Reports show totals without explaining movements
Income, expenditure or margins have changed, but the current reporting does not establish the drivers or the questions that require investigation.
OUR SERVICES
Corporate Financial Analysis
For owners and finance teams with financial records available but limited explanations of performance, inconsistent reporting or unanswered questions about costs.
SERVICE OVERVIEW
Performance, reporting and exposure
Explain material movements and review the financial pressures behind them.
Management needs to know what changed, what contributed to it and whether action is warranted. We analyse financial statements, costs, cash forecasts and operating results, then organise the findings into reporting that gives those questions a practical place in the management discussion.
When this service is useful.
Actual performance differs from budget
Management needs to distinguish timing differences, activity changes and cost movements before deciding whether its expectations should be revised.
Management reporting is difficult to use
Different periods, definitions or levels of detail make it hard to compare results and connect the information with decisions.
The analytical work.
Choose the management question
Establish the decision, reporting period and comparisons that matter. Identify the financial statements, cost records, forecast inputs or operating information relevant to answering the question.
Organise a consistent comparison
Review periods, category definitions and available supporting records. Make provisional figures, missing information and estimates visible so differences are not interpreted without their context.
Investigate performance, costs and exposure
Compare actual results with budget or an appropriate prior period. Examine material movements and fixed or variable cost relationships where supported. Consider liquidity timing and forecast assumptions that could expose the business to financial pressure.
Build the management discussion
Present the important findings with concise commentary, supporting analysis and unresolved questions. Connect performance observations with forecast assumptions or follow-up work relevant to management's next decision.
Potential service deliverables.
The assignment may include the following work products. Format, level of detail and any recurring updates are agreed in the service agreement.
Financial performance analysis
An assessment of relevant statement movements and operating results, using comparisons suited to the business question and explaining limitations that affect interpretation.
Actual-to-budget variance analysis
A breakdown of material differences, supported explanations where available and outstanding questions, helping management distinguish observed changes from assumptions about their causes.
Financial risk assessment
An analytical review of cost exposures, liquidity timing and sensitivity to forecast assumptions, identifying where downside conditions could affect expected performance or cash availability and where more information is needed.
Financial reporting and management support
A management report structure or analytical discussion pack with relevant measures, commentary and review questions, adapted to the records available and the decisions it should support.
Use the analysis in management reviews.
- Spend management review time on significant movements and decisions rather than unexplained totals.
- Use consistent comparisons to challenge explanations and locate information gaps.
- Carry findings from recent performance into the next reporting and forecasting cycle.
Financial reporting support concerns internal management information and does not constitute an audit or statutory reporting service.
RELATED SERVICE
Business Financial Strategy
See how the related service addresses its own management requirements and work products.