Build a 12-week cash flow forecast

Finance manager · Time: 45 min · Finance

Tools that fit this task

Prompt

Role: you are a financial analyst building a cash flow forecast for a small business.
Context: account balance {{amount}} as of {{date}}. Receivables: {{list with client codes, amounts and expected dates}}. Payables: {{list with dates}}. Recurring payments: {{rent, payroll, taxes with dates and amounts}}. Weekly sales plan: {{amounts}}. Assumptions: average payment delay {{days}}, bad debt {{percent}}%.
Task: build a 12-week cash flow forecast in three scenarios: base, optimistic (inflows +15%), stress (inflows minus 15% and payments delayed by another 14 days). Find the first week with a negative balance in each scenario and the three drivers that affect the result most.
Format: three tables week | inflows | outflows | net flow | closing balance. After them, the list of all assumptions you used and five conclusions with specific actions. All amounts in {{currency}}, no rounding to thousands.

Steps

Collect the inputs: account balances, receivables with due dates, payables with due dates, recurring payments (rent, payroll, taxes) with dates
Write down the assumptions in words: average client payment delay, share of bad debt, the weekly sales plan
Give the assistant the inputs and assumptions with a prompt for a weekly forecast skeleton and three scenarios
Get a weekly table with inflows, outflows, closing balance and the list of assumptions used
Move the skeleton into your own spreadsheet with formulas so the numbers recalculate when assumptions change
Ask it to find the week when the balance turns negative in the stress scenario and what drives it most
Record the decisions: which payments can be moved, whom to remind about payment, whether a credit line is needed

How to check the result

The forecast recalculates by formula when one assumption changes, the stress scenario shows the specific week of the cash gap, and there is a list of actions with deadlines

Pitfalls

The model calculates from your assumptions and looks confident: the list of assumptions must be written under the table and checked by you
Receivables with client names and amounts are a trade secret; they go into a public service with client codes

Data that stays out of public AI tools

Management reports with real names of divisions, products and clients: into a public service with codes and placeholder names
Receivables and payables with counterparty names and amounts: a trade secret, replace them with codes
Terms of loans, collateral and investor agreements: never into third-party services without a corporate agreement

Other tasks for finance managers

AI tools for finance managers · Prompt: Build a 12-week cash flow forecast