01 / Definitions
Budget, forecast and operating model
These three get used interchangeably and they are not the same thing. A budget is the plan agreed at the start of the year: the target. A forecast is the current best view of where the year actually lands, refreshed as reality changes. An operating model is the engine underneath both: the driver-led model that shows how the business converts activity into profit, balance sheet and cash.
Most businesses have a budget and call it a forecast. The value is in the operating model and a live forecast that moves with the business.
02 / Standard
What makes a forecast credible
A forecast the board believes has five things in common.
- Driver-led assumptions. The numbers are built from the things that actually move the business, not grown by a percentage.
- Clear ownership. Someone is accountable for each assumption and can defend it.
- Scenario analysis. A base case, and a view of what happens if the key drivers move.
- Three statements, linked. Profit, balance sheet and cash flow connected, so the forecast holds together.
- Consistent KPI definitions. The operating metrics mean the same thing in the model as in the board pack.
03 / Scope
Our FP&A work
We build the models and the process around them.
Three-statement models
Profit, balance sheet and cash flow, linked and built to be used, not admired.
Rolling forecasts
A live outlook refreshed on cadence, owned by the team.
Budget process
A budget built from drivers, agreed and defensible.
Unit economics
The per-customer or per-unit maths that explains whether growth pays.
Scenario and sensitivity
What happens when the key drivers move, quantified.
Investor and board forecasts
An outlook packaged for the people who fund the business.
04 / Sector
FP&A for SaaS and recurring-revenue businesses
Recurring-revenue models live or die on a specific set of drivers. We build around them.
- Revenue drivers. New, expansion and contraction, modelled separately.
- Retention and churn. The compounding effect that most spreadsheets get wrong.
- CAC and payback. What a customer costs to win and how long it takes to earn back.
- Gross margin. The true cost of delivering the product at scale.
- Cash runway. How long the current plan lasts, and what changes it.
05 / Evidence
Case evidence
Anonymised. Names are withheld; the shape of the engagement and the outcome are real.
A B2B SaaS business in the optical sector had inherited a 150-tab model that no longer reconciled. We replaced it with a working three-statement model. The CFO uses it for the board pack and the monthly numbers.
A CTV and streaming-data business ran a monthly retainer alongside the CFO through budget season, board reporting and an institutional raise. We owned the rolling forecast, board pack, unit economics and investor numbers. The model went through institutional diligence and the round closed.
06 / Fit
Who this is for
This is for SaaS, technology and industrial businesses that need a forecast credible enough for leadership decisions, board reporting or a transaction. It is most valuable when the current model has grown unmanageable, when the forecast is not trusted, or when an investor process is coming and the numbers need to hold up.
Three Sixty Finance is led by Arta Ramaj and Ellery Hodson. Senior finance operators are accountable for every judgement, with technology used to remove the manual bottlenecks underneath.
07 / Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a budget and a forecast?
A budget is the plan agreed at the start of the year, the target. A forecast is the current best view of where the year actually lands, refreshed as reality changes. Most businesses have a budget and call it a forecast.
What makes a financial model investor-grade?
Driver-led assumptions with clear ownership, three linked statements, scenario analysis, and KPI definitions that are consistent with the board pack. It has to be traceable and defensible when a diligence team examines it.
Do you build the model or just advise on it?
We build it. Senior operators construct the model and the forecasting process, then embed it so your team can own it.
Can you model SaaS metrics like retention, CAC and runway?
Yes. Recurring-revenue businesses live on those drivers, so we model new, expansion and contraction revenue, retention and churn, CAC and payback, gross margin and cash runway explicitly.
Will the forecast hold up in diligence?
That is the point of building it properly. We have built models that went through institutional diligence in live raises where the round closed.
How often should a forecast be refreshed?
A rolling forecast is refreshed on a fixed cadence, typically monthly, rather than rebuilt from scratch each time. The cadence matters as much as the model.
Build a forecast your board can use
Tell us what the current model is missing. We will come back to you with a clear view of where we can add value.
Talk to the team