Start with the decision, not a short-term versus long-term slogan
Treasury and financial planning and analysis overlap in forecasting, but their central decisions differ. AFP describes treasury around liquidity, funding and financial risk, and FP&A around planning, analysis and decision support. Neither function belongs exclusively to a short or long horizon.
This guide develops the earlier treasury-versus-FP&A manuscript into two original practice cases. They are fictional and do not describe an employer's internship assessment. Use them to choose the work you want to demonstrate, then inspect the exact program's responsibilities and requirements.
Treasury case: a positive ending balance can still be a problem
A fictional business begins with $120,000, expects $80,000 of receipts and must pay $170,000. Ending cash is $30,000. If management requires a $50,000 minimum, the modeled shortfall against that minimum is $20,000. A positive ending balance does not mean the minimum is met.
| Scenario | Ending cash | Lowest balance or ending minimum gap |
|---|---|---|
| Receipts before payments | $30,000 | $20,000 below the $50,000 minimum |
| Payments before receipts | $30,000 | Temporary balance −$50,000; $100,000 needed to preserve minimum |
| $30,000 receipts delayed beyond horizon | $0 | $50,000 ending minimum gap |
If $30,000 of receipts is delayed beyond the forecast horizon, ending cash becomes zero and the minimum-balance gap becomes $50,000. Do not describe the delay as a permanent loss of revenue without evidence; it is a change in cash timing in this exercise.
Ordering matters as well. If all $170,000 of payments occurs before any receipts, cash temporarily falls to −$50,000. Maintaining a $50,000 minimum throughout would require $100,000 of additional cash at that point, not merely the $20,000 ending gap. A negative modeled balance is a funding need, not an assumption that a bank will permit an overdraft.
FP&A case: explain the result with a reconciled bridge
Plan assumes 2,000 units at $100, variable cost of $60 per unit and fixed cost of $50,000. Planned operating profit in this simplified model is $30,000. Actual results are 1,800 units at $105, variable cost of $64 per unit and fixed cost of $52,000, producing $21,800. The shortfall is $8,200.
| Input | Plan | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| Units | 2,000 | 1,800 |
| Price | $100 | $105 |
| Variable cost per unit | $60 | $64 |
| Fixed cost | $50,000 | $52,000 |
| Modeled operating profit | $30,000 | $21,800 |
One exact bridge uses planned unit contribution for volume and actual units for price and cost: volume −$8,000; price +$9,000; variable cost −$7,200; fixed cost −$2,000. The total is −$8,200. Other consistent decompositions can allocate interaction effects differently; explain the method instead of comparing bridges as though every line must be identical.
This calculation explains an arithmetic variance. It does not prove why volume fell or whether the price increase was a mistake. The next step is to investigate the operating drivers and revise a forecast with explicit assumptions.
Build the artifact that matches the question
For treasury preparation, build a dated cash schedule with receipts, payments, minimum balance and a delay scenario. For FP&A preparation, build a plan-versus-actual bridge and a short note about which assumptions need investigation. Both should contain input definitions and formulas that another person can inspect.
Do not call the second model a cash-flow forecast without modeling collection and payment timing. Do not call the first model a profitability analysis merely because it has inflows and outflows. These distinctions matter when explaining your work in an interview. A simple model with the right question is better than a complicated workbook with confused definitions.
Data and worked inputs
Ask what the internship actually owns
Search exact function names and read the team description. A corporate-finance internship can rotate, specialize or support several functions. Ask whether the work centers on cash visibility, bank reporting, budgets, forecasts, variance analysis or business partnering. Do not infer a rotation structure from the employer's full-time program.
Prepare one explanation of a model error you caught and one example of communicating an uncertain assumption. If the work was a course or independent project, label it that way. Avoid promising that either route guarantees a later investing or banking position; the evidence here concerns the work, not career-conversion probabilities.