From Corporate FP&A to Building The FP&A Guy Business with Paul & Giles

In this episode of Financial Modeler’s Corner, Giles Male turns the tables on regular host Paul Barnhurst, also known as The FP&A Guy, to discuss Paul’s journey through FP&A, financial modeling, training, entrepreneurship, and the growing impact of AI on finance. They explore how Paul built his personal brand, transitioned from corporate finance into his own business, and developed a career centered around education, community, and connecting people across the FP&A ecosystem.

Expect to Learn

How Paul built The FP&A Guy brand.Why entrepreneurship comes with different risks.What makes financial modeling training effective.How AI is changing financial modeling.Why human judgment still matters.Lessons from rebuilding a difficult model.

Here are a few quotes from the episode:“What's the point of keeping a goal going for the sake of a goal if it doesn't make sense?” - Paul Barnhurst“AI is going to change it, but trust still matters, and there will be areas you want a human.” - Paul Barnhurst

Paul explains how his career evolved from corporate FP&A into a business built around training, podcasts, software research, educational content, and professional connections. He also discusses how AI can help financial modelers work more efficiently while emphasizing that judgment, creativity, and an understanding of the business remain essential.

Follow Giles:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/giles-male-30643b15/

Disclosure: Portions of this episode (such as the introduction or promotional segments) use AI-generated voice narration produced under human editorial review.

In Today's Episode:

[00:00] - Introduction

[03:03] - A Week in the Life of The FP&A Guy

[07:39] - How Paul Built His FP&A Brand