For finance professionals # Less manual finance. More intelligent work. Practical AI, automation and Excel insights for better reporting, planning and decision-making. [Explore AI for Finance](/topics/ai-for-finance)[Browse practical guides](/articles) - [AI for Finance](/topics/ai-for-finance) - [Reporting & Automation](/topics/reporting-automation) - [Budgeting & Forecasting](/topics/budgeting-forecasting) - [Excel & Modeling](/topics/excel-modeling) - [Tools & Reviews](/topics/tools-reviews) Finance Tech Spotlight ## Product guides [All tools & reviews →](/topics/tools-reviews) Illustrative product preview Product spotlight · Datarails Studio ### [Build finance apps with AI.](/post/datarails-studio-finance-apps-ai) From budget requests to variance analysis: a closer look at Datarails Studio. [Read the review](/post/datarails-studio-finance-apps-ai)[Explore Studio](https://www.datarails.com/studio/) Partner content: we may be compensated for visits or sign-ups. [Disclosure](/partner-disclosure) AI for Finance6 min read ### [How to Choose the Best AI FP&A Software for Excel Users](/post/how-to-choose-the-best-ai-fpa-software-for-excel-users) James Richard · January 28, 2026 Reporting & Automation7 min read ### [Getting Real FP&A Automation While Staying in Excel](/post/getting-real-fpa-automation-staying-in-excel) James Richard · October 3, 2026 ## Guides by finance task Start from the job in front of you, not the tool. ### Close the month with less manual work - [How to Improve Month End Close Using Financial Automation?](/post/how-to-improve-month-end-close-using-financial-automation) - [5 Reasons the Month End Close Takes Too Long](/post/5-reasons-month-end-close-is-slow) - [5 Monthly Reports Every Finance Team Should Automate](/post/monthly-finance-reports-to-automate) [More guides →](/topics/reporting-automation) ### Build a forecast people trust - [Short-Term vs Long-Term Cash Flow Forecasting](/post/short-vs-long-term-cash-forecasting) - [The Top 5 Cash Flow Forecasting Mistakes](/post/the-top-5-cash-flow-forecasting-mistakes) - [How to Spot a Missed Forecast Before the Month-End Close](/post/how-to-spot-a-missed-forecast-before-month-end-close) [More guides →](/topics/budgeting-forecasting) ### Use AI safely in finance work - [4 ChatGPT Prompts From Finance Professionals](/post/chatgpt-prompts-for-finance) - [Using AI In Variance Analysis](/post/using-ai-in-variance-analysis) - [Agentic AI in Finance](/post/agentic-ai-in-finance) [More guides →](/topics/ai-for-finance) ### Get more out of Excel - [Python in Excel for FP&A](/post/python-in-excel-for-fpa) - [The Guide to Creating a Variance Analysis Report in Excel](/post/creating-variance-analysis-report-in-excel) - [Free Excel Templates to Make Your FP&A Job Easier](/post/free-excel-templates-make-fpa-easier) [More guides →](/topics/excel-modeling) ### Choose finance software - [How to Choose the Best AI FP&A Software for Excel Users](/post/how-to-choose-the-best-ai-fpa-software-for-excel-users) - [Questions to Ask on a Demo for Native Excel FP&A Software](/post/questions-to-ask-on-a-demo-for-native-excel-fpa-software) - [Excel Add-in Vs. FP&A Software: What’s Better?](/post/excel-add-in-vs-fpa-software-whats-better) [More guides →](/topics/tools-reviews) ## Recent articles [All 211 articles →](/articles) [![](/__l5e/assets-v1/3a8a2eae-4a80-423a-9900-5c4ce1cdc633/orig-500eed15e75a-Excels-Limitations-When-It-Comes-to-FPA.jpg)](/post/excels-limitations-fpa) Budgeting & Forecasting7 min read ### [Excel’s Limitations When It Comes to FP&A](/post/excels-limitations-fpa) Excel has been a popular workspace of finance for decades, and for good reason. It is flexible, familiar, and powerful… James Richard · November 1, 2026 [![](/__l5e/assets-v1/bbfe3d93-bd64-4f86-b7b4-670dc4618873/orig-6a08037aad01-AI-Verification-Takes-Up-a-Quarter-of-Finances-Time.jpg)](/post/ai-verification-quarter-of-finance-time) AI for Finance7 min read ### [AI Verification Takes Up a Quarter of Finance’s Time](/post/ai-verification-quarter-of-finance-time) AI verification takes up a quarter of finance’s time, and that one figure says a lot about where AI stands… James Richard · October 18, 2026 [![](/__l5e/assets-v1/6398549d-4258-46de-9deb-a86cc3080bb9/orig-778ac2902337-How-to-Spot-a-Missed-Forecast-Before-the-Month-End-Close.jpg)](/post/how-to-spot-a-missed-forecast-before-month-end-close) Reporting & Automation6 min read ### [How to Spot a Missed Forecast Before the Month-End Close](/post/how-to-spot-a-missed-forecast-before-month-end-close) Most forecast misses are not true surprises. Somewhere on the team, someone usually had a hunch that a deal would… James Richard · October 11, 2026 [![](/__l5e/assets-v1/19d39af2-f416-4cf9-b423-ad2cb8bbed69/orig-cb272cf26a41-Getting-Real-FPA-Automation-While-Staying-in-Excel.jpg)](/post/getting-real-fpa-automation-staying-in-excel) Reporting & Automation7 min read ### [Getting Real FP&A Automation While Staying in Excel](/post/getting-real-fpa-automation-staying-in-excel) Most finance teams have no intention of abandoning Microsoft Excel, and they shouldn’t have to. You can get real FP&A… James Richard · October 3, 2026 [![](/__l5e/assets-v1/368cea88-b459-4920-8532-ba8352ad32f3/orig-94ddd3ce880f-Questions-to-Ask-on-a-Demo-for-Native-Excel-FPA-Software.jpg)](/post/questions-to-ask-on-a-demo-for-native-excel-fpa-software) Budgeting & Forecasting7 min read ### [Questions to Ask on a Demo for Native Excel FP&A Software](/post/questions-to-ask-on-a-demo-for-native-excel-fpa-software) Every FP&A vendor’s homepage says some version of “works with Excel.” That phrase covers three genuinely different products, and a… James Richard · September 17, 2026 [![](/__l5e/assets-v1/0c14964b-6489-4b69-a522-0da04aaa6cd2/orig-4534d4f3f75d-Getting-Ahead-on-Your-Annual-Budgeting-Process.jpg)](/post/annual-budgeting-process) Reporting & Automation7 min read ### [Getting Ahead on Your Annual Budgeting Process](/post/annual-budgeting-process) Getting ahead on your annual budgeting process starts with working backward from your board approval date. You need to align… James Richard · September 10, 2026 ## The Solving Finance newsletter Occasional, practical notes on AI, automation, FP&A and Excel. No spam.