Afp Whitepaper FINAL
Afp Whitepaper FINAL
Afp Whitepaper FINAL
The Benefits of
Certification for FP&A
Professionals
Presented by:
Introduction Letter
Over the past several years, the need for experienced finance
professionals in the corporate environment has steadily increased
as organizations continue to adjust to economic uncertainties. As
a result, many firms are seeking the most qualified individuals to
analyze trends and manage the financial future of their organization.
Andy Thomas
Executive Director
Kforce Finance & Accounting
Brian Kalish
Sincerely,
Andy Thomas
Brian Kalish
Executive Director
Kforce Finance & Accounting
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FIN12-003041-1080
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FIN12-003041-1080
The survey determined that those tasks that are always performed by
FP&A professionals and that are extremely important to the practice
include:
The use of basic spreadsheet functions
The ability to validate data
The use of advanced spreadsheet functions
The ability to gather the information and data required for analysis
The ability to build budgets, forecasts, annual plans and so on
The ability to receive, analyze, integrate and consolidate
assumptions and data from business units
The ability to prepare reports and/or make presentations
Further, it was determined that those KSAs that are extremely
important to the practice are:
The ability to communicate with and gather information from
business partners
The ability to coordinate FP&A tasks with the corporate calendar
or the assigned deadline
The ability to integrate information and data into analysis
The knowledge of finance principles and processes
The ability to synthesize information to create conclusions,
alternatives and recommendations
The ability to create financial statement projections
The knowledge of spreadsheet and database structures and
functions
The ability to implement basic spreadsheet functions
The ability to implement advanced spreadsheet functions
The ability to perform variance analysis and reporting
The ability to define, incorporate and report on financial and/or
nonfinancial key performance indicators
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Introduction
FP&A professionals
and employers face a
number of challenges,
including undefined job
performance competencies
and standards of practice,
varied organizational
reporting structures and
inconsistent visibility.
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Market Pressures
In todays climate of economic and regulatory uncertainty, preserving
and leveraging corporate capital has become an important part of
every organizations financial planning agenda. However, a number
of factors make it difficult for finance professionals to successfully
complete these tasks.
64 percent of C-level
executives report that
the FP&A role is the
hardest position to fill.
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3%
22%
28%
47%
Graduate
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FIN12-003041-1080
design the final survey, which was distributed via email to more than
5,000 individuals worldwide.
Respondents were asked to identify how often each task was utilized
and how important it was to the overall job performance of a midlevel
FP&A professional. Of the received responses, 445 were deemed to
be sufficiently complete and from demographically qualified FP&A
professionals. Responses came from 29 countries, with 30 percent of
respondents operating outside of the U.S. Seventy-three percent of
respondents had more than five years of FP&A experience, and 70
percent held a graduate degree in at least one field of study. Half of
all respondents indicated that they operate in a management role,
while 18 percent operate in senior management7.
Survey Results
150
100
50
2 to 5
6 to 10
11 to 20 21 to 50 51 to 100
100+
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<$50M
$50 - 99.9M
$100 - 249.9M
$250 - 499.9M
$500 - 999.9M
Importance of Tasks
$1 - 4.9B
$5 - 9.9B
$10 - 20B
>$20B
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
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Currently, no certification
examination exists
that tests the diverse
knowledge base of the
FP&A professional.
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Matt Shimkus
FP&A Manager, Utilities Inc.
Benefits of Certification
Professional certification has been found to play a vital role in
developing talent within any profession and is a value-add for
both employers and practitioners. Professional certifications enable
employers to better define and develop technical job competencies
and identify job candidates who have acquired these attributes.
It further enables practitioners to develop the knowledge and
skills required to perform technical job competencies, elevate their
professional status and advance their career through improved
marketability9.
FP&A is a diverse, yet highly critical role within an organization,
and certification will be extremely helpful to building its credibility
and importance and developing and implementing a universal set
of principles and standards of practice, said Gorbach. This will not
only help to advance the field of FP&A but [also help to] enhance the
ability of FP&A professionals to bring value to their organizations.
For the FP&A field, certification will set a standard of excellence and
position professionals to drive reliable strategic business decisions
within their organizations. Further, it will attest that credentialed
professionals have demonstrated the knowledge and skills required
to perform competently in todays complex finance environment.
Finally, certification will identify that credentialed professionals
have agreed to abide by a professional code of ethical conduct
and are committed to keeping their knowledge current by meeting
continuing education requirements10.
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A certification for FP&A will benefit the finance industry in two ways,
said Shimkus. First, it will recognize the absolutely critical role that
FP&A professionals play within organizations. Second, it will mitigate
the risk of hiring someone who is not qualified for the job at hand.
With a certification for FP&A, employers will know what skill sets they
are getting when hiring an FP&A professional, and professionals will
have confidence in the skills that they bring to the table.
Matt Shimkus
FP&A Manager, Utilities Inc.
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Conclusion
Financial planning and analysis is an important part of any corporate
finance strategy. However, a number of obstacles threaten the
productivity of FP&A professionals and therefore the profitability of
their parent organizations. In an era of increasing regulations and
uncertain economic times, overcoming these obstacles is imperative
to successfully maneuvering through complex processes and
establishing best practices for the planning and analysis of corporate
finance decisions.
Overcoming these obstacles can be accomplished through the
development of a well-established FP&A certification examination
that defines the universal principles, sets uniform standards of practice
and recognizes practitioners for their understanding of complex
processes, tools, and best practices. By clearly defining the roles and
responsibilities of the FP&A professional, hiring managers will be
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