High value cash flow forecasting
High Value Cash Forecasting is cash forecasting that is used to support critical business activity such as day-to-day cash management, management reporting debt management.
Types of forecasting process
Our experience and research has shown that cash forecasting processes in large organizations can typically be grouped into one of the three categories outlined below. Forecasting processes are grouped on the basis of where most time is invested in the process itself and what the forecasts are ultimately used for.
ADMINISTRATION VALUE LEVEL
Majority of time spent on manual tasks such as spreadsheet consolidation and troubleshooting. Considerable time spent reconciling numbers and chasing entity data with little follow-up.
REPORTING VALUE LEVEL
Preparation of cash forecasts for limited internal distribution with no strategic impact. Processes of this type achieve a degree of task automation but do not monitor or measure accuracy.
HIGH VALUE LEVEL
This process generates treasury cash flow analytics that are used for decision making or critical reporting. Central to this type of process is building confidence in forecast accuracy through continual measurement and improvement.
How high value forecasts are used
High Value Cash Forecasts are used by Treasury and Finance teams to guide daily funding and risk management decisions while also feeding into critical reporting processes. High Value Cash Forecasts are used in one or more of the following ways:
REDUCE RISK
- Gain a clear view over future cash needs
- Avoid shortfalls and surprises
- Accurately predict covenants & key compliance metrics
CRITICAL REPORTING
- Management and executive reporting
- External stakeholder reporting (investors, banks etc.)
- Strategic planning (budget, 3-year plan, etc.)
- Board reporting
MAXIMIZE OPPORTUNITIES
- Make the best use of organic cash
- Minimise external funding requirements
- Efficient capital allocation & acquisition planning
- Proactive foreign exchange hedging
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Barriers & challenges
High Value Forecasting is all about generating a cash forecast that is reliable enough to be used for decision making. This means the person that uses it, be it a treasurer, financial controller or CFO, is confident that the forecast they have is as accurate as it can be.
Central treasury and finance teams in large companies face multiple challenges when attempting to consistently generate an accurate cash forecast that they are confident using to make decisions.
These challenges include the complexity of managing streams of data from multiple sources, including people, and not having the time and tools available to monitor the accuracy of forecasts.
Ultimately, these complexities and challenges don’t allow companies to build the confidence they require in their cash forecasts which in turn stops them from using them for high value purposes.
- Numerous ERP’s
- Many banks & accounts
- Multiple currencies
- P&L/balance sheet budget
- Intercompany reconciliation
- Multiple business units
- No cash culture
- Manual consolidation & reporting
- Shared spreadsheets
Necessary conditions
1. Accurate & reliable information input
The quality and accuracy of the information captured by your cash forecasting process will determine the ultimate quality and accuracy of the final reporting output. A High Value Cash Forecasting Process is designed to ensure that the quality and accuracy of the information used by the process is as high as it possibly can be.
2. Full, meaningful engagement from participants
Accurate and reliable information input is to a large extent dependent on each person involved in the process engaging with it in a meaningful way, at all times. Gaining the initial buy-in required to set-up a forecasting process and ensuring that it is engaged with in a meaningful way will go a long way to safeguarding the quality of the final output.
3. Appropriate tools, process, & support
Cash forecasting can be a time intensive process and specialist tools may be required to avoid burdening both business units and head office with additional manual workload. Factors such as the level of detail required, the number of data sources and the frequency of reporting will determine how much work is involved in a process and what tools are needed.
4. Analysis, performance reviews, & feedback
Monitoring and measuring the accuracy of forecasts over a period of time is crucial to building confidence and trust in the data that is used for decision making purposes. Accuracy metrics should be provided to every person involved in the forecasting process so that they can use it to understand and improve the quality of data that is used for forecasting.
Book a Demo
The best way to see CashAnalytics is through a personalised demo. Talk to an expert to see if CashAnalytics can meet your requirements and then book a demo.