Aimplan

Aimplan is a SaaS/Software company with a mission to help organizations reach and exceed their goals with superior financial planning and reporting capabilities all within the Microsoft Power BI platform. The Aimplan™ SaaS solution is extending Power BI adding planning and input capabilities to support forecasting, simulations, budgeting and many other use-cases. Aimplan enhances the Power BI structured reporting capabilities and also adds master data management capabilities.
 
aimplan.com

CEO & Founder

Sherpas Group AB

Senior Advisor and Product Manager

insightsoftware

Cloud and Integration
Coordinating the work with the Insightsoftware Cloud Connector integration platform to connect the different products within the portfolio with leading ERP systems.

Senior Product Manager

Bizview Systems

Leading the Swedish and Norwegian Bizview operation. Post-acquisition integration and supporting the global Bizview go-to-market initiatives.

General Manager Bizview

Responsible for the development and customer success of the FP&A software Bizview. Leading the engineering-, support- and cloudops teams. Member of the executive leadership team, co-owner, and board member. In September 2019 we finalized the sales transaction where Bizview was acquired by Insightsoftware Inc (Raleigh, North Carolina).

CTO and Product Manager

IFRONT AB

Worked as an independent CPM/BI consultant in Scandinavia and UK with enterprise customers. Specialized in customer- and product net profitability analysis (i.e. profit and margin after smart allocation of overhead costs using cost drivers, down to each sales transaction). SQL Server, ETL-processes, large data volumes, data analytics.

Senior Management Consultant

EBI Systems AB

Swedish start-up, and award winning company developing the document and issue management system "Platina". Developed using by the time the not even released .NET-framework and related web technologies. Later acquired by Formpipe. Worked with software product strategy, implementation project management, development team lead.

Product Manager

Prodacapo

Worked as a consultant and later as the product manager for Prodacapo. At that time one of the leading global software vendors within the customer- and product profitability modelling area (rated by Gartner). Product strategy/positioning, development planning, pre-sale, evangelist, user conferences etc.

Vice President Product Management

Management Consultant

CEO & Founder at Aimplan - plan, budget, and forecast directly inside Power BI.

Hi, I’m Erik!

I have spent 25 years of my life working in the FP&A / EPM / CPM space, both as a consultant and within software companies delivering FP&A solutions. Now, I'm the CEO and founder of Aimplan, with the purpose of changing how companies work with planning, forecasting, budgeting, and financial reporting.

So finance professionals always ask me this:
“Why do we need to buy separate FP&A software when we already have Power BI?”

The answer is simple - Power BI is not a FP&A tool! Users can’t edit any data in Power BI to create plans, budgets, and forecasts. Controllers and CFOs cannot easily create the structured reporting (P&Ls, etc.) that management wants. And there is no way in Power BI to manage different scenarios, mappings of accounts, or other critical structures (i.e. no master data management).

That’s the reason we started Aimplan!

We want our customers to be able to extend their usage of Power BI and extend their existing Power BI models to also solve the needs of the office of the CFO. And move away from manual, disconnected, error-prone spreadsheet way of working into highly efficient, automated, integrated, and Power BI supported processes.

I feel so privileged to help companies get better at FP&A.

I personally love building products, companies, and teams. I have a wife and two grown-up girls, one still living with us and one living in Stockholm.

When I'm on vacation, you'll see me near the lake house in the summer, cutting the boards to the right length or driving a Seadoo Spark watercraft. During the winter season here in northern Sweden, with abundant snowfall, snowmobiling is the way to go when seeking fun and excitement.

I believe a healthy body equals a healthy mind. So here at Aimplan the team loves running out of the office to the gym and coming back with a refreshed brain, ready to take on challenges.

That’s it!

Please reach out to me if you need help or would like to talk FP&A and Power BI!

You don't need an MBA to become a CFO.
Master these 5 steps instead: 

Step 1: Own a P&L (even a small one) 

Stop analyzing other people's decisions. Start making your own. Volunteer to own a business unit's P&L or department budget. When revenue misses or costs spike, it's on you to fix it. That's where CFOs are made.

Step 2: Learn the business (not just the numbers) 

Spend time with sales, ops, and product teams. Understand how deals close, how products ship, what customers actually want. CFOs who only know finance get stuck in the finance department.

Step 3: Master the technical foundation 

After 25 years in FP&A, I can tell you: accounting is just 30% of CFO work. The other 70% is strategy, operations, and leadership.

Master these: Financial Modeling, Cash Flow Management, Capital Allocation, Board Communication, M&A Fundamentals, Team Leadership, Systems Thinking.

Step 4: Build CFO-level Frameworks 

I've led finance transformations and advised dozens of companies. 

These are the frameworks that matter:

- Risk & Controls: Compliance, audit readiness, fraud prevention
- FP&A Mastery: Forecasting, scenario planning, variance analysis
- Process & Systems: Automate the boring stuff, focus on insights
- Treasury & Cash: Working capital optimization, liquidity management
- Business Partnership: Embed yourself in operations, not just reporting
- Strategic Finance: Capital structure, ROI frameworks, investment decisions
- Stakeholder Management: Board decks, investor relations, executive influence

Advanced: IPO readiness, debt/equity financing, tax strategy, M&A execution, crisis management.

Final step: Get hands-on experience  

- Join a nonprofit board as treasurer
- Shadow a CFO and ask hard questions
- Build financial models for real companies
- Lead a budget cycle or business unit P&L in your current role
- Start a side business (nothing teaches finance like your own money on the line)

Most finance people wait for the CFO title before acting like a CFO.

The best CFOs did it backwards.

They solved CEO problems while still in finance.

Start now.

Erik Lidman

CEO & Founder at Aimplan - extending Power BI with planning, forecasting, structured reporting and master data management.

CEO at Aimplan - Extending Power BI and Fabric with Operational and Financial Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting

Duy An Nguyen

Bad FP&A: The variance report shows we're 12% over budget. I'll send out the standard email asking departments to cut spending.

Great FP&A: I noticed the spending increase and mapped it against our growth initiatives. Here’s what I found: 80% of the overages are tied to high-ROI projects driving revenue. I’ve identified areas where we can optimize without cutting key investments. Let’s review this with the business partners and adjust our forecast.

One reports numbers.

The other tells the story behind them.

FP&A can become the trusted advisor everyone turns to.

Your job isn't to be the budget police.

It's turning numbers into winning decisions.

Reports don't drive success.

Impact does.

How an Excel error cost JP Morgan $6 billion:

In 2012, JP Morgan Chase, a leading financial services firm, faced a $6 billion loss, due to an Excel error in their Value-at-Risk (VaR) model. 

This happened when an employee was transferring data between spreadsheets and accidentally used a sum total instead of an average.

"This incident, detailed in a 129-page report by JP Morgan, highlighted the dangers of relying too heavily on manual processes in complex financial models. The report revealed that the modeler was under pressure from traders to accelerate the review process, which likely contributed to overlooking operational flaws and the Excel error."

Heavy reliance on Excel for financial modeling comes with big risks.

The JP Morgan case demonstrates that even small mistakes in Excel can have bad consequences. 

An error that makes risks appear lower than they are can make any company vulnerable to more risks.

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