I teach Finance Teams how to use ChatGPT - Keynote speaker on AI for Finance & FP&A

For AI Finance Trainings and Workshops:

✉️ Contact me here: hello@nicolasboucher.online

About me:

Finance Thought Leader specialized in AI, trained more than 5,000 people and on a mission to help more than 1 million finance professionals.

I teach finance people how to use AI.

You can also book me as a keynote speaker.


My previous roles:

🏭 Thales (Germany):
2022-23: Senior manager controlling role for the Transportation business (€500 million business)
2018-22: Part of the management and led the Finance and Controlling team of a production site (400 people) specialised in producing Traveling Waves Tubes for Satellites
2016-2018: Head of Finance Transformation

👨‍💻 PwC:
2014-2016: Audit Manager in PwC Luxembourg
2012-2014: Audit Manager in PwC Singapore
2009-2012: Auditor in PwC Luxembourg


My experience:

Living in 5 different countries across 3 different continents (France, USA, Luxembourg, Singapore and Germany) gave me the capacity to integrate myself quickly and understand different local and working cultures.

Worked 8 years for Thales, an engineering and industrial french multinational.
I had finance manager roles and was part of the management of a 400 people production site.

Prior to that, I worked 7 years as an auditor and consultant for PwC in Luxembourg and Singapore.


My private life:

I am married and a happy father of two young daughters. We both learn from each other and we enjoy reading french books together and play outside.
When I am not busy with my daughters, I am exercising, cooking and spending quality time with friends.
Finally, traveling and tasting new food are some of my favorite experiences. But if you ask me where is the most beautiful place and where can we find the best food in the world, I have only one response: my hometown, Brittany in France.


My Specialties:

-Finance & accounting
-Controlling, budgeting & forecasts
-FP&A
-ChatGPT
-AI
-Storytelling
-Cross-cultural management, coaching and training
-Cost reduction
-Management
-Analytics, Business Performance and Activity Dashboard
-Audit & controls
-Business Processes Modelling
-Financial Statements and Cash Flow
-Business Intelligence
-Fluent in French (native speaker), English & German

Hashtags:
#finance #controlling #accounting #management #cfo #cash #budgeting #forecasting #chatgpt

https://nicolasboucher.online

Nicolas Boucher

Top 100 KPIs (I wish I knew them sooner)
👉 Download your PDF copy here: https://lnkd.in/drNX_va6

Most finance teams drown in metrics but miss the few KPIs that actually move the business.

I’ve created this Top 100 KPIs collection every finance team should know across 10 categories that cover the full finance spectrum:

1. Accounting KPIs
Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), Days Payable Outstanding (DPO), Days Inventory Outstanding (DIO), and the full Cash Conversion Cycle
→ These show how efficiently you manage working capital and operations

2. Cash KPIs
Operating Cash Flow, Free Cash Flow, Cash Burn Rate, Runway, and Liquidity Ratio
→ Track how long your business can survive and when to act

3. CEO KPIs
Revenue Growth, Gross Margin, EBITDA, Net Profit Margin, and ROI
→ The metrics every CEO and board watch first

4. SaaS KPIs
MRR, ARR, CAC, LTV, Churn Rate, and Payback Period
→ If you run a subscription model, these define your business health

5. Investor KPIs
Earnings per Share, ROE, ROA, Debt-to-Equity, and P/E Ratio
→ Metrics that signal financial strength and investor confidence

6. Headcount KPIs
Revenue per Employee, Cost per Hire, Turnover Rate, and Productivity Index
→ Connect finance and HR to improve efficiency and retention

7. Capex KPIs
Capex to Revenue, Capex ROI, Depreciation %, and Asset Turnover
→ Reveal how well you invest and utilize company assets

8. Balance Sheet KPIs
Current Ratio, Quick Ratio, Debt Ratio, and Working Capital
→ Essential for liquidity and solvency checks

9. Tax KPIs
Effective Tax Rate, Deferred Tax %, and Tax Liability to Revenue
→ Track the real cost of taxation and compliance performance

10. Inventory KPIs
Inventory Turnover, Stockout Rate, and Holding Cost %
→ Keep cash flow healthy and avoid overstock or shortages

This is the checklist I wish I had as a Finance Manager and CFO

Use it to:
✅ Select the KPIs that truly drive your business
✅ Assign owners and targets
✅ Review them monthly and make decisions faster

Save this post for your next board or planning session.

If you want the PDF of my Ultimate Finance Cheat Sheet in addition to the 100 KPIS collection, comment "cheat sheet" below and I will send it to you.

I teach Finance Teams how to use AI - Keynote speaker on AI for Finance (Email me if you need help)

What is CapEx?
👉 Download my Ultimate Finance resources: https://lnkd.in/e7DPs84q

The Ultimate Breakdown for Finance Teams

CapEx is one of those concepts everyone thinks they understand…
Until they have to explain it in a board meeting

“CapEx looks simple… but it’s where most teams make the wrong calls”
Here’s the post that fixes that

CapEx matters because it shapes:
• Your growth story
• Your asset health
• Your company valuation

But most confusion comes from how to calculate it, when to use it, and how it differs from OpEx

Here’s what’s inside the infographic:
1. What CapEx actually is
Funds used to acquire, upgrade, or maintain long-term assets
Not day-to-day expenses. Capitalized on the balance sheet

2. Why it’s crucial for businesses
• Indicates growth and reinvestment
• Maintains aging assets
• Impacts Free Cash Flow and valuation

3. How to calculate CapEx
PP&E (current) – PP&E (prior) + Depreciation
Or pull it from Investing Cash Flow

4. CapEx vs. OpEx
CapEx = long-term, capitalized, depreciated (trucks, buildings, patents)
OpEx = daily operations, fully expensed (rent, salaries, utilities)

5. Limitations of CapEx
• Huge cash drain
• Risk of asset impairment
• Inflated earnings quality

6. When to analyze CapEx vs. when NOT to
✔ High-heavy industries
✔ Free Cash Flow analysis
✔ Expansion strategy
✖ Early-stage startups
✖ Short-term liquidity checks
✖ Lease vs. Buy distortions

If your team misunderstands CapEx, you’ll misread cash flow, misjudge performance, and mislead investors

This infographic fixes that in 60 seconds

👉 Download my Ultimate resources for finance pros here: https://lnkd.in/e7DPs84q

💬 Want me to make an OpEx version next?

🔁 Repost to help another finance pro understand CapEx

ChatGPT vs Copilot 
👉 Download my 100 ChatGPT Tips: https://lnkd.in/e6VC4Rhq

Which GenAI should you actually use: ChatGPT or Copilot?
That’s a question I get a lot

That’s why I created this guide for you.

Here are my clear rules on which one to choose:

1 - INDIVIDUALS & SMALL BUSINESSES

You’re an individual or small business, not fully in Microsoft or Google?

Recommendation: ChatGPT (take the Teams license if you’re a small business; it has enterprise-grade security and is SOC2 Type II compliant).

It has the best functionalities, best interface, and always ships innovative models first.

Drawback: it's not yet fully connected with your business data (though it's improving with connectors to Google Drive, Calendar, OneDrive, and Outlook).

This is the one I use for my team and me.


2 - BUSINESSES USING MICROSOFT

You guessed it: Copilot.

Why?
Because Copilot 365 with Microsoft 365 brings AI directly to your work data.

This is Copilot’s most underrated feature and the main reason to choose it if you’re a Microsoft shop.

Try this:
Step 1. Switch to "Work" mode
Step 2. Type "/" in Copilot and access a doc
Step 3. Enter the file name
Step 4. Ask Copilot to perform a task on it
Step 5. AI works with real context from your files

That’s a huge advantage over ChatGPT or tools not connected to your work data, where you need preliminary steps to provide context

If you already trust Microsoft with Outlook and Excel online, Copilot makes perfect sense:
- No extra vendor to manage
- Your confidential info stays in Microsoft’s security graph (the same Copilot uses)
- No separate user/license management (it’s tied to Microsoft 365)

And Copilot is just getting started
I got insights from Microsoft Teams telling me that they are working to integrate AI deeper, with more promising features coming soon

Bottom line
Choose based on where your work lives, not the hype
Tell me which one is your favorite one and why

👉 Download my 100 ChatGPT Tips: https://lnkd.in/e6VC4Rhq

Top 100 Excel Shortcuts
👉 Download the High Resolution PDF: https://lnkd.in/dXhJ4HvF

Make yourself 2x more productive in Excel

100 shortcuts ranked from Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, and Underrated

Like, Bookmark this and Share it.
Thousands of hours will be saved!

If you think you know well Excel, I bet you will still learn something new in the Advanced table (items 51 to 75).

What do we cover?

A list of essential Excel shortcuts for professionals.

Here is a preview:

🟠 Basic

1. How to copy text?
Ctrl + C

2. How to cut text?
Ctrl + X

3. How to paste?
Ctrl + V

4. How to undo?
Ctrl + Z

5. How to redo?
Shift + F11

(get the answers 6-25 in the Cheat Sheet below)

⚪ Intermediate

26. How to autosum?
Alt + =

27. How to fill down?
Ctrl + D

28. How to fill right?
Ctrl + R

29. How to do flash fill?
Ctrl + E

30. How to insert hyperlink?
Ctrl + K

(get the answers 31-50 in the Cheat Sheet below)

⚫ Advanced

51. How to show / hide ribbon?
Ctrl + F1

52. How to create custom view?
Alt + W + C

53. How to paste special (values only)?
Ctrl + Alt + V > V

54. How to change font format?
Ctrl + Shift + F

55. How to goal seek?
Alt + A + W + G

(get the answers 56-75 in the Cheat Sheet below)

🔵 Underrated

76. How to move to the next open workbook window?
Ctrl + F6

77. How to move to the previous open workbook window?
Ctrl + Shift + F6

78. How to insert current date and time?
Ctrl + Shift + :

79. How to paste values & formatting only?
Ctrl + Alt + V > T

80. How to apply or remove cell wrap?
Alt + H + W

(get the answers 81-100 in the Cheat Sheet below)

📥 Get the full HD cheatsheet for free: https://lnkd.in/dXhJ4HvF

🔁 Repost to help your team get faster in Excel

💬 Which shortcut do you use most? Drop it below

Steal my Audit Checklist (Excel Template)
👉 Download yours for free here: https://lnkd.in/dFWf3YRA

I have prepared an Excel Checklist to help you in your audit preparation

Use this checklist to get ready for your next audit

If you are a CFO, a controller, an accountant, or a Finance manager, this checklist is for you.

What is inside the Excel file?

19 tabs comprising the following checklists:

1. Overview Checklist (in the picture below)
2. Financial Statements Preparation
3. Account Reconciliation and Analysis
4. Documentation and Record Keeping
5. Internal Controls and Compliance
6. Risk Management
7. Tax Review and Planning
8. Inventory Management
9. Fixed Assets and Capital Expenditures
10. Investments and Other Financial Assets
11. Employee Benefits and Pensions
12. ESG Compliance
13. Technology and Data
14. Review of New Accounting Policies
15. Related Party Transactions
16. Subsequent Events and Contingencies
17. Sustainability and Continuity Planning
18. Communication with Auditors
19. Final Review and Reporting

👉 Don't forget to download it for free here: https://lnkd.in/dFWf3YRA

If you need any other template, let me know in the comments

CEO, CFO, COO, CIO, CMO, and CRO

👉 Download my top 100 KPIs here: https://lnkd.in/edvvYTJc

They sound impressive
but what do they actually do?

I broke it down in one visual below

Here’s a sneak peek at what each role owns
As well as the first 5 rows of the comparison

See the full comparison in the image below

1. CEO → Strategy, growth, vision, investors, expansion
CEO leads the company
CEO drives strategy, growth, and innovation
CEO represents the company to stakeholders & is the public face
CEO sets corporate values
CEO drives global expansion

2. CFO → Financials, performance, risk, profitability
CFO manages finances
CFO ensures stability and establishes discipline
CFO reports financials to the board and shareholders
CFO sets financial benchmarks
CFO optimizes existing markets

3. COO → Daily ops, resource planning, execution
COO oversees daily operations
COO implements the strategic initiatives
COO coordinates departments for smooth execution
COO aligns operational processes with said values
COO manages operational aspects of market penetration

4. CIO → Tech stack, security, data
CIO defines & leads the company's tech strategy
CIO oversees IT infrastructure and systems
CIO ensures technology aligns with business goals
CIO manages cybersecurity and data protection policies
CIO establishes IT Governance & IT Budget (CAPEX, OPEX)

5. CMO → Brand, demand gen, customer journey, messaging
CMO leads marketing strategy & brand position
CMO drives brand awareness & customer acquisition
CMO represents the brand across channels and media
CMO sets brand voice and messaging tone
CMO plans market penetration campaigns

6. CRO → Revenue growth, monetization, customer value, sales performance
CRO drives revenue growth
CRO monetizes strategic initiatives
CRO reports revenue metrics to the board & stakeholders
CRO sets revenue targets & quotas
CRO crafts revenue models for market penetration

This visual will give you instant clarity on who does what at the top

Also, get your copy of the Top 100 KPIs here: https://lnkd.in/edvvYTJc

🔁 Repost to help your network understand the C-suite

Free AI for Finance Course

👉 Download my 100 Prompt Tips PDF: https://lnkd.in/dZ4WKBvS

Save 1000s of dollars with this free course

Bookmark this and follow the curriculum below
+ TONS of FREE RESOURCES at the end!

You want to learn AI for Finance?
I have built and curated a free finance course for you

15 free lessons to make you more knowledgeable than 90% of the finance professionals in using AI

🙏 Help me spread this free course: like, share and comment!

Leverage AI to boost your career
and become irreplaceable

1. AI for Finance Fundamentals Email Course - https://lnkd.in/gFbWBDQ9

2. Prompting & Data-prep - https://lnkd.in/gtz7Bd78 & https://lnkd.in/gC8MqVG7

3. AI Roadmap for Finance team - https://lnkd.in/gK7svud4

4. Generative AI for managers - https://lnkd.in/g_EAYwv8 

5. ChatGPT vs Copilot vs Gemini - https://lnkd.in/gd-8ysiv

6. Top 100 ChatGPT Tips - https://lnkd.in/gX2sekmf

7. Top 100 AI Finance Tools - https://lnkd.in/gvKvkbvA

8. ChatGPT for Finance - https://lnkd.in/grBz2tGv

9. ChatGPT Image Generation for finance - https://lnkd.in/g55D5PtP

10. 30 Ways ChatGPT Helps Finance - https://lnkd.in/gwJ5CKXx

11. 28 Ways to use ChatGPT in Finance - https://lnkd.in/gV8FV82e

12. 6 AI Use Cases for Finance (real ones) - https://lnkd.in/g4wbFW7Q

13. 3 Ways to automate your work with AI - https://lnkd.in/gwUqv83G

14. Save 1 hr per day with ChatGPT - https://lnkd.in/gGdsC-Vr

15. The fast close playbook - https://lnkd.in/gniqwtju

- - -

Here are my bonus resources for you:

My Ultimate Finance Cheatsheet 2025
👉 https://lnkd.in/dxRatm2A

Top 10 Free Finance Resources
👉 https://lnkd.in/d9TA7bNu

Ultimate Finance Resources
👉 https://lnkd.in/dnfrN6R8

🙏 Help me spread this free course: like, share, and comment!

🔁 Repost to help more finance professionals
start using AI in their daily workflow

Atomic Habits for Finance
👉 Download my 48 Laws of Power applied to Finance: https://lnkd.in/edgY7bWe

What if the real difference between an average finance team
and a world-class one wasn’t talent… but habits?

Most teams try to “work harder” during closing, forecasting, or budgeting.
But the truth?

Finance improves in the same way individuals do
through tiny, consistent behaviors that compound over time

That’s why I built this cheat sheet: to translate Atomic Habits into Finance habits you can start today

Here’s what’s inside:

1. How Atomic Habits actually work
Identity, systems, and tiny gains matter more than intensity.
A finance team that sees itself as reliable and data-driven behaves differently.

2. The 4 Laws applied to Finance
#1: Cue – Make it obvious
– Clear dashboards
– Daily stand-ups
– Simple finance scorecards
– Habit stacking during closures and POs

#2: Craving – Make it attractive
– Temptation bundling (variance analysis + coffee)
– Social groups that celebrate clean and on-time data
– “Forecast accuracy leaderboard” for business units
– Motivation rituals in meetings

#3: Response – Make it easy
– Smaller, more frequent forecasting cycles
– Pre-built templates for P&L, variance, board packs
– Standard naming conventions
– The 2-minute rule: if it takes <2 minutes, do it now

#4: Reward – Make it satisfying
– Show reduced cycle times and error drops
– Visible payoff dashboards
– Track on-time submissions & forecast accuracy trends
– Reward behaviors that stick

1% daily improvement
A finance team improving 1% per day becomes 37× better after one year
Tiny process improvements beat massive transformation projects

How to break bad habits
– Make them invisible (remove distractions)
– Make them unattractive (highlight cost of errors)
– Make them difficult (add friction to bad habits)
– Make them unsatisfying (reinforce consequences)

Finance excellence isn’t built in Q4 but it’s built in the daily routines you repeat all year

💬 Which habit are you implementing first?

🔁 Repost to help more finance teams improve 1% every day

👉 Download my 48 Laws of Power applied to Finance: https://lnkd.in/edgY7bWe

100 Prompt Tips
👉 Download the PDF here: https://lnkd.in/dzTqfSjX

Stop writing prompts that confuse AI instead start using ones that compound your results
Most people don’t have a prompt problem

They have a framework problem
Here’s what this visual makes painfully clear:

Clarity > Cleverness
Structure > Guessing
Process > Randomness

The image breaks down 100 prompt tips into 4 categories:

FRAMEWORKS
Tools like CBI-FBI, AIDA, CARE, STAR, SWOT, PESTLE and more that turn vague ideas into precise instructions

DATA TIPS
How to extract tables, convert data, build dashboards, clean datasets and automate insights with
ChatGPT

HACKS + PROMPT ENGINEERING
Templates, constraints, version control, chunking, clarifying questions - all to get higher-quality outputs

FINANCE + PROCESS
Ready-to-use scripts for P&Ls, FP&A workflows, scenario modeling, investor updates and reporting automation

Here’s the real takeaway:

If you learn even 5 of these frameworks, your output improves instantly

Not because AI gets smarter
But because you stop asking messy questions

Want the PDF version of this post?

👉 Download it here: https://lnkd.in/dzTqfSjX

🔁 Repost to help your team get better at prompting

Top 50 Finance KPIs
👉Download it in HD now: https://lnkd.in/d5F8bv2m

Includes explanations and formulas!

You see a lot of KPI lists, but they miss something:
1) These lists do not explain the goal of the KPI
2) These lists do not give you the KPI formula

In this Cheat Sheet, you get both!
Because a KPI is not helpful without explanation and without a formula...

Take it as a catalog from which you can pick 3 to 4 key KPIs.

I like to take 4 KPIs to make a 4-quadrant dashboard.

The standard quadrant I would recommend?

This one:

1. Revenue Growth
2. Net Profit Margin
3. Operating Cash Flow
4. Employee engagement

What would be yours?

You can pick from the 50 following KPIs:

🧾 Accounting KPIs:
1. Debt-to-Equity Ratio
2. Invoice Processing Time
3. Working Capital Ratio
4. Net Profit Margin
5. Return on Equity
6. Gross Profit Margin
7. Accounts Receivable Turnover
8. Fixed Asset Turnover
9. Accounts Payable Turnover
10. Inventory Turnover

💰 Cash KPIs:
11. Operating Cash Flow
12. Days Payables Outstanding
13. Average Days Delinquent
14. Days Sales Outstanding
15. Days of Inventory Outstanding
16. Cash Burn Rate
17. Free Cash Flow
18. Cash Conversion Cycle
19. Cash Reserves in Days
20. Overdues Ratio

👨‍💼 CEO KPIs:
21. Revenue Growth
22. Market Share
23. Employee Productivity
24. Innovation Index
25. Brand Equity
26. Market Expansion
27. Sustainability Metrics
28. Employee Engagement
29. Employee Turnover
30. Cash Flow

🖥 SaaS KPIs:
31. Lifetime Value
32. SaaS Quick Ratio
33. New Buyer Growth Rate
34. ARR Per FTE
35. Customer Churn Rate
36. Runway
37. Customer Acquisition Costs
38. Monthly Recurring Revenue
39. Average Revenue Per User
40. Total Addressable Market

💼 Investors KPIs:
41. Earnings per Share
42. Quick Ratio
43. Dividend Payout Ratio
44. Current Ratio
45. Return on Investment
46. Share Buyback Ratio
47. Price-to-Earnings Ratio
48. Gross Margin Ratio
49. Dividend Yield
50. Net Promoter Score

👉Download it in HD now: https://lnkd.in/d5F8bv2m

My 25 Hidden Excel Shortcuts
👉 Get my full 100 Excel Shortcuts PDF: https://lnkd.in/deaTy2Xs


I made a list of 25 underrated Excel shortcuts that can save you hours
(and impress your colleagues)

I bet you don't know at least half of them

Excel Shortcuts List:

1. Move to the next open workbook window: Ctrl + F6

2. Move to the previous open workbook window: Ctrl + Shift + F6

3. Insert current time: Ctrl + Shift + :

4. Paste values & formatting only: Ctrl + Alt + V > T

5. Apply or remove cell wrap: Alt + H + W

6. Clear all formats: Alt + H + E + F

7. Insert a line break in a cell: Alt + Enter

8. Insert a new comment in a cell: Shift + F2

9. Open cell options menu: Shift + F10

10. Paste special - transpose: Ctrl + Alt + V > E

11. Insert sparkline from selected data: Alt + N + SL / SW / SO

12. Enter full-screen mode: Ctrl + Shift + F1

13. Record a macro: Alt + F8

14. Open the Visual Basic editor: Alt + F11

15. Autofit column height: Alt + H + O + A

16. Hide a sheet: Alt + H + O + U + S

17. Unhide a sheet: Alt + H + O + U + H

18. Insert slicers: Alt + N + SF

19. Apply or remove strikethrough: Ctrl + 5

20. Expand or collapse the formula bar: Ctrl + Shift + U

21. Collapse sheet outline: Alt + A + H / J

22. Create names from selection: Ctrl + Shift + F3

23. Insert new worksheet: Shift + F11

24. Select an entire row: Shift + Space

25. Select an entire column: Ctrl + Space


👉 Interested in more Excel shortcuts? Get them all here: https://lnkd.in/deaTy2Xs


What’s your go-to Excel shortcut?

CEO vs CFO vs COO KPIs
👉 Download my Top 100 KPIs here: https://lnkd.in/dgwVdfEM

📊 CEO KPIs
1. Revenue Growth
(Current period revenue - Previous period revenue) / Previous period revenue

2. Gross Profit Margin
(Revenue - Cost of Goods Sold) / Revenue

3. Net Profit Margin
Net Income / Revenue

4. Return on Investment (ROI)
Net Income / Investment Cost

5. Earnings per Share (EPS)
(Net Income - Preferred Dividends) / Average Outstanding Shares

6. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
(Marketing + Sales Costs) / New Customers Acquired

7. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
(Average Revenue per Customer × Average Customer Lifespan) / CAC

8. Employee Engagement
Measures employee satisfaction and engagement using surveys or performance reviews

9. Employee Turnover
Number of Employees Who Left During the Period / Average Number of Employees

10. Net Promoter Score (NPS)
% Promoters - % Detractors

---

📉 CFO KPIs
1. EBITDA
Net Income + Interest + Taxes + Depreciation + Amortization

2. Return on Equity (ROE)
Net Income / Shareholders’ Equity

3. Working Capital Ratio
Current Assets / Current Liabilities

4. Debt-to-Equity Ratio
Total Debt / Total Equity

5. Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC)
Days Sales Outstanding + Days Inventory
Outstanding - Days Payable Outstanding

6. Debt Service Coverage Ratio
Net Operating Income / Total Debt Service

7. Return on Assets (ROA)
Net Income / Total Assets

8. Inventory Turnover
Cost of Goods Sold / Average Inventory

9. Quick Ratio
(Current Assets - Inventories) / Current Liabilities

10. Cash Flow
Operating Cash Flow + Investing Cash Flow + Financing Cash Flow

---

⚙️ COO KPIs
1. Project Efficiency
Actual Project Cost / Planned Project Cost

2. Productivity of Staff
Total Output (unit or value) / Total Number of Employees

3. Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)
Image is wrong (will be corrected in next post).
It should be Unit sold x Standard Cost

4. Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)
Availability × Performance × Quality

5. Operational Efficiency
Total Output / Total Input

6. Customer Satisfaction
Number of Satisfied Customers / Total Number of Customers

7. Time to Market
Number of Orders Delivered on or Before Promised Delivery Date / Total Number of Orders

8. Quality Index
Defects / Total Units Produced

9. Capacity Utilization
Actual Output / Potential Output

10. Safety Incident Rate
(Number of Incidents × 200,000) / Total Hours Worked

👉 Get my Top 100 KPIs here: https://lnkd.in/dgwVdfEM

🔁 Repost if this gave you a clearer view into the C-suite mindset

Your team’s output became 10x bigger
That means as a manager your review 10x also!

👉 Enroll in my free AI course now: https://lnkd.in/dNNPzeMX

Reviewing AI work is much easier when you master the fundamentals first
Click on the link above ☝️

AI Broke Your Review Process
It created a massive "Transparency Gap."

Every week, I see the same situation: Your juniors can now produce 10x more output. But more output does not mean better work.

You are left with a pile of deliverables you can't trust because you are starting your review from zero.

You don't know:
• What was AI-generated vs. manual analysis?
• Which parts were reviewed vs. just accepted?
• What context they gave the AI?

The Reality?

You spend your entire Friday trying to figure out
which parts are accurate and which parts are AI guesses

The Solution: The Crystal Method

We built this system to fix the bottleneck. It makes review faster, not slower
It answers three questions for every piece of work:

1️⃣ What did AI do? (Which parts were generated vs. manual)
2️⃣ How was it done? (Which tool, which prompt, what context)
3️⃣ What was verified? (What the human checked vs. accepted)

That’s it. Three answers, massive clarity

The shift? From "Did they do the work?"
to "How did they do the work?"

From "Redo the maths" to "Check the method"

If you lead a team using AI, follow the implementation roadmap in the infographic:
1. Build Awareness: Discuss where AI helps and where it creates problems
2. Define Scope: Use the Golden Rule (Use AI to generate, not calculate)
3. Standardize: Define the tool, model, and verification checklist
4. Create Reusable Tools: Stop copying prompts; start building custom GPTs
5. Full Automation: Only do this when steps 1-4 are solid

Your team is using AI whether you train them or not
Take 60 minutes this week to ensure that usage is clear & transparent

Reviewing AI work is much easier when you master the fundamentals first

👉 Learn the AI Finance Fundamentals here with my free AI course: https://lnkd.in/dNNPzeMX

ChatGPT 5.2 ≠ ChatGPT 5.1 (especially on Thinking)

📥 Download my 100 ChatGPT Tips: https://lnkd.in/djxgz65s

You got a bad AI answer? You used the wrong “brain”

Most finance pros treat every model the same…
then wonder why the output is:
confident but wrong
messy when you need a clean table
inconsistent halfway through a long analysis

Here are the key differences:

Hallucinations
5.2: hallucination rate reduced to 6.2% + errors ~30% less common + improved reliability for professional use
5.1: hallucination rate 8.8% + more errors with longer/complex reasoning + accuracy can decline in research/citation-heavy tasks

Long-context memory & consistency
5.2: retains info ~100% consistently + far fewer memory drops + better for long, multi-source work
5.1: would forget earlier details mid-conversation + frequent re-prompting needed + not ideal for long, multi-source work

Vision accuracy (screenshots, UI, diagrams)
5.2: stronger visual understanding + more accurate at reading screenshots/charts/UI layouts
5.1: vision works, limited UI detail + less reliable for screenshots/app interfaces

Structured output (slides, sheets, apps)
5.2: more polished layouts + ready-to-use slide decks/sheets
5.1: can generate slides & sheets + often needs heavy manual cleanup

Thinking time vs answer quality
5.2: thinking mode can run much longer + longer thinking correlates with better correctness
5.1: auto mode favors speed + thinking helps, but depth is limited

Quick summary:
5.2 = A Serious Analyst (deep reasoning, professional output, long & complex tasks)
5.1 = A Smart Assistant (faster, conversational, everyday tasks, personalized tone)

Here’s my simple rule:

ChatGPT 5.1 = the fast assistant
I use it for quick drafts, short questions, and everyday tasks

ChatGPT 5.2 = the serious analyst
I use it when accuracy matters: long-context work, screenshots/UI interpretation, structured outputs

Using the right model for your needs is also another way to save time

👉 Which one have you used today: 5.1 or 5.2?

Stop Buying New AI Tools

👉 Download my 30-Day AI finance playbook: https://lnkd.in/dw5DQkaD
(To learn how to train your finance team on AI)

You're probably paying for 3 AI tools, and using none of them well

Your junior analyst is on ChatGPT
Your FP&A manager swears by Claude
Your director is experimenting with Gemini

Meanwhile, you're stuck wondering:
Which AI tool should we standardize on?

Here’s the real problem →
You're not choosing based on what works for the team
You're choosing based on what feels newest or most hyped

Let’s fix that

The Real Problems

Problem 1: You're Paying Twice (or 3x)
• Teams buy Copilot or Gemini licenses
• But still expense ChatGPT Plus
• That’s $2,400/year wasted on duplicate tools

Check your license here:

For Copilot:

Problem 2: Nobody Can Collaborate
• Each AI tool keeps prompts and knowledge siloed
• When someone leaves, their context goes with them

Problem 3: Analysis Paralysis
• 10 minutes wasted just deciding which tool to open
• 3 tools = 3x the time to find one answer

The Smarter Approach: Go Ecosystem-First

Instead of asking “Which AI is best?”, ask:
“What ecosystem are we already in?”

If you're already on:
• Microsoft 365 → Use Copilot
• Google Workspace → Use Gemini

Why this works better:

Security as Standard
• Enterprise-grade data protection
• No personal account sharing
• Audit trails + IT-managed access

Team Collaboration
• Everyone shares prompts and files
• Conversation history is retained
• Knowledge builds over time

Seamless Integration
• Copilot and Gemini access your OneDrive or Google Drive
• No manual uploads or copy-paste
• AI works where your team already works

But What About Advanced Features?

Copilot (GPT-5.2) and Gemini (Gemini 1.5) now support:
• “Thinking mode”
• Slide generation
• Report summaries

And they run on the same foundational models
But directly embedded in your workflow

Follow the 80/20 Rule
80% of work = Ecosystem AI
• Emails, summaries, lookups, reports

20% of work = Specialist AI
• Deep modeling, creative ideation, scratch generation

Your Move (This Week):
1. Open your Microsoft or Google admin panel
2. See what you’re already paying for
3. Pick one ecosystem AI tool for your team

Chances are, you already own what you need
✓ No more tool debates
✓ No more triple testing
✓ No more wasted budget

👉 Learn how to train your finance team on AI in 30 days: https://lnkd.in/dw5DQkaD

The future-ready finance team isn’t chasing the “best AI”

It’s aligning around the one AI mindset that just works

🔁 Repost to help more finance professionals use AI together better

Prompting 101 Cheatsheet
👉 Enroll in my free AI course: https://lnkd.in/dgFNrHuC

A CFO preparing a cost-reduction plan types one line into ChatGPT
The answer sounds smart but it’s useless for the board deck

For CFOs, FP&A and finance leads, vague prompts are expensive
They waste time, hide risks, and make AI look like a toy instead of a strategic partner

I have turned this prompting system into a one-page cheat sheet you can hand to your whole team

It’s the same structure I use when training 5,000+ finance professionals and inside my 1,500+ member AI Finance Club

Here’s what’s inside:
1. What a “prompting technique” actually is
→ Why a precise, well-structured prompt beats a vague question every time.

2. The CSI framework (Context-Specific-Instruction)
→ How to brief AI like a colleague, not a search bar, with a cost-reduction example for a mid-size European company.

3. The FBI add-on (Format-Blueprint-Identity)
→ Turn generic text into board-ready tables, tuned to your tone, industry, and role.

4. The CSI + FBI combo prompt
→ A full example you can paste into ChatGPT to design a structured cost-saving plan with realistic initiatives

5. Chunking technique for complex analyses
→ Break big asks (like an acquisition assessment) into safe, controllable steps the model can actually handle

6. Six-step acquisition prompt chain
→ From “you are an expert financial analyst” to a concise go/no-go summary for your board without leaking sensitive details

7. Guardrails for sensitive data
→ A reminder to keep confidential numbers inside secure enterprise AI accounts only

When your prompts mirror how you brief a senior finance colleague
context, structure, and clear roles

AI finally delivers outputs you can take to the board

👉 Free AI for Finance Beginner Email course here: https://lnkd.in/dgFNrHuC

Where I will talk more about the CSI-FBI Framework for writing perfect AI prompts

Repost to help your team work faster

Which point will you try first?

How CFOs use GenAI to cut costs
👉 Enroll in my free AI Course: https://lnkd.in/ggmMizQk

Cost programs don’t fail from lack of ideas
They fail due to lack of structure

Most teams know what could be cut
Very few can rank it, size it, and turn it into an executable plan fast
So instead of starting with blank slides, you start with a structured first draft, then validate it with your data

Here’s what’s inside:
1. The exact prompt I use (copy/paste):
I am the CFO of a manufacturing company

I need to come up with a cost-saving plan

Create a detailed plan for me and my team

The plan should do a table first and then a project plan detailing the top 10 low-hanging fruits and the exact plan to enable them

Write this like the best cost-cutting consultant with super practical and pragmatic approach and bring some innovative ideas

2. Result you will get under 30 seconds
Top low-hanging-fruit initiatives ranked by impact vs effort
Savings ranges benchmarked to EU manufacturing peers
Named roles, KPIs, timelines, and risk mitigations
Tool recommendations (Power BI, e-sourcing, low-code apps, SaaS AI)
Governance cadence and kick-off checklist ready to paste into your deck

3. The keywords that steer the output:
“Table first”
“Exact plan”
“Innovative ideas”
“Practical & pragmatic”

4. Example of a pragmatic mini action plan (this is the level of detail):
Reverse-Auction for Tier-B Materials
Scope: 180 SKUs (fasteners, packaging, secondary alloys) worth €8M p.a.
Owner: Strategic Sourcing Lead

Steps
Cleanse spend data & spec sheets (June)
Bundle SKUs into 4 lots to boost volume leverage (July)
Invite >6 qualified suppliers; supply sample for QA (Aug)
Run 45-min online auction (Sept)
Dual-source top lot to keep pressure (Oct)

Quick win
Pilot 1 lot (€1M) first—often lands ~5% saving within 30 days

Contract guardrails
Index-linked price bands, dual-source clause, quarterly rebates

5. Why this is powerful for you
Instant knowledge synthesis — thousands of best practices, one coherent plan
Iterative co-creation — stress-test ideas and refine in minutes
Cost-free first draft — consultant-grade structure without the day rate
Scalable expertise — pivot from opex to capex, WC, or board-ready scripts fast

6. How to get more value from the LLM:
#1 Be specific in the ask — format, depth, tone (“table first, then plan”)
#2 Provide context — industry, size, constraints
#3 Challenge & iterate — “stress-test initiative #5”
#4 Validate with data — model it before executing
#5 Blend human + AI — AI drafts, humans judge feasibility and drive change

GenAI won’t run your cost program
But it can compress week 1 into minute 1 so your team spends time deciding, not drafting

👇 Master the fundamentals of AI for Finance here: https://lnkd.in/ggmMizQk

Which initiative would you stress-test first?

I train Finance Teams at Soft Skills | Corporate Training Facilitator | Course Instructor | Keynote Speaker

You can build the best reports…
and still struggle to make people care.

(I know because I used to do that, even as FP&A Manager)

I could spend weeks preparing the reports and the deck
only to see eyes glaze over when I presented them.

My “storytelling” looked like this:
- 40 slides
- 200 KPIs
- 0 engagement

Then… silence
No decisions. No alignment. No impact.

The reality check hit me when the CFO told me
"Soufyan, bring me the story. People I will present to need more than tables and graphs"

And he was right: If leaders don’t understand the story,
they can’t act on it, no matter how accurate the numbers are.

That moment changed everything.

I stopped trying to impress, and started trying to connect.

→ I simplified the narrative
→ I turned variance bridges into business stories
→ I built frameworks to help others do the same

A few years later, I was training entire finance pros.
Then entire teams.
Then CFOs started calling.

Today, I run The Finance Circle,
where I help FP&A teams, controllers, and CFOs
turn reports into stories that drive decisions.

Here’s how it works:

• The Finance Stage  for teams
• Financial Storytelling Program — our flagship training for professionals
• Coaching programs — for CFOs and Leaders
• Workshops on AI, Copilot & Storytelling

I’ve trained teams at Holcim, Deloitte, Bauer Media, Ansell, and Proximus.
Different industries, same goal: make Finance heard.

Because the best insight in the world means nothing
if no one remembers it after the meeting.

Ready to make your next presentation land?
Send me a message — let’s make your story stick.

Soufyan Hamid

Real happiness in life...

...only comes when your variance = 0

Insight Communication for Modern Finance Teams (Storytelling Done The Right Way) | EMBA Lecturer | Keynote Speaker

FP&A is not a destination

It’s a progression

-----
I just notice it's barely readable so download the high definition PDF on https://lnkd.in/eEyZfzZE
-----

Reporting
Analysis
Forecasting
Consulting

Each layer builds on the one below it

You don’t become a “strategic business partner” by declaration

You grow into it

- 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 earns trust
- 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝗶𝘀 creates understanding.
- 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 shifts the conversation forward.

Only then does 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 make sense

Helping leaders think through options
Knowing the risks and opportunities
Make decisions with confidence

That’s also how I approach teaching finance to non-finance leaders

I don’t start at the top of the pyramid

I start where collaboration is natural

Some connect through KPIs
Some through performance drivers
Some through scenarios

And that’s fine

There’s no rush to master everything from day 1

Learn the first layer
Then the second
Then the third

Over time, you arrive at what real finance business partnering actually is:

Being useful when decisions are on the table

Your words are killing your presence

12 ways to know if you’re doing it:

𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐲𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲:

“Maybe we should…”
“I may be wrong, but…”
“Can I ask a dumb question?”
“Just thinking out loud here…”
“Hopefully this makes sense…”
“This might be overstepping…”
“Does that sound okay to you?”
“I’ll try my best to get that done…”
“I’m no expert in operations, but…”
“I just wanted to share this update…”
“I’m not sure if this adds value, but…”
“Would you mind if I add something?”

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞:
“Here’s the key shift”
“The numbers suggest…”
“Here’s what the data is signalling”
“Here’s one scenario worth testing”
“Here’s how the pieces fit together”
“There’s a financial implication here”
“Does this align with your priorities?”
“Here’s an insight that could shift things”
“You’ll have the updated model by Friday”
“Let me build on that from a financial angle”
“Here’s how this flows through P&L and cash”
“Help me understand how this connects to targets”

In FP&A, your presence depends on what you know

but also on how confidently you deliver it

➟ Your analysis stays the same
➟ Your credibility doesn’t
➟ Strong language creates strong leadership

Which phrase are you eliminating first? 👇

Too many meetings are killing finance teams

But the answer isn’t “have fewer meetings”

It’s having the 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀, at the right altitude

Most finance leaders have a 𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺

Everything feels urgent
Every topic ends up everywhere
And by month-end, people are exhausted… but still unclear

I’ve seen this in FP&A teams, group finance functions, and ExCo rooms

Everyone is busy
Very little actually moves

What changed things for me wasn’t another productivity hack
It was a 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗵𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗺

Here’s the 4-meeting cadence I keep coming back to ↴

A structure that creates alignment without drowning teams in calls.

1️⃣ Daily Team Alignment (5 minutes)
↳ A fast pulse check
↳ Priorities, workload, risks
↳ No metrics review

2️⃣ Weekly Performance Tactical (45–90 minutes)
↳ Review performance signals with the business
↳ Translate KPIs into drivers and action
↳ Leave with decisions

3️⃣ Monthly Strategic Review (2–3 hours)
↳ Zoom out
↳ Connect trends, forecasts, risks, scenarios
↳ Focus on 1–3 topics that actually move the business

4️⃣ Quarterly Business Offsite (1–2 days)
↳ Step back from the noise
↳ Pressure-test strategy and assumptions
↳ Reset priorities and direction together

When this cadence is run properly, you feel it immediately:

– Fewer last-minute surprises
– Clearer ownership
– Faster decisions
– Better conversations with leadership

Meetings stop feeling like reporting rituals
They start becoming decision moments

This is one of the simplest systems I’ve seen work, again and again, in finance leadership teams

Because it creates space for insight, focus, and direction

If you’re a CFO or FP&A leader, I’d be curious:
Which one of these meetings is currently missing, or doing the wrong job, in your organization?

In 2017, I pushed myself to the edge of burnout

Because I believed the wrong thing:

“Hard work will be enough”

It never is

At senior levels, effort becomes the baseline
What really drives recognition is everything around it:

• Your alignment with the CEO
• Your ability to shape a narrative
• How you navigate politics
• The timing of opportunities
• Your consistency when the pressure rises

I learned like many of you: by taking slaps

My work was always done but never noticed

Simply because I didn't get that people work with people

And that there is a different set of rules for that

One thing in common with all these rules

They are linked to your impact

Hard work matters

But it’s not what moves you forward

Impact does

And impact is built through presence, relationships...

...and also a bit of luck

"Let’s improve our financial storytelling"

Translation: Let’s argue about whether we should use pie charts or PowerBI

There's a problem that very few want to admit in FP&A:

Most "financial storytelling" advice will just help you make your data dumps a bit more sexy

But, it’s not actual storytelling

If you want financial insights to cross the door of the (virtual) meeting room after the monthly review and drive real decisions

Stop obsessing over the dashboard tools and start here

You need to answer these 10 questions before opening a single slide:
1️⃣ Audience: Who are we presenting to and what keeps them up at night?
2️⃣ Alignment: Are we on the same page about the problem before we present the data?
3️⃣ Business Insight: What do these numbers actually mean for the operation?
4️⃣ Message: What is the single core takeaway they must leave with?
5️⃣ Value: How does this narrative demonstrate value creation or risk mitigation?
6️⃣ Structure: What is the logical flow that leads inevitably to our conclusion?
7️⃣ Visuals: Is the data clear and engaging, or just a noisy spreadsheet screenshot?
8️⃣ Delivery: How will we present this to ensure it lands with impact?
9️⃣ Outlook: Don't just look back. What is next?
🔟 Action: (The most important one) What should we do differently tomorrow because of this data today?

Nail these 10?

You’ve got financial storytelling that makes people react

Ignore them?

You’ve just got another 90-page deck that will be forgotten by lunchtime

♻️ Repost if you've ever sat through a meeting that ended with zero clear action items

Reporting vs Explaining vs Influencing
Where would you put your team?
(PDF on https://lnkd.in/e9m42D9Y)

It's important because you can't change anything with reporting

But today, most teams I've seen are still blocked there

It could still work 10 years ago (and even so...) 
- gathering the different data sources
- cross-checking to verify the accuracy
- setting them in a usable report/dashboard

But the problem has always been that the rest of the company expects more from our job

Even 10 years ago, our stakeholders thought: "and now what?"

Leaders push back because they still don’t know what to do with what you showed them

So there's only one thing to do: move from hindsight to foresight

When you move your partners from the rear mirror to your windshield 

You become a finance business partner

If you want a simple way to diagnose where your team stands (reporting, explaining, or influencing) I’ve put together a visual that breaks down the differences with business impact included

It’s the framework I use in my workshops when teams want to raise the level of the conversation inside the business

If you want the full version, I’ve made it available as a free PDF

👉 https://lnkd.in/e9m42D9Y

Only 17%* of FP&A teams describe their data as “best-in-class”

That means 83% are still somewhere short of where they need to be

And I’ve seen why
• Too much time lost in reconciliations and manual reporting
• Insights landing too late to influence a decision
• CFOs still chasing reports instead of shaping the conversation

That’s when finance teams stall: hard work replaces smart work and the space for strategy disappears

The truth is: moving from firefighting to impact isn’t one big leap

It’s done step by step

You start with standardization
-> One clear way of working, no more chaos

Then you add automation
-> Cut out the repetitive work

Next comes measurement
-> Focus on the right KPIs and make them visible.

Then, layer in continuous improvement
-> Small weekly fixes that compound into resilience

Only then are you ready for innovation
-> Shaping finance

That’s the journey I’ve seen across my career (and still this week at a CFO event organised by KPMG)

It’s not glamorous (no hero story here)

But it works because at each step, you build on strong grounds

So here it is: 5 Levels of FP&A Maturity (from firefighting to strategic impact)

Share it with CFO. 
Save this for when teams lose motivation.
Use it to make your finance team future proof.

* 2025 FP&A Trends Survey

👉 If you want to go deeper, here are three ways I can help you:

📘 I put together a free Financial Storytelling Starter Pack — you can grab it here: https://lnkd.in/eadSXhKp

🤝 And if you want to explore solutions for your team, you can plan a call with me here: https://lnkd.in/eKTff5s2

I’ve trained hundreds of finance professionals

And most of them face the same situation:

They think they have a slide problem

But they actually have a storytelling problem

So they treat symptoms instead of root causes

– They tweak formatting
– They redesign charts
– They work on their slides for hours
– They try a new template

Meanwhile, the real issues stay untouched:

No storyline
No context
No implication
No alignment

It’s the finance version of repainting the walls while the foundation is cracking

And when the message doesn’t land, they often blame external factors:

– The business doesn’t read our decks
– Leadership keeps asking for more detail
– They didn’t understand the variance
– We need better tools

But the deeper storytelling problems are still there

And the root causes are almost always the same:

– Too focused on reporting what they saw
– Too much data
– Too many details
– Too many slides

As a result, great analysis turns into weak insights
And weak insights go nowhere
(if you don't believe it, ask for feedback to your stakeholders)

Here’s the model I use to diagnose the real issue:

The 4 Layers of Financial Storytelling Problems

1️⃣ Surface Problems
Formatting, charts, visuals, aesthetics
Easy to fix
Low criticality

2️⃣ Structural Problems
Sequence, flow, grouping, summary
Requires intention, not cosmetics

3️⃣ Outcome Problems
Context, decisions, framing, implications
This is where impact starts to emerge

4️⃣ Content Problems
Weak insights, no storyline and no point of view
This is where most presentations truly collapse

You know the mistake, right?
Finance teams spend 80% of their time on Layer 1
But Layers 3 and 4 are the ones that change how leaders think...
...and what they decide.

If you want your message to land, start deeper
The visuals matter but the insights decide

Good Accounting + Good FP&A = Smooth Year-End Closing

Nothing revolutionary

But I’ve seen what happens when one of the two is missing

👎 As FP&A, closing the books myself because accounting was stuck in operational tasks
👍 As FP&A, walking into the closing meeting with one or two questions. And moving on.

Everything starts with accounting

When it’s shaky, FP&A spends the closing fixing numbers instead of using them

So if you’re a CFO, the priority is simple
Have a solid accounting setup

From what I’ve seen, the problem was rarely skills
Most teams knew their job

The issue was 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽
- Where accounting stops
- Where FP&A starts

Once that line is clear, the closing changes
- Numbers come with limited rework
- Analysis starts earlier
- Conversations move faster

You can optimise a closing in many ways

This one already does 75% of the job.

If you’ve seen other levers that really improved the closing process,
I’m curious to hear them 👇

Insight Communication Prompts for Finance Leaders
Get the high-res PDF on https://lnkd.in/e_p6FgKP

At the gates of 2026, you can't ignore AI in your work

And even more if you're a busy CFO or FP&A Leader who has to deliver insights after your team has worked on the analysis

So here are my ChatGPT/Copilot/Gemini prompts for Finance leaders

I built this reference sheet with the 8 domains where finance leaders can drastically increase their impact:

1/ Month-End Commentary
2/ Financial Storytelling
3/ Business Partnering
4/ Board & Executive Communication
5/ FP&A Insight Generation
6/ Leadership Presence
7/ Process Improvement
8/ Decision Support

You know it by now, your influence won't come from more slides

It comes from better communication of the insight that matters

So, if your main stakeholders are executives

Use these prompts to generate
- direction
- importance
- action

That's why you need a repeatable system your team can use every single week to:
• Frame insights like a senior leader
• Move faster from data to decision
• Build trust in tense moments
• Present with authority instead of hesitation
• Turn performance reviews into business conversations
• Strengthen the relationship with every stakeholder you support

These are the prompts I use when I train FP&A teams, CFOs, and business partners across Europe and the US.

Now they’re yours too

—

What would you add to the list?

Repost ♻️ if you want more finance teams to communicate with impact

P.S. I’m Soufyan Hamid — I help finance teams turn insights into decisions

I started to learn public speaking with TED talks

No, not all applies to our job, but CFOs can learn by listening to some

To be precise, 10 of them

These TED Talks reveal something every finance leader eventually realises:
👉 The job isn’t just numbers (it starts to be understood)
👉 The job is perception (still difficult to believe)
👉 The job is influence (rarely acquired)

Because when you sit in the CFO seat, nothing is “just finance” anymore:

Pressure
Ambiguity
Expectation
Risk
Human decisions
Organizational tension

You can’t eliminate any of it

But you can learn to navigate it

Here are 10 TED Talks every (future) CFO should watch (and the one insight you can apply today)

1️⃣ Margaret Heffernan — “Dare to Disagree”
Takeaway: Build productive conflict. It saves millions
💡 Ask before decisions: “What are we missing?”

2️⃣ Simon Sinek — “Why Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe”
Takeaway: Psychological safety makes data better
💡 Start your next finance meeting with a 3-minute check-in

3️⃣ Amy Edmondson — “How to Lead in a Crisis”
Takeaway: Replace fear with forward motion
💡 After risks, ask: “What small step moves us now?”

4️⃣ Dan Gilbert — “The Psychology of Your Future Self”
Takeaway: Long-range planning is guesswork
💡 Audit your 5-year assumptions: which ones will age poorly?

5️⃣ Nina Nesdoly — “How to Relieve Stress When You’re Overwhelmed”
Takeaway: You can’t outthink stress
💡 Before a board meeting: inhale 4, exhale 6, drop shoulders

6️⃣ Rainer Strack — “The Workforce Crisis of 2030”
Takeaway: Talent drives performance more than numbers
💡 Review workforce planning with the same rigour as your P&L

7️⃣ Ruth Chang — “How to Make Hard Choices”
Takeaway: Hard choices define identity
💡 Ask: What type of organisation do we want to build?

8️⃣ Tom Wujec — “Got a Wicked Problem? First, Tell Me How You Make Toast”
Takeaway: Visuals simplify what words complicate
💡 Turn your next messy process into a one-page visual map

9️⃣ Linda Hill — “How to Manage for Collective Creativity”
Takeaway: Innovation is a team sport, even in finance
💡 Run one “improvement sprint” per month with FP&A

🔟 Matt Abrahams — “Think Fast, Talk Smart”
Takeaway: Structure reduces anxiety
💡 Use: What? So what? Now what?

TED talks are motivational

But I see them more as a toolbox

The CFOs who inspired me the most are the ones who invest in how they think, how they communicate, and how they lead under pressure

Which one are you watching first? 
Are there others you would recommend?👇

The TED talks CFOs should look at or listen to

I get it, it's easy to talk for myself

But what if others talk about what storytelling did for them?

Over the last four years, I’ve taught the Financial Storytelling Program in companies, workshops and in a self-paced format

I can tell you why it works

But it’s easier to let others speak

“From this course, I learned excellent techniques to enhance my financial presentations, starting from the basics in graphics to tips on how to be prepared to answer difficult questions. [...]”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Carlos Rodriguez, CFO at Fracttal 

“Soufyan has prepared a great storytelling course that is very well structured, with an interactive mixture of theoretical concepts with great practical training and exercises that were catered to our industry[…] ”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Jasmeet Vasir, CFO at CMA CGM Inland

“The course was extremely comprehensive, structured and really well prepared… It really helped me organize my thoughts and offered significant knowledge on the subject”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Christos Kolokotronis, FP&A Business Partner 

“Soufyan is a great coach who comes to us well-prepared and provides very relevant examples to make the learning more valuable to us. His sessions are very engaging and interactive, filled with games and activities to make learning enjoyable and effective”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rong Mo, FP&A Director at Upwork

“What I like about the program is that Soufyan gives what companies normally pay a lot of money for. You have practice, exercises and training, all that in a single individual program”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Nicolas Boucher, Founder at Nicolas Boucher Online 

This is what matters to me: not just that people “liked” the training, but that they left with a way of presenting that changes how their message lands

If you’re in FP&A, controlling or finance business partnering and you want your work to have that kind of effect, check the other testimonials and see what can happen when finance learns to tell a story

And whenever you're ready to make the step, join today with the Black Friday Offer
- reduced price ($147 instead of $247)
- bonus 1: live masterclass AI for Financial Storytelling 
- bonus 2: personal review of your slides and feedback

https://lnkd.in/dqNTTeBD

Testimonials of real people who learned to tell stories

The worst moment in your process is presentations

Because that’s the moment where:
– your credibility is visible
– your nerves become data
– and your story meets reality

But let me reassure you:

You don't have to be a born presenter

Everyone can learn to be one

But the finance world doesn’t teach this enough

That’s why I put together this resource inspired by the biggest learning I got on public speaking

These are the techniques I wish I had earlier in my career

When I was still thought my "spoke for itself"

A few that change everything:
🔹 The 5-5-5 Rule
Your eyes tell the room you’re in control, even before your voice does

🔹 The Power Pause
Nothing signals confidence more than giving silence space to work for you

🔹 The 3-Part Open
A clean opening does more than engage. It sets the agenda for how people interpret your numbers

🔹 The Lighthouse Method
Anchor points keep the audience from drifting, especially when slides get heavy

🔹 The Callback Technique
One well-timed reminder can turn a deck into a story

Use them as tools

And like all tools, don't use a screwdriver to break a wall

Determine which one works when

Because people need to feel your conviction to trust you

And once they feel it, they follow it

I partner with Global Payments Inc. to tell you this

Last week, I spoke to a fractional CFO in Austin, Texas

He’s now chasing six months of unpaid work… because of  failed “automation”

I say "automation" because he set it up manually

You juggle enough already

Billing and collections should be the easy part

That’s why Global Payments is hosting a free webinar on Dec 11

And I’m sharing it with my community of fractional CFOs, consultants, auditors, and small business owners who want smarter tools

🗓 Register here: https://lnkd.in/efTJaRaf


I'll be there. Will you?

PS: You can't make it live? No problem. You'll get the recording anyway 👍

#Globalpaymentpartner

Brand partnership • Insight Communication for Modern Finance Teams (Storytelling Done The Right Way) | EMBA Lecturer | Keynote Speaker

You’re doing everything right
But your impact feels invisible
Don't give up, let's work on that!

You can work as hard as you can and still go unnoticed

Especially by those who make decisions 

It’s not about working more
It’s about being seen for the value you already bring

And for us, visibility comes from 
- the way you communicate
- the way you advise
- and the way you show up when it matters

But you don't want to beg for attention?

Here are 10 practical ways FP&A leaders become visible without shouting for attention 👇

1️⃣ Send a weekly insight brief
↳ One key business insight, one risk managed, one focus for next week

2️⃣ Step into cross-functional initiatives
↳ Don’t wait for an invitation. Finance becomes strategic when it shows up early

3️⃣ Lead with data and narrative
↳ “Based on this trend, here’s the implication, and here’s what I recommend” 
This is how you move from reporting to enabling decisions

4️⃣ Bring solutions (or options)
↳ Three scenarios and a clear recommendation show judgment.

5️⃣ Make wins visible... in business terms
↳ “Finance helped optimize X and unlocked Y% improvement” 
Leaders remember the impact

6️⃣ Build influence vertically and horizontally
↳ Understand your partners’ priorities before you try to align them

7️⃣ Institutionalize your learning
↳ Capture what worked, what didn’t, and how you’ll apply it
That’s how mature operators lead

8️⃣ Ask for strategic ownership
↳ Signal you’re ready to lead a workstream tied to a real business priority

9️⃣ Recognize others publicly
↳ Visibility multiplies when you elevate the people around you

🔟 Follow through with disciplined updates
↳ Reliability is power
Consistency builds credibility

You don't need to shout to be indispensable

Just make your value impossible to ignore

Which of the 10 are you working on right now?

10 ways to become visible at work.pdf

A quick note for those who asked me this week

The Black Friday offer for the Financial Storytelling Program closes tonight

It’s the full method I built after years of presenting to executives and training finance teams

And this week it includes two bonuses for the first 50 people:
✔️ The AI Masterclass for Financial Storytelling
✔️ A personalised audit of one of your slides

If this is something you’ve been wanting to work on, all the details are in the comments

Nothing more to add

I just didn’t want you to miss it

Join today

https://lnkd.in/dqNTTeBD

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The Battle

Nicolas Boucher

Soufyan Hamid

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Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Nicolas Boucher's LinkedIn Performance

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