Innovation
Building your first financial model: the founder’s template, with Novabook
- Innovation
- Article
- 7 minutes read
We’ve partnered with startup accounting specialist Novabook to create a financial model for early-stage founders who are yet to hire their first senior finance leader. Start applying structure to your numbers: access the template here.
- Your financial model is a core component of your financial and operational strategy. But many founders struggle to identify a solid template to start their planning and modelling.
- In our template, your monthly and annual financial models will take shape based on your inputs and costs. Be sure to review the model consistency checks in the relevant tab, to ensure the data all makes sense.
For founders, designing a first financial model can be an intimidating process. How much detail do you need? How far ahead can you reliably forecast? And what if there’s a big pivot on the horizon?
Building reliable financial models amid that uncertainty is never easy. So we’ve teamed up with Novabook, the accountant for startups, to create a template financial model for founders who haven’t yet hired their first senior finance executive.
The model gives you clear inputs for your revenues and your costs, as well as monthly and annual breakdowns. It’s a valuable tool when designing your cash flow forecasts, planning new expansion activity, and initiating conversations with investors. We used a SaaS company as an example. For hardware focused companies or similar sectors, some sections will to be updated based on your needs. Download the model as an Excel file.
Please note, all data is for illustrative purposes.
For more from Novabook, tune in to our sit-down interview with COO Ruben Portz, where we dig into the cash flow essentials founders should bear in mind as they start to scale. Watch the interview here.
Any opinions expressed are merely opinions and not facts. All information in this document is for general informational purposes and not to be construed as professional advice or to create a professional relationship and the information is not intended as a substitute for professional advice. Nothing in this document takes into account your company’s individual circumstances. HSBC Innovation Banking does not make any representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness or completeness of this document and the material may not reflect the most current legal or regulatory developments. HSBC Innovation Banking disclaims all liability in respect to actions taken or not taken based on any or all of the contents in this document to the fullest extent permitted by law. Nothing relating to this material should be construed as a solicitation or offer, or recommendation, to acquire or dispose of any investment or to engage in any other transaction.
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