Blog
Development of Local Government Resilient Microgrids
Sapling was recently quoted in a report on the development of local government resilient microgrids. This report describes a research project undertaken by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities with funding from the United States Department of Energy.
The Excel Lambda Function for Financial Modelling
The Excel Lambda Function for Financial Modelling Excel has newly released the LAMBDA feature, currently only available for Excel ‘Insiders’ on Office 365. This new feature allows users to write their own custom Excel functions using normal Excel formula language. These new functions can then be referenced and re-used throughout the entire workbook, the same
KPIs for Clinic Roll-Up
KPIs for Clinic Roll-Up Capturing valuable data is more necessary than ever before for any business. Data is key to understanding business drivers that drive the operational and financial results of an organization. In order to capture data effectively and extract valuable insights, businesses/clinics, in this case, need to build a structured data warehouse system
Changing Finance Priorities during the COVID Era
key trends from CFOs and Finance leaders, including Improved FP&A relating to ESG information, Increased needs for data analytics and budgeting, Greater concern for data security.
APPrO: Financial modelling for IPPs increasingly powerful and accessible
key trends from CFOs and Finance leaders, including Improved FP&A relating to ESG information, Increased needs for data analytics and budgeting, Greater concern for data security.
Appointment of Sapling Advisory Board
Sapling Financial Consultants Inc. is pleased to announce the appointment of an Advisory Board. The Board’s mandate is to provide strategic guidance and foresight to Sapling.
The Challenges of Young Entrepreneurs in Canada
As Canada embarks upon a new stage of innovation, entrepreneurs are facing many challenges in an ultra-competitive environment.
All Companies Benefit From Externally-Built Models
Many companies falsely believe that having a CFO, or a robust financial department, means that they shouldn’t look into an externally built model.
A Company’s Finance Department: 8 Key Functions
What does “Finance” do? While it may sound like a simple question, it’s actually a very legitimate one, because the answers will be wide-ranging across CFO’s.
Incorporating Sustainability into your Small Business
4 different ways for small businesses to help reduce their environmental impacts and in many cases, save money.
Financial model success stories
All of the success cases that we have seen over the years have been an indicator that, when used correctly, financial models can significantly impact the operations of a company.
Small Business Growth and Job Creation Depend Upon Solving the Climate Issues
It is no secret that climate issues have a direct impact on small business performance.
Hidden Costs Of Not Using Experts
We have all heard sayings like ‘you get what you pay for’ or ‘cheap things end up being expensive’ and professional services are no exception!
Lessons from the Field: Typical types of lending ratios – What makes the bank anxious?
a study conducted by BDC found that financing is still one of the key barriers for SMEs to grow
The Return of Point-Of-Sale Lending
Point-of-sales loans are increasing in popularity and consumers have been choosing to borrow at checkout, instead of financing purchases.
Lessons from the Field: Don’t slip up!
At Sapling, we have seen a lot of financial models, and learned that sometimes growing businesses have assumptions that might push them in the wrong direction.
Sales Quotas: Common Mistakes You Might Be Making
Sometimes you might be dealing with your sales quotas the same way as slicing your pizza wrong…if one slice is too big, someone might end up with no pizza..
The Future of Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles
Electric cars and charging stations have become more popular than ever. They present many benefits when compared to conventional petrol/diesel cars.
Cryptocurrencies: Two Benefits and Two Problems You Should Be Aware Of
Cryptocurrencies have become a new investment trend. Everybody is trying to get a piece of the action, including investors, companies and the individuals.
8 More Model Building No-Nos
A continuation of our “10 Model Building No-Nos”. Here are eight additional no-no’s when building a new financial model.
Modelling Depreciation: A Straight-Line Depreciation Waterfall
Calculating depreciation can be a bit of a pain. For one thing, for many businesses, it’s just one of three ways of accounting for purchases of new fixed assets, besides the investing cash flow and tax depreciation.
Beyond M&A: 4 Other Types of Financial Models
When most people think of financial modelling, I’d wager that M&A and valuations come to mind.
Taking Apart the TTC (Part IV): Toronto vs. the World
How well Toronto stacks up against these 7 cities—at least in terms of a very limited measure, its subway.
Taking Apart the TTC (Part III): Rider Misery
After a relaxing summer filled with debugging MySQL queries and tweaking Windows forms, I’ve completed a prototype of EngagementPro, a piece of software designed to assist accountants with managing their workloads.
Taking Apart the TTC (Part II): Operators’ Workload
TTC fares and operator wages have grown in lockstep, at about double the rate of inflation, and double the rate of most Ontarians’ household income
Taking Apart the TTC (Part I): Fares and Wages
Fare hikes. Crowded subways. Funky smells. Surly drivers. For many of us in Toronto, a two-way commute on the TTC is a reality five days a week.
6 Ways to Cut Corners – Legitimately
Personal busy-ness at work gave me the chance to apply some of the insights I got into hewing to the high-level in consulting.
10 Model Building No-Nos
Having worked with a large variety of Excel-based models, in a number of different settings, I’ve seen a lot of practices that seriously undermine the usability of a model. Here are my top 10: