Financial modelling
Financial modelling plays a crucial role in guiding your business decisions, from investing in new projects to navigating mergers and acquisitions. It is crucial that the modelling you use is built in the most effective way and tailored to your business outcomes.
Whether building or reviewing a model for you, our experienced financial modelling team combines specialised tools and skills to get the most from your data. When building a model , our team will often apply our expertise to present your model in a digestible and dynamic way. By creating a dashboard for your data, you can then view different scenarios in various formats. Whether we are reviewing your financial modelling from a quality assurance point of view or preparing a model for a transaction, we care about the outcome for your business. We will work closely with you to turn the model around quickly and make sure it helps you make informed decisions.
We will also help you gain the most value from the financial modelling, with training and hands-on support on bids. If you face a dispute, we provide forensic support to investigate, explain and track errors in modelling and spreadsheets.
Model development services
We build a wide range of financial models, from basic cash-flow forecasting and strategic planning to complex transactional support models and data analytics. For each project, we invest time upfront and hold a detailed scoping workshop to learn about your plans for your project, business or operation, so that we can develop a model that focuses on the most critical elements for you.
We know what investors, regulators, banks and other partners are looking for, and our expertise is in building financial models that strike the balance between presenting complex data in a simple way and providing sufficient granularity to support confident decision making. We aim to build models with flexibility, enabling you to easily update the model to get answers quickly.
In cases where we build financial models for a transaction, we will support you to explain the model with confidence during the bidding process.
Over the years, we’ve supported lenders, private equity and financial institutions, Government departments, NHS Trusts and FTSE350 firms to navigate business events through clear and robust financial modelling. Working across a range of sectors, including energy, infrastructure, real estate, manufacturing, services and transport, we know what motivates investors in different industries.
Model assurance
Getting independent, formal assurance on your financial modelling can give you confidence that it is working correctly. We provide a range of assurance services, from reviewing financial models with best practice in mind, to comprehensive model logic reviews and independent model audits for lenders and investors. With a model audit, you benefit from the certainty and credibility of third-party assurance.
Model health checks
A model health check is a high-level risk assessment to identify potential errors and risks in a model or financial data flow. We assess the aspects of the model structure from a best-practice perspective, providing a valuable way to assess the capability of your team and the suitability of your spreadsheets.
We conduct the health check against a standard set of tests using a range of software add-ins and spreadsheet review tools. These allow us to produce a key findings report to highlight risk areas and provide simple recommendations to remedy any issues.
Financial modelling training
It can make sense for your team to have a better understanding of how to carry out financial modelling, so that you can quickly create new forecasts and make decisions. Our experienced team can support you with training or informal workshops that up-skill your team in modelling best practice.
Forensic support services
We offer forensic support for litigation and claims to investigate financial modelling and spreadsheet-based matters. Our experience includes mediation, developing expert reports and analysis, joint expert reporting, and giving evidence under cross examination. We have supported clients in situations where models or model audit processes have failed or where spreadsheet algorithms have incorrectly interpreted contracts, leading to a dispute.
Model adviser (monitoring) services
In some transactions, the financial model will play an ongoing role as a monitoring and reporting tool for the stakeholders of the project or business. For large and complex transactions and long-term contracts, changes to the model can be a source of risk and uncertainty. This risk arises due to the complexities of updating a model ‘in flight’ for project performance or modified commercial or contractual terms; or due to the changes in personnel and ownership of a model that can follow financial close.
It is in these situations that the model adviser role comes into play, deploying financial modelling and transactions expertise to validate or implement changes in the model to accommodate operational input or logic changes. This gives stakeholders and investors’ confidence that the updates have been implemented correctly and consistently and that the model’s integrity remains intact.
Our team have acted as model adviser on a number of deals, including one of the largest defence infrastructure projects procured in the UK.
Financial modelling best practice guideline
We created the Financial Modelling Best Practice Guideline for the ICAEW’s Corporate Finance Faculty, providing a practical guide to financial modelling principles. Please contact us if you would like a copy.
