The 2025 Skills Map
- FP&A & Modeling: driver-based models, scenario planning, cash forecasting, sensitivity analysis.
- Revenue & Margin: ARR/MRR literacy, cohort/retention, unit economics, gross margin levers.
- Data & BI: SQL/Excel power user; dashboarding (Power BI/Tableau); data hygiene & join logic.
- Stakeholder Comms: executive-ready narratives, board materials, clear “so-what” insights.
- Treasury/Capital: cash optimization, debt covenants, working capital analytics.
Interview Prompts That Differentiate
Modeling
- Walk me through a driver tree you built. Which three inputs moved the forecast most?
- Show me a case where actuals diverged from forecast. Root cause and fix?
Revenue & Margin
- How do you decompose revenue growth (price/volume/mix/new vs. expansion vs. churn)?
- Give an example of improving gross margin by 100–200 bps. Which levers?
Data & BI
- Describe a query/report you owned end-to-end. What tables, joins, and filters?
- How do you prevent “dueling dashboards” and ensure a single source of truth?
Stakeholder Communication
- Share a time you persuaded a GM or VP to change direction using numbers.
- What does an executive-ready deck look like? Outline the story arc.
Resume Signals (by Level)
- Analyst: own a forecast module; automate a recurring report; measurable wins (e.g., “cut weekly close pack time 50%”).
- Manager: lead annual plan; cross-functional reviews; implement driver-based forecasting; standardize ROI business cases.
- Director: exec/board materials; coach a team; partner on strategy; define KPI framework and governance.
Practical Exercise (15–30 min)
Prompt: Build a simple 3-driver model for next-quarter revenue using price, active customers, and average orders per customer. Stress test ±10% and outline one initiative to close a $500k shortfall.
Expected: explicit assumptions, version control, sensitivity table/chart, clear narrative on actions (pricing test, promo efficiency, pipeline focus).