James Richard
Key takeaways from Microsoft’s Finance Team: Excel, Automation, and Efficiency
There are a lot of positive things to learn from tech giant Microsoft. After all, you have to be doing something right to be the 4th most...
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Welcome to the
Solving Finance Blog
James Richard
- Mar 2
- 4 min
The Guide to Creating a Variance Analysis Report in Excel
What is Variance Analysis? Variance analysis is a financial analysis technique used to compare actual financial performance to planned or...
James Richard
- Feb 23
- 4 min
The Top 5 Dangers of Using Spreadsheets for Financial Modeling
Businesses today continue to heavily rely on spreadsheet software like Microsoft Excel for financial modeling, despite the numerous...
James Richard
- Feb 8
- 3 min
Spreadsheets are now cool, thanks to influencers
Excel made a grand entrance in 1985, but it wasn't long before it was seen as outdated. Year after year, there have been efforts to...
James Richard
- Jan 8
- 4 min
How to Create Ad Hoc Reports in Excel
Ad hoc reporting in Excel can look very different for different people. One of the benefits of using a spreadsheet based software is that...
James Richard
- Oct 30, 2022
- 4 min
7 Quirky and Lesser Known Facts About Excel
Everyone knows the basic story of Excel. It was created in 1985 by Microsoft, it was and still is one of their biggest successes, and is...
James Richard
- Sep 18, 2022
- 7 min
Dear Excel, How can FP&A professionals make the most of their spreadsheets?
After (almost) 40 years, there is a reason why FP&A and accounting professionals continue to use Excel. It works. But what happens when...
James Richard
- Aug 7, 2022
- 5 min
What to do When Excel Doesn't Meet Your Spreadsheet Needs
Excel is an excellent tool for processing data, but it has its limitations. If you are using overly complicated formulas, or if your...
James Richard
- May 17, 2022
- 7 min
Excel Accounting with Bargain Purchases
In the corporate world, the fancy term for “a steal” or just good value is “bargain purchase”. This occurs when a buyer purchases an...
James Richard
- May 2, 2022
- 5 min
The 5 Secrets to Excel’s Survival and How to Improve its Shortcomings
In a couple of years, Microsoft Excel will turn 40 years old- an ancient dinosaur in terms of technology and software. While most tech...
James Richard
- Apr 7, 2022
- 4 min
13 of the Latest Tips for Accounting with Excel in 2022
Here are 13 tips and features to bring more agility, functionality and usability to your Excel spreadsheets. Share this with your team as...
James Richard
- Mar 29, 2022
- 4 min
Leveraging Excel in Cash Flow Planning
Cash flow planning is of paramount importance to the financial well being of an organization. Your company can be profitable but still...
James Richard
- Feb 10, 2022
- 5 min
Variance Analysis: Top 4 Best Practices to Report in Excel
Your most recent budgets have substantially high variances—well over 10%. Your management team will be concerned as to why, and will ask...
James Richard
- Jan 9, 2022
- 4 min
10 Excel Web and Desktop Updates to Take With you into the New Year
Excel is constantly implementing upgrades in order to improve the usability and efficiency of its software. 2021 came with plenty of...
James Richard
- Dec 31, 2021
- 4 min
The Most Powerful Excel Functions You Aren’t Using
If you’re reading this, you likely work in corporate finance. While it isn’t possible to dissect everything about your personality and...
James Richard
- Dec 29, 2021
- 6 min
The Wall of Shame for the Worst Excel Errors
Microsoft Excel was one of the ground-breaking inventions of data science, and is still used today by over 60% of businesses. Despite its...
James Richard
- Dec 15, 2021
- 6 min
Best Excel Courses for Financial Teams in 2022
“What experience do you have with Excel?” is undoubtedly a question that will be asked in some variation during the job interview...
James Richard
- Dec 14, 2021
- 5 min
The Excel User’s Guide to Data Accuracy
In today’s corporate finance environment, there’s a lot of buzz regarding the relevance and perenniality of Excel; there are many today...
James Richard
- Dec 6, 2021
- 3 min
Why It Isn’t The Time To Move On To Google Sheets - Excel vs Google Sheets
Spreadsheets are extremely useful business tools. They are used to list, manipulate, and calculate a variety of corporate processes, such...
James Richard
- Nov 25, 2021
- 4 min
Excel is not a Database!
We’ve seen the Excel is not a database memes and we know that Excel is used in almost every business, but what exactly are the...
James Richard
- Nov 18, 2021
- 4 min
Almost 90% of Excel Spreadsheets Contain Errors; Here’s how to Avoid this Statistic
The famous statistic that 88-90% of Excel files contain errors is a pretty scary thought. Despite the advanced functions and all of the...
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