Controlling & Finance for Better Business Steering
Better decisions require more than better information
Turning planning, business cases and performance information into better management decisions.
Finance and Controlling create value when their information shapes decisions – not merely when it reports results.
In industrial and process-driven B2B organisations, planning, forecasting, business cases and performance management need to connect financial insight with business priorities and effective execution.
Mind your business supports management and finance teams in making these activities more relevant, effective and useful in daily business.
Our approach combines extensive corporate finance and leadership experience with a practical understanding of management decisions, cross-functional collaboration and implementation.
When Controlling & Finance becomes a management issue
Controlling & Finance become particularly important when existing information and processes do not provide the support management needs.
Typical situations include:
Planning and forecasting require considerable effort without creating sufficient clarity about future priorities,
Business cases and investment decisions rely on assumptions that are not consistently challenged,
KPIs and management reports generate information but lead to too few relevant actions,
Finance teams struggle to establish themselves as effective business partners,
Management needs clearer connections between strategy, financial performance and implementation.
In these situations, improving the quality of financial information alone is rarely sufficient. The real challenge is to make Finance and Controlling more effective contributors to business decisions.
Connecting financial insight with management action
Finance and Controlling should help organisations understand where they stand, assess future options and take effective action.
This requires more than reliable figures and well-defined processes. It also requires an understanding of the business, its decision-making needs and the people involved.
Mind your business works at the interface between Finance, management and other business functions.
The focus is on practical improvements that help managers make informed decisions and steer business performance.
Our work helps organisations:
Connect financial planning and forecasting with strategic and operational priorities,
Strengthen the quality and comparability of business cases and investment decisions,
Make KPIs, reporting and performance reviews more relevant to management,
Improve collaboration between Finance and other business functions,
Develop Controlling and Finance into more effective business partners.
Typical topics and starting points
Controlling & Finance are most effective when they are understood as an integral part of business steering.
Our work therefore focuses on areas where planning, evaluation and performance management can directly improve decisions and execution.
Three topics are particularly relevant.
Strategy, Planning & Forecasting
Make planning a tool for steering the business, not just producing numbers.
Planning creates value when it connects strategy with operational priorities, resource allocation and future business decisions.
However, complex planning cycles, disconnected forecasts and inconsistent assumptions can reduce its effectiveness.
Mind your business helps make planning more relevant, integrated and efficient.
Typical areas of support:
Improving strategic, financial and operational planning processes,
Connecting business plans, forecasts and management priorities,
Developing scenario-based planning and forecasting approaches,
Improving planning efficiency and reducing unnecessary complexity,
Strengthening the use of planning outcomes in management decisions.
The objective is a planning approach that provides direction, supports decisions and remains useful as circumstances change.
Business Cases & Investment Decisions
Create a stronger foundation for investment and business decisions.
Business cases are more than financial calculations.
They translate strategic and operational options into comparable assumptions, scenarios, risks and expected outcomes.
A strong business-case process makes these elements transparent and helps management evaluate alternatives more systematically.
Typical areas of support:
Developing and improving business-case structures and processes,
Reviewing assumptions, sensitivities, uncertainties and risks,
Strengthening comparability across projects and investment options,
Improving investment evaluation and capital allocation criteria,
Integrating critical thinking and de-biasing into business-case decisions.
The objective is not to create increasingly complex models. It is to provide better foundations for making important business decisions.
Performance Management, KPIs & Reporting
Turn performance information into clearer management action.
KPIs and management reports should provide more than a description of past performance.
They should help managers understand developments, identify relevant deviations and decide where action is required.
Mind your business helps organisations improve the connection between performance information, management discussions and implementation.
Typical areas of support:
Reviewing and developing KPI frameworks and performance indicators,
Improving management reporting and analysis processes,
Making performance reviews more focused and action-oriented,
Connecting forecasts, actual performance and corrective measures,
Aligning performance management with business priorities and responsibilities.
The objective is to establish a steering approach that supports timely decisions and effective execution.
Further areas of support
Depending on your organisation and its priorities, our collaboration may also address:
Strengthening Finance Business Partnering and the role of Controlling,
Improving interfaces between Finance, management and operational functions,
Reviewing management information and decision-support materials,
Developing financial understanding among non-finance managers,
Identifying decision biases in planning, forecasting and performance reviews.
These topics may form part of Management Advisory, a focused consulting project or a tailored training programme.
Questions worth addressing
The starting point for meaningful improvements is often a critical look at existing management and finance practices.
- Does our planning process genuinely help us prepare for the future?
- Which assumptions have the greatest impact on our forecasts and business cases?
- Are we measuring what really matters to business performance?
- Do our management reports lead to decisions and actions?
- Is Finance involved early enough in important business decisions?
- Where do functional interfaces slow down effective steering?
- Which established routines should we reconsider?
Addressing these questions can reveal opportunities to improve both the effectiveness of Controlling and its contribution to business performance.
Experience in Controlling, Finance & Business Steering
Controlling & Finance is a core part of the professional background behind Mind your business.
Markus Eckhart brings more than 25 years of corporate and leadership experience, including extensive responsibilities in Finance, Controlling and business steering within international industrial organisations.
His experience includes leading finance teams, developing planning and performance management processes, managing improvement initiatives and working closely with management teams across different functions.
At Borealis and other international organisations, his responsibilities involved corporate planning, KPI development, reporting, business finance and cross-functional management projects.
This practical background helps connect financial questions with strategic priorities, decision-making and organisational realities.
The objective is not to introduce theoretical frameworks, but to develop approaches that work within your organisation.
More about Markus Eckhart
How our collaboration works
The right approach depends on your starting point, the topics involved and the outcomes you want to achieve.
The aim is to make Controlling and Finance more effective in everyday business.
Our work typically follows three steps.
1. Clarify the management need
We discuss the business context, current steering challenges and relevant management priorities.
The objective is to identify where better planning, evaluation or performance information could make the greatest difference.
2. Review the current approach
We examine the relevant processes, information, assumptions and responsibilities.
Depending on the situation, this may involve reviewing planning approaches, business cases, reporting, KPIs or the collaboration between Finance and management.
3. Develop and implement improvements
Together with your teams, we develop practical improvements and agree on priorities and responsibilities.
Where appropriate, we also support implementation, review progress and help establish improved working routines.
Possible ways of working
Collaboration can range from a focused review to practical improvement support or critical sparring on an important business case.
Three formats are particularly suitable.
- Business Steering Review:
Identify where planning, reporting or KPIs can create more management value. A focused review of selected elements of your Controlling and business steering approach. We examine how existing information and processes support management decisions, where friction occurs and which improvements could deliver the greatest benefit.
Suitable when: You want an independent assessment of planning, forecasting, reporting or performance management before deciding on specific improvements.
- Finance Process Improvement Support:
Make core Finance and Controlling processes more effective. Support for improving planning, reporting, forecasting, business-case or performance management processes. The work may include analysis, process development, stakeholder involvement, workshops and implementation support.
Suitable when: A specific Finance or Controlling process needs to become more efficient, relevant or better integrated into management activities.
- Business Case Sparring:
Challenge assumptions and strengthen decision foundations. A structured review of an important business case, investment proposal or commercial decision. We examine assumptions, risks, alternatives, financial logic and decision criteria, combining analytical rigour with an independent management perspective.
Suitable when: An important business decision needs stronger preparation, critical review or a fresh external perspective.
Additional ways of working
Depending on your needs, our collaboration may also include:
Finance Business Partnering and competence development,
Reviews of management reports, forecasts and performance materials,
Sparring on investment, planning and performance questions,
Workshops with management, finance and cross-functional teams,
Combinations of advisory support, training and practical implementation.
Explore Process Consulting | Explore Management Advisory | Explore Training & Workshops
What you can expect from our collaboration
Controlling & Finance should make management work easier, not more complicated.
Depending on your starting point, our collaboration aims to contribute to:
More effective and business-relevant planning and forecasting,
Better-founded business cases and investment decisions,
Clearer KPIs and more useful management reporting,
Stronger cooperation between Finance and other business functions,
More consistent connections between business priorities, decisions and implementation.
The ultimate goal is better business steering, supported by capable finance teams and practical management processes.
Who Controlling & Finance support is designed for
Our work is particularly relevant for:
CFOs and senior Finance leaders,
Heads of Controlling and performance management,
General managers and business unit leaders,
Finance Business Partners and corporate planning teams,
Managers responsible for cross-functional steering and improvement initiatives.
The primary focus is on industrial, process-driven and internationally active B2B organisations.
Frequently asked questions
What others say about our collaboration
Markus has the ability to step back whenever necessary in order to keep the big picture and the issue to be solved in sight. He analyses and structures consequently and uses his strong conceptional competence in a skilful way.
Our dialogues brought me inspiring and refreshing lines of thinking and at the same time concrete ideas how to implement. He is a highly valued sparring partner who can extend my perspective and resolve potential blockades with just a few questions.
Olivia Pfeiler, Teamleader Controlling
Make Controlling & Finance more effective for your business
Would you like to make planning, business cases, KPIs or performance management more effective in your organisation?
Let's discuss your current challenges and identify where Mind your business could support better decisions, clearer steering and more effective execution.
For broader management support, explore Management Advisory. For focused improvement of management processes, explore Process Consulting.