Advisory discussions are the core of building financial planning and analysis (FP&A) into your practice. We sat down to a fireside discussion with Martin Zych, founder of Jirav, along with over 60 accountants sharing their questions and experiences on this crucial topic.
Let’s dig in!
What is FP&A?
Financial planning and analysis (FP&A) is an advisory service that builds a set of forward-looking projections and forecasts on what you believe a business could look like.
There can be many layers to FP&A, but it’s basically telling the story behind the numbers, figuring out what that means for the future of the business, and using that to meet goals.
Most businesses are already doing some FP&A if they’re providing advisory services, but to really grow your business and create value for clients, there are ways this can be standardized and refined.
What are the tools needed to implement FP&A in my practice?
1. Standardized Questions - create a few that will lead conversations
2. Standardized Service Packages - create a few prices based on value and outputs, not hours
3. Standardized Reporting Templates - while you’ll do a degree of tailoring depending on the package, keep the basics consistent
4. Software - beyond specialized FP&A software, ensure you have a great CRM for documenting client interactions, as well as a practice management tool.Let’s explore some tips for having productive advisory discussions.
Acing Your FP&A Advisory Discussions
Begin with Goals
Have a few, standardized questions focusing on very high-level drivers for your clients. These will be a springboard for learning how you can create value and can be fairly simple such as:
- What are your goals?
- What do you want out of your business?
- What's the biggest pain point in your life?
Embrace the Awkward Silences
Giving the clients time and space to really think and answer questions can be a struggle, but it’s important. Avoid trying to answer for them, even if you are uncomfortable waiting. Count to 10, 20, or even up to a minute to avoid interrupting and give their minds time to work and formulate answers.
Get to the Details
Once you’ve learned about your clients' goals, you can ask a follow-up question such as:
Based upon this goal, like, what are the next two or three things that have to occur to make that actually happen?
They might say they need to hire a new employee, grow revenue by 15%, or have something else in mind. Again, avoid answering for them so you can learn more about their thought processes.
This is where you’ll be able to demonstrate your value - once you’ve identified 2 or 3 activities they’ll need to fulfill these goals, you have something you can track. You know that every meeting going forward, you can collaboratively work towards taking the next steps to meet their goals.
Revisit Standard Questions - Even for Legacy Clients
Consider regular touchpoints to revisit the bigger questions around goals and actions. You could add more questions such as:
- What are we doing well?
- What do we need to improve on?
- How have your goals changed since we last spoke?
Make sure that you ask these questions even to long-standing clients. You might be surprised at some of their answers, and it will enable you to drive greater value.
Confronting Challenges in Advisory Discussions
Confidence
Even if you’re an expert in the field, sometimes framing yourself more explicitly as an advisor may feel strange. Start by choosing easier clients who would do well with your FP&A services. Those who already have clean books make working together a pleasure. Refine your process and build your advisory muscles gradually, don’t try to take on everything at once.
Existing Clients
You may already be providing advisory services for existing clients, and aren’t quite sure how to approach charging for these services. Having your standardized packages will be a useful tool. Outline what’s available at each level, giving them a taste of how you can go beyond their status quo to better reach their goals. Suggest a trial period, explaining the advantages.
Finding Value for Profitable Clients
Profitable clients might seem like the last ones who need to move towards more advisory services. In reality, these may have the most to gain from regular FP&A advisory discussions. Let them know that having a closer advisory relationship can provide a return on investment well beyond the cost of your services.
Profitable clients are often ones who can benefit beyond large goal discussions, and with some time reviewing their budgets may find thousands in savings from small things such as canceling software subscriptions for prior employees.
Further Resources
Building confidence takes time, but with practice, you’ll reap the benefits. Jirav offers regular free training, resources, and webinars to make the most of your FP&A services. Contact us today to book a demo of our FP&A software which will make you the superhero of your firm.