CASE STUDY

FP&A Design Thinking

A CFO-sponsored journey map of every key job, user and pain point in FP&A, with opportunities ranked in a prioritization framework.

MY ROLE

Design thinking facilitator

DEDICATED TEAM

Senior members of the finance team

TIMELINE

2 weeks

IMPACT

180 opportunities uncovered, 19 selected on a prioritization framework

01

The problem

With a new CFO joining the firm, there was a need to develop a deeper understanding of existing FP&A processes, team responsibilities, and cross-functional interactions. The challenge was to uncover the team’s most significant pain points and identify opportunities for improvement, giving the CFO a clear, prioritized view of where to focus efforts based on business value and implementation effort.

02

Users & Stakeholders

The CFO sponsored the initiative, bringing together senior FP&A team members and key cross-functional stakeholders who interacted with Finance. 

03

My Role

I facilitated the design thinking process, conducting stakeholder discovery and preparing the session, then leading an eight-hour workshop with senior FP&A leaders to map key jobs, uncover pain points, and identify opportunities. I translated the findings into a value-versus-effort prioritization framework to help the CFO identify where to focus improvement efforts.

04

Approach & Deliverables

I conducted pre-work stakeholder interviews to map key FP&A jobs and workflows, then facilitated an eight-hour, in-person design thinking session with senior finance leaders to uncover 180 opportunities for improvement. The findings were synthesized into a comprehensive journey map and a prioritization framework ranking the top 19 opportunities by business value and implementation effort.

Journey Map

Thematic Opportunities

Prioritization Framework