton Online Guest Faculty

Infographic titled ‘How Every Accounting Role Supports a Strategic CFO,’ showing AP, AR, GL/staff accountants, and controllers with examples of value drivers, key metrics, and easy wins to help the CFO be more strategic.

One thing I learned quickly when I became a CFO is that preparing the board deck in FP&A or accounting is not the same as being in the CFO seat.

In FP&A, you can be right and still be safe.

In the CFO seat, you can be right and still lose the room.

Because the board isn’t only listening to the update. 

They’re reading you. Every answer is a signal:
- Is this under control?
- Do you actually know what’s going on?
- Are you the right person for this situation?

That’s why most CFOs don’t lose the board’s trust because of a bad quarter.

They lose it because of the conversations about that quarter.

After a few of those “hot seat” moments and conversations with great CFOs like Scott Meyers and Dr. Tamer Alsayed on my podcast, I built a repeatable way to prepare.

I call it my CFO Template for Board Meeting Prep. It’s a simple framework you can use to prep for any board conversation, good or bad.

That’s what you’re seeing in the cheat sheet.

If you want the full breakdown of the framework and how to use it, I unpack it in my latest blog on The Diary of a CFO Podcast website.

I'm curious to hear:

Which conversation tends to get the most tense in your experience: missed numbers, runway, or strategy? 👇

BOARD CONVERSATION CHEAT SHEET from the diary of a cfo blog

The kind of controller I was 10 years ago is not the kind of controller I’d want to work with today as a CFO.

Back then, “great” looked like:
✅ Clean closes. 
✅ Tight reconciliations. 
✅ No surprises in the audit.

Today, the bar for finance leadership is very different,
because the role of the CFO, and the expections around it, are very different.

Everyone is expected to:

- Partner with the business

- Spot patterns before they hit the P&L

- Translate metrics into real business choices

- Show up in executive conversations as partners, not just reporters.

A strategic CFO can’t carry that load alone.
The whole leadership bench has to evolve with the role.

For example:

- Controllers should use close and audit findings to flag emerging risks before they hit the board deck.

- FP&A leaders should bring options, not just budgets and forecasts

- Treasury leaders should connect liquidity decisions to growth bets, not just cash management.

- Tax and compliance leaders should surface structure and risk choices early instead of after the fact.

That doesn’t require a reorg.

It requires treating every function within the CFO office as part of the strategy engine, not just the reporting engine.

If you’re a CFO (or report to one) and want your team to think more strategically, here are some pointers ⤵️ 

What do you think?

infographic titled Where CFO Direct Reports add strategic lift, by Wassia Kamon, featuring insights for controllers, treasury, fp&a and tax.

The first time I spoke at the AICPA CFO Conference, I wasn’t a CFO yet. Coming back to the stage this year as one feels like a full-circle moment. 

It's also a reminder that growth often starts when you step into rooms before you feel fully ready.

I’m grateful for the opportunity to share what I’ve learned along the way about building truly strategic finance teams.

Even better, I get to share the stage with the amazing Paul S. Young, CPA, CGMA, MBA.

So, if you’ll be at the AICPA CFO Conference next month, I hope to see you there.

https://lnkd.in/eveXrSXX 

#AICPA #CFOConference26

This is my "I've had to make some hard calls to get here" face.

And I know it makes some people uncomfortable.

Because women in leadership are supposed to:
Smile,
Be warm, 
Be likeable,
Be approachable. 

Never too assertive. Never too quiet. Never too much.

We're expected to lead, but make it look effortless.
To have the answers, but not seem like a know-it-all.
To take up space, but not too much of it.

For a long time, it frustrated me.
Until I realized I could flip it and use it strategically.

You want to learn more?

Join me this Friday with other women who have navigated these nuances and are willing to share how they did it.

✦ Sowmya Ranganathan, ex-Controller @ OpenAI & Founder of Lumera
✦ Sarah Sieman, Senior Director @ CBIZ
✦ Rebeca Sanchez Sarmiento, Finance Operating Partner @ Sixth Street

Register here: https://lnkd.in/ekhnVeC4

And tell me: what expectation did you learn to flip? ⤵️

Wassia Kamon standing in a bright space wearing a pink coat, looking intentionally serious for a post about women in leadership.

"If you have people in your group that can't get excited about your goals and objectives, get them transferred to your competition."

This might sound harsh, but David DeFreitas is right.

People who can't get excited about what you're trying to accomplish will drain the life right out of your team.

And this is just a snippet of the wisdom Dave shared on The Diary of a CFO Podcast this week.

In this episode, he walked me through what it actually took to go from staff accountant to group CFO at Caterpillar Inc.

What stood out:

✔️ He had 7 jobs in 6 years before his first big promotion.

✔️ At 35, he became CFO of Caterpillar UK, leading a 150+ people, and 4 of 6 direct reports were over 60 years old. 

We also talked about AI, the difference between managing change and leading change and so much more!

Side note: Dave has been on my personal board of directors for almost 3 years and I could not be more grateful to have him on the show.

🎧 Listen now on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube

Let me know your biggest takeaway once you listen 👇🏽

View newsletter: The Diary of a CFO Recap

Brought to you by Ramp. Join us on March 6th at 1PM ET for a free webinar celebrating Women's History Month. Click here to learn more and register. Mo

Open article: Former Caterpillar Group CFO, Dave DeFreitas, on Essential Leadership Skills for Finance Leaders by Wassia Kamon, CPA, CMA, MBA • 4 min read

Former Caterpillar Group CFO, Dave DeFreitas, on Essential Leadership Skills for Finance Leaders

To be a woman, to be a leader, and to be in finance is not for the weak.

- The rooms that are not built for you. 

- The moments you have to prove yourself twice, yet often paid less.

- The personal load you are expected to leave at the door but never really can.

Most people don't talk about that part.

But on March 6th, we will.

I am honored to share the stage with women who know exactly what this path looks like behind the scenes.

- Sowmya Ranganathan was the Controller at OpenAI during the launch of ChatGPT and went on to found her own company, Lumera.

- Rebeca Sanchez Sarmiento built her career on Wall Street, became a 3x CFO in PE-backed environments, and is now a Finance Operating Partner at Sixth Street.

- Sarah Sieman started in public accounting at PwC, switched to FP&A, became a CFO, and now leads business transformation and AI adoption at CBIZ.

Topics we will cover:

✅Navigating bias
✅Advocating for yourself and your 💰
✅Building networks that actually support you.
✅Managing caregiving and leadership at the same time

If this resonates, you’re welcome to join us.

📅 March 6 | 1 PM ET
 
Register here: https://lnkd.in/ekhnVeC4

Promotional graphic for a webinar titled “Women Who Lead: Unfiltered Conversations with Top Executives,” happening March 6 at 1 PM ET. Features headshots of speakers Wassia Kamon (CFO, ACE), Sowmya Ranganathan (Founder, Lumera; former Controller at OpenAI), Sarah Sieman (Senior Director, CBIZ), and Rebeca Sanchez Sarmiento (Operating Partner, Sixth Street).

What if the real AI risk in your finance team is not job loss, but confidently presenting the wrong answer to your CEO and board?

On this week’s The Diary of a CFO Podcast, I sit down with Jennifer Warawa, President of insightsoftware and one of the most influential leaders in our profession, to talk about what actually changes in the office of the CFO when AI shows up.

We get into:

✅  What it looks like to act as a true strategic co‑pilot to the CEO

✅  How AI exposes every weakness in your data, processes, and tech stack 

✅  A practical roadmap to implement AI in the office of the CFO

✅  How to bring your team along when some people are excited about AI and others are quietly afraid their role will disappear.

If you lead finance and feel like your spreadsheets are moving slower than the business' expectations, this episode will help you close that gap with a clear game plan. 

Let me know in the comments:

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐈, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐲?

------------------
Big thanks to insightsoftware for sponsoring this episode

Brought to you by insightsoftware. Attend part 1 of their free webinar series “Data is Power” on March 31. Visit insightsoftware.com/dataispower to le

Open article: How AI is Changing the Office of the CFO, with Jennifer Warawa by Wassia Kamon, CPA, CMA, MBA • 4 min read

How AI is Changing the Office of the CFO, with Jennifer Warawa

Imposter syndrome is the # 1 thing that keeps new CFOs awake at night. 

Not covenants,
Not close calendars, 
Not even board decks.

It's that quiet voice asking:

“Do I really belong in this seat?”  

I was surprised how often this came up in my conversation with Kevin Appleby. 

But the more we talked, the more I realized I’d felt some of the same doubts in my own first year as a CFO too.  

- The second‑guessing before every decision,

- Replaying SLT and board meetings in my head, wondering if one mistake would prove everyone wrong about me.

If you’re there right now, this is the part I wish someone had said to me: 

Feeling that way is not proof you’re in the wrong role. 

It’s often proof that you care,
that you’re stretching, and that you’re no longer hiding in the comfort of what you’ve already mastered.

That's I love the practical advice Kevin shared in this clip on how to overcome imposter syndrome as a new leader.

if you have any more tips, please share 👇

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