CA Vikram Shankar Mathur (www.vikramshankarmathur.link)

 

Partner, KARTIK T. VAYEDA & CO., Chartered Accountants

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About Vikram Shankar Mathur

I’m a Chartered Accountant and a seasoned technology consultant with over 30 years of experience in building smart business solutions using a unique blend of finance, technology, and automation. (www.vsmathurcoin.blogspot.com, vsmathurcoinshop.blogspot.com)

🔹 Advanced Excel Specialist

With in-depth knowledge of over 125–150 Excel formulas, I push Excel far beyond the ordinary. I also create powerful User-Defined Functions (UDFs) tailored to solve unique business challenges — making Excel not just a spreadsheet, but a smart system. (www.exceltrainerahmedabad.com, www.vbacoder1962.com)

🔹 Financial Management & Modeling Expert

Over the past three decades, I’ve developed numerous custom financial models based on the unique requirements of my clients. My deep understanding of financial principles ensures models that are not only functional but decision-focused. (www.ahmedabadfca.com, www.excel-vba-ahmfca.com)

🔹 Tally Accounting Software Authority

My journey with Tally began in 1995 with the DOS version, and continues today with Tally Prime 6. I’m recognized for creating flawless Chart of Accounts structures and managing accurate opening balance entries, even for datasets involving over 1,300 ledgers. (www.vikramshankarmathur.com, www.cavsm1962.co.in)

🔹 VBA Programmer & Excel-based Software Developer

I’ve been programming in Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) since the early 2000s. My Excel + VBA projects include:

• Payroll Management Systems

• Cashbook Automation Tools

• Income Tax Return Prep Software (2003–2009)

• ITNS 281 Challan Entry & Payment Modules

All built entirely using Excel and VBA, and customized for accuracy, automation, and ease of use. (www.vbacoder1962.in, www.vikramshankarmathur.info)

🔹 AI-Powered Problem Solver

Now fully immersed in the world of Artificial Intelligence, I can rapidly craft powerful prompts and implement AI-enhanced solutions. Whether it's automating tasks, generating reports, or training teams — I can bridge traditional methods with the power of today’s AI tools. (www.excel-vba-ahmfca.in, excel-vba-ahmfca.blogspot.com, cavsmathur.blogspot.com, deadlyvbaprogrammer.blogspot.com)

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CA Vikram Shankar Mathur
https://www.vikramshankarmathur.link
https://www.cavsm1962.co.in
https://www.vikramshankarmathur.info
https://www.cavsm.in
https://www.cavsm.info 

 

 

20250715 - How is Financial Intelligence related to the 3 financial statements?

 

How is Financial Intelligence satisfied by analysis of 3 Finance Statements, and how to decide what Financial Model will work best in breaking even?

Financial intelligence involves the ability to interpret financial data to make informed business decisions. The analysis of three key financial statements—the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement—is crucial for achieving comprehensive financial intelligence.

Understanding the Three Financial Statements

a. Income Statement:

This shows a company’s revenues and expenses during a specific period, resulting in the net profit or loss.

Analysis: Look for trends in revenue growth, profit margins, and expense management to assess operational efficiency.

b. Balance Sheet:

This provides a snapshot of a company's assets, liabilities, and equity at a specific point in time.

Analysis: Assess the company's liquidity, solvency, and financial stability by calculating ratios such as the current ratio, quick ratio, and debt-to-equity ratio.

c. Cash Flow Statement:

This statement tracks the flow of cash in and out of the business from operating, investing, and financing activities.

Analysis: Evaluate cash flow trends to ensure sufficient liquidity for operations and investments. Positive cash flow indicates that the business can sustain its operations and fund its growth.

How to Satisfy Financial Intelligence

To satisfy financial intelligence through these analyses, follow these steps:

Trend Analysis: Look for patterns over multiple periods in each of the statements.

Ratio Analysis: Use financial ratios derived from the statements to assess profitability, efficiency, and liquidity.

Benchmarking: Compare financial metrics against industry standards or direct competitors to understand relative performance.

Scenario Analysis: Use data from these statements to model various business scenarios (e.g., sales growth rates, expense changes) to forecast future performance.

Deciding on a Financial Model for Break-Even Analysis

To determine the best financial model for breaking even, follow these guidelines:

a. Understand Contributions:

Calculate contribution margin (Revenue - Variable Costs) to assess how much each sale contributes to covering fixed costs.

b. Determine Fixed and Variable Costs:

Categorize your costs appropriately. Fixed costs remain constant regardless of output, while variable costs fluctuate with sales volume.

c. Break-Even Point Calculation:

Use the basic break-even formula:

{Break-Even Point (units)} = {Fixed Costs} / {Selling Price per Unit - Variable Cost per Unit}

This calculation helps identify how many units need to be sold to cover all costs.

d. Choose the Appropriate Model:

If your business has stable prices and relatively predictable costs, a linear model might suffice.

For businesses with varying prices or complex cost structures, consider a more sophisticated model such as a multi-product break-even analysis or a contribution margin model.

e. Sensitivity Analysis:

Analyze how changes in selling price, variable costs, and fixed costs affect the break-even point. This helps in understanding risk and potential adjustments needed to reach profitability.

Conclusion

Financial intelligence is derived from a thorough analysis of financial statements, while effective break-even analysis depends on accurately categorizing costs and understanding revenue dynamics. By utilizing these tools and approaches, businesses can make informed decisions regarding pricing, cost management, and strategic planning to enhance financial performance and sustainability.

Financial Modeling in Excel For Dummies

 By Danielle Stein Fairhurst

Financial Modeling in Excel For Dummies by Danielle Stein Fairhurst – book overview & hands‑on guide

📘 Overview of Financial Modeling in Excel for Dummies

• Author credentials

  • Danielle Stein Fairhurst is a Sydney‑based financial modeling consultant and Microsoft MVP (2021) (datarails.com, 2022.globalexcelsummit.com)

  • Regular speaker, facilitator, and champion of women in finance (2022.globalexcelsummit.com)

• Book purpose

  • Designed for beginners and intermediate users, empowering them to create robust financial models without specialized software (youtube.com)

  • Emphasizes real‑world applicability across all business sizes—from solos to multinationals

• Hands‑on, learn‑by‑doing approach

  • Includes practice models with templates and step‑by‑step breakout exercises (dummies.com, linkedin.com)

  • Companion site offers downloadable Excel workbooks alongside the print material (datarails.com)

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🧭 Part 1 – Getting Started with Financial Modeling

• Introducing the basics

  • Defines a financial model as a structured, quantitative tool for business decision-making (dummies.com)

  • Debunks the myth that you need advanced math—emphasizes logic and structure over complexity

• Planning & designing models

  • Emphasizes clarity in structure: sheet layout, modular assumptions, and systematic flow (2022.globalexcelsummit.com, datarails.com)

  • Encourages thinking of the output/report first to guide the layout

• Best practices for model-building

  • Sixth “crucial rules” include labeling clearly, separating inputs/outputs, auditing formulas, and ensuring consistency (2022.globalexcelsummit.com)

  • Stresses adopting naming standards, documenting sources, color-coding, and version control

• Working with existing models

  • Strategies to review, edit, and validate models built by others (dummies.com)

  • Warns of dangers from hidden rows and inconsistent formulas, and how to detect them

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🧰 Part 2 – Diving Deeper into Excel

• Essential Excel tools & techniques

  • Covers Data Validation, Keyboard Shortcuts, Watch Window, Inspector, conditional formatting, FILTER, and structured tables (linkedin.com)

  • Encourages using Power Query and Power Pivot for large datasets (dummies.com)

• Core functions for finance

  • Focus on SUMIF(S), COUNTIF(S), IFERROR, XLOOKUP, INDEX–MATCH, logical and financial functions (NPV, IRR, PMT) (dummies.com)

  • Includes Goal Seek, Scenario Manager, and “What‑If” Data Tables (dummies.com)

• Errors, checks, and testing

  • Advocates for built‑in error checks, circular reference alerts, consistency auditing (dummies.com)

  • “Garbage in, garbage out” reinforces the need for assumption testing and stress-testing (dummies.com)

• Scenario & sensitivity analysis

  • Guides on setting up “best/base/worst” scenarios using drop‑downs and Data Tables (2022.globalexcelsummit.com)

  • Encourages looking side‑by‑side across multiple scenarios to reveal key drivers

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📊 Part 3 – Presenting Results & Managing Models

• Data visualization best practices

  • Dynamic charts that update directly from model inputs (dummies.com)

  • Clear, simple visuals—avoid clutter and keep charts linked to assumptions

• Formatting & labeling for clarity

  • Use of color, borders, labels, comments, and bolding to guide users (dummies.com)

  • Documentation and version control for collaboration and auditability

• Presentation & reporting skills

  • Guides on telling the “story” of the numbers: distilling key insights for executives (dummies.com)

  • Designing boardroom‑ready summary reports and slides

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💼 Part 4 – Sample Case Study

• End‑to‑end model build

  • Guided exercise walks readers through building an integrated model featuring income statement, cash flow, and balance sheet projections (dummies.com)

  • Highlights depreciation schedules, free cash flow, terminal value, and DCF valuation

• Putting it all together

  • Showcases how assumptions feed into outputs; scenario toggles impact charts and summaries

  • Illustrates iterative tuning for accuracy and realism

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🧩 Why It Works

• Accessible, practical

  • Reviewer notes: “Don’t be fooled by the Dummies branding—this is a meaty, excellent reference”

  • Another says it's a great baseline for fixing broken workbooks and auditing models (linkedin.com)

• Bridges theory & real-world needs

  • Balances technical Excel functions with high‑level design and layout guidance

  • Preps readers for collaborative work, audits, and consulting contexts (dummies.com)

• A career booster

  • Ideal for analysts, FP&A professionals, consultants and freelancers

  • Builds career-ready skills: clear layouts, auditability, scenario planning, and presentation

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📝 Takeaway Tips for You

• Highlight author credibility—MVP status, consulting background, global teaching presence

• Emphasize learn-by-doing style—step-by-step, downloadable models, real case study

• Stress balance—strong Excel techniques + design/communication skills

• Call out differentiators—scenario analysis, error checking, Power Tools integration

• Quote reviews to build trust:

  “A great reference for analysts of all skill levels ... control the model, or the model controls you.” (datarails.com, linkedin.com)

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Conclusion

Financial Modeling in Excel for Dummies is a thorough yet approachable guide. It empowers readers to:

• Plan smartly and layout models logically

• Master key Excel functions and tools

• Implement robust checks and scenario analysis

• Present polished charts and professional summaries

Whether you're in FP&A, consulting, or anywhere financial insights matter, this book is a practical handbook and career‑builder. Danielle’s blend of skill‑building, design principles, and real‑model walkthroughs makes this a standout resource. Highly recommended for you, my precious audience!

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CA Vikram Shankar Mathur
vsmathur@ahmedabadfca.com
https://www.ahmedabadfca.com
https://www.exceltrainerahmedabad.com
https://www.cavsm1962.co.in
https://www.cavsm.in
https://www.vikramshankarmathur.link
https://www.vbacoder1962.com
https://vsmathurcoin.blogspot.com
HTTPS://CODER.VIKRAMSHANKARMATHUR.INFO

Microsoft Excel and Myself

Perhaps there is some guilt hidden in my words when I say that I have never really acted on the maxim "When you've got it, flaunt it"!

Excel and I go back a long, long way - and yes, VBA Macro's came in much later, coz I used to do Macro Programming in Lotus 1-2-3 long before I began coding in Visual Basic for Applications. Funny thing is, that I never did it commercially, so far. It was always either for self-consumption, or for my CA Firm, where I had been a partner at that time.

Today, practically everyone who needs to compute figures, uses Excel Spreadsheets, VBA or no VBA. Ironically, a VBA subroutine, if coded properly, can save you hours of manual computing, a point I have proven over and over, in the past, since almost 1995, when I entered private practice, as a CA.

Today, even though Microsoft says that VBA will continue to be a part of the Office Suite, be it Office 2024/25 or Microsoft 365, there are maybe just a handful of CA's who use VBA, that too just the Macro Recorder!! Have yet to come across somebody professional regularly creating or actively using UDF's, userforms or class modules, which is where the true power lies!!

Not that I am complaining, because in any case, I am not doing what I currently do or have been doing commercially, so if I don't earn another rupee, it does not matter!!

Creating formats in Excel is another hobby that I have always had, and I have enough in my Formats folder to keep me going forever. Templates are for those who do not have time to create a format, but I have always carved out time from my schedule to create my own templates, but none that I can share publicly, unfortunately!! Yes, occasionally I too use office templates, like Amortisation of Term Loans, but only to adapt them for my own use.

What is AhmedabadFCA?

AhmedabadFCA is a website that seeks to cater to the various needs of the Chartered Accountants of Ahmedabad City, whether Fellow or Associate. Right now, we are in a very preliminary stage, but soon there are plans for big things to be implemented, like a forum where queries can be posted and addressed, something that needs to be brought to the notice of all the members can be highlighted here, etc.

So keep a watch, dear friends !! This is after all an AhmedabadFCA venture by yours truly.

CA Vikram Shankar Mathur
ahmedabadfca@gmail.com

September 14th, 2014