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CoolDashboards, LLC — Financial Planning Model
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Model User Guide & Monthly Rollover Procedures
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MODEL OVERVIEW
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This is a fully integrated financial planning model for CoolDashboards, LLC, a VC-backed SaaS company. The model covers 60 months (Jan 2025 – Dec 2029) and is split into Actuals (hardcoded historical data) and Forecast (formula-driven projections). All three financial statements (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow) are fully linked and balance-checked.
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SHEET STRUCTURE
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Sheet 1: Sales Planning
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• Purpose: Customer-driven revenue model with ARR waterfall
• Inputs (yellow cells, B4:B13): Starting ARR, customers, churn/expansion rates, growth rate, pricing
• Last Actuals Month (B14): Controls the actuals/forecast cutoff
• Monthly model: Beginning Customers → New → Churned → Ending Customers → ARR build → Monthly Revenue
• Feeds: Revenue line into Full Financials P&L
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Sheet 2: HQ Planning (Headcount Model)
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• Purpose: Employee-level headcount and cost planning
• Inputs (yellow cells, B4:B7): Benefits load %, merit increase, bonus target, non-HC spend ratio
• Last Actuals Month (B9): Controls the actuals/forecast cutoff
• Employee Roster (rows 12–104): Individual employees with Name, Dept, Role, Start Date, Term Date, Salary, Bonus %, Increase %
• Monthly Cost Summary (rows 106–133): Headcount and loaded cost by department, non-HC OPEX (tokens, tools), Total OPEX
• Feeds: Total HC Cost and Non-HC OPEX into Full Financials P&L
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Sheet 3: Full Financials
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• Purpose: Integrated P&L, Balance Sheet, and Cash Flow Statement
• Inputs (yellow cells, B4:B12): COGS %, D&A %, tax rate, Series A cash, AR/AP days, CapEx %, interest rate
• Last Actuals Month (B13): Controls the actuals/forecast cutoff
• Income Statement (rows 14–35): Revenue (from Sales Planning), COGS, Gross Profit, OPEX (from HQ Planning), EBITDA, Net Income
• Balance Sheet (rows 37–52): Cash, AR, PP&E, AP, Equity, Retained Earnings — with automatic balance check
• Cash Flow Statement (rows 54–74): CFO, CFI, CFF — with automatic cash tie-out to BS
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VISUAL CONVENTIONS
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Yellow cells = INPUT ASSUMPTIONS (editable — change these to run scenarios)
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Light green columns = ACTUALS (hardcoded values from real accounting data)
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White/light blue columns = FORECAST (formula-driven, auto-calculated from assumptions)
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Blue font = Hardcoded input values
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Green font = Cross-sheet references (links to other tabs)
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Red border = Actuals / Forecast dividing line
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MONTHLY ROLLOVER PROCEDURE
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Perform these steps at the end of each month when new actuals are available:
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Step 1: Update the Last Actuals Month
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On each sheet, update the "Last Actuals Month" yellow input cell to the new month:
• Sales Planning → cell B14
• HQ Planning → cell B9
• Full Financials → cell B13
For example, after closing April 2026 actuals, change all three to "Apr-2026". This is for visual reference — the actual data cutoff is determined by which columns have hardcoded values.
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Step 2: Load Sales Actuals
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Go to the Sales Planning sheet. Find the first forecast column (currently column Q = Apr 2026). Overwrite the formula-driven values with actual data:
• Row 23: Beginning Customers (should match prior month's Ending Customers)
• Row 24: New Customers (actual new logos signed)
• Row 25: Churned Customers (actual churns, enter as negative)
• Row 26: Ending Customers
• Row 29: Beginning ARR (should match prior month's Ending ARR)
• Row 30: New ARR (actual new bookings)
• Row 31: Churned ARR (actual churn amount, enter as negative)
• Row 32: Expansion ARR (actual upsells/expansions)
• Row 33: Ending ARR
• Row 36: Monthly Recognized Revenue (from accounting system)
• Row 37: Cumulative YTD Revenue
After pasting, apply the light green background (#E2EFDA) to the newly actualized column and extend the red border.
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Step 3: Load Headcount Actuals
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Go to the HQ Planning sheet:
1. Update the Employee Roster (rows 12–104): Add new hires, update term dates for departures, adjust salaries if needed
2. In the Monthly Cost Summary, overwrite the first forecast column with actuals:
• Rows 109–115: Actual headcount by department
• Row 116: Total headcount
• Rows 119–125: Actual loaded cost by department (from payroll system)
• Row 126: Total HC cost
• Rows 129–130: Actual token spend and dev credits
• Row 131: Total non-HC OPEX
• Row 133: Total OPEX
Apply green background to the new actuals column.
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Step 4: Load Financial Statement Actuals
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Go to the Full Financials sheet. Overwrite the first forecast column with actual data from the accounting system:
Income Statement:
• Row 16: Actual Revenue
• Row 17: Actual COGS (enter as negative)
• Row 18: Actual Gross Profit
• Rows 22–24: Actual OPEX items (enter as negative)
• Rows 27–34: Actual EBITDA through Net Income
Balance Sheet:
• Rows 40–42: Actual Cash, AR, PP&E from trial balance
• Rows 46–51: Actual AP, Equity, Retained Earnings from trial balance
• Row 52: Verify balance check = 0 (if not, investigate)
Cash Flow:
• Rows 57–73: Actual cash flow items from bank/accounting system
• Row 74: Verify cash tie-out = 0
Apply green background and move the red border.
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Step 5: Review & Adjust Forecast Assumptions
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After loading actuals, review and update forecast assumptions (yellow cells) on each sheet if needed:
• Sales Planning: Adjust growth rates, churn rates, or expansion rates based on latest trends
• HQ Planning: Add planned future hires to the roster, update the benefits load or non-HC spend %
• Full Financials: Adjust COGS %, CapEx %, or working capital assumptions
The forecast columns will automatically recalculate based on the new actuals and updated assumptions.
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Step 6: Validate the Model
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Run these checks after every rollover:
✓ Balance Sheet check (row 52): All months should show "—" (zero). Any non-zero value indicates an imbalance.
✓ Cash tie-out (row 74): All months should show "—" (zero). Confirms CF ending cash = BS cash.
✓ Gross Margin (row 19): Should be ~70% (= 1 – COGS %). If actuals deviate significantly, investigate.
✓ EBITDA trend: Should show improving margins as the company scales.
✓ Cash balance (row 40): Should never go negative. If it does, the company needs additional funding.
✓ Headcount totals: Verify HQ Planning row 116 total headcount matches your HR system.
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KEY FORMULAS & LINKAGES
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Revenue: Sales Planning row 36 → Full Financials row 16 (via ='Sales Planning'!Q36)
HC Cost: HQ Planning row 126 → Full Financials row 22 (via =-'HQ Planning'!Q126)
Non-HC OPEX: HQ Planning row 131 → Full Financials row 23 (via =-'HQ Planning'!Q131)
Net Income: Full Financials row 34 → Cash Flow row 57 → Retained Earnings row 49 (cumulative)
Ending Cash: Cash Flow row 73 → Balance Sheet row 40 (circular reference broken via interest on beginning cash only)
Balance Check: row 52 = Total Assets – Total L&E (must equal 0)
Cash Tie-Out: row 74 = BS Cash – CF Ending Cash (must equal 0)
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TIPS & BEST PRACTICES
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• Always work left-to-right: load Sales actuals first, then HQ, then Financials
• Back up the file before each rollover (save a dated copy)
• Never overwrite forecast formulas more than one column ahead — only actualize the next month
• If you need to reforecast mid-month, only change yellow input cells — never edit forecast column formulas directly
• To add a new employee: insert a row in the roster (rows 12–104) and fill in all fields. The SUMPRODUCT formulas will auto-include them.
• To model a future funding round: add the amount to row 68 (Equity Issuance) in the expected month
• The model assumes 0% tax rate (NOL sheltering). Update B6 on Full Financials when the company becomes taxable.
• Columns B through P are actuals (Jan 2025 – Mar 2026). Column Q onward is forecast.
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