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Claude for Operators

Financial Modelling & Scenario Planning

Last verified: 14 February 2026 | Applies to: Pro, Max, Team, Enterprise (Finance plugin for full workflow)

In 30 seconds

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Most operators know what they want a financial model to answer but don’t have the time (or the Excel skills) to build one properly. Claude builds models with working formulas, linked assumptions, and formatted output — then runs scenarios against them so you can see what happens when the numbers change. You get a model you can hand to your CFO, your board, or your accountant.

What it does

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Claude builds financial models as downloadable Excel files with:

  • Working formulas — not static numbers. Cells reference each other, so changing an assumption flows through the entire model.
  • Assumption tables — clearly separated from outputs, so you know what to change and what not to touch
  • Multiple scenarios — best case, base case, worst case built into the same workbook on separate tabs
  • Sensitivity analysis — show how a key metric (e.g. EBITDA, cash runway) changes when one or two variables shift
  • Formatting — headers, borders, number formatting, colour-coded outputs. Looks professional, not like a CSV dump.

The models are genuine working spreadsheets. Your finance team can open them in Excel or Google Sheets and keep building from there.

How to set it up

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Step 1: Seed your financial context

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If you haven’t already, give Claude your company’s financial baseline:

Our company: B2B SaaS, Series A, 22 employees. Fiscal year ends 30 June. We use Australian accounting standards (AASB). Current ARR: $1.8M. Monthly burn: $165,000. Cash in bank: $920,000. Key cost centres: engineering (8 people), sales (5 people), G&A (4 people), marketing (3 people), founders (2 people). We report monthly to the board in a standard P&L format.

Step 2: Upload your historical data

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Here's our P&L for the last 12 months [upload file]. Use this as the baseline for the models I'll ask you to build.

Claude reads the structure, identifies line items, and stores the context for subsequent prompts.

How operators actually use it

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Three-scenario operating model

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This is the model most operators need first — and the one boards ask for most often.

Build a 12-month operating model in Excel with three scenarios:


Base case:
- Revenue grows 12% month-over-month (current trend)
- COGS at 28% of revenue
- Headcount stays at 22 until month 6, then add 4 engineers ($110K avg salary + 25% burden)
- Marketing spend: $25,000/month
- All other opex grows at 3% annually


Best case:
- Revenue grows 18% MoM (we land two enterprise deals in Q1)
- COGS drops to 24% (volume discount on infrastructure)
- Same headcount plan but add 2 SDRs at $70K each in month 4


Worst case:
- Revenue grows 6% MoM (enterprise deals slip)
- COGS stays at 28%
- Delay all hiring by 3 months
- Cut marketing to $15,000/month


For each scenario, show: monthly P&L, cumulative cash position, runway in months, and break-even month. Put each scenario on its own tab with a summary comparison tab.

Claude produces a multi-tab Excel workbook. The assumptions are in a clearly labelled section at the top of each tab, and all downstream calculations reference those cells. Change an assumption, and the whole model updates.

Unit economics model

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Build a unit economics model for our SaaS business:
- Average contract value: $6,500/year
- Average customer lifetime: 28 months
- Monthly churn rate: 3.6%
- CAC: $2,800 (blended across channels)
- Gross margin: 72%


Calculate LTV, LTV:CAC ratio, CAC payback period, and gross margin-adjusted LTV. Then show me a sensitivity table: what happens to LTV:CAC if churn moves between 2% and 6% (in 0.5% increments) and CAC moves between $2,000 and $4,000 (in $500 increments)?


Output as an Excel file with the sensitivity table formatted as a heat map — green for healthy ratios, red for concerning ones.

Claude builds the model and produces a colour-coded sensitivity grid. This is the kind of analysis that takes an afternoon in Excel and five minutes with Claude.

Fundraising runway model

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We have $920,000 in the bank. Build a cash runway model that answers: how many months until we run out of cash at current burn, and how does that change if we:
1. Cut marketing spend by 40%
2. Delay hiring by 2 months
3. Land the $180K enterprise deal we're negotiating (one-off, paid upfront in month 3)
4. Do all three


Show each scenario as a line on a chart (include the chart in the Excel file) and give me the runway in months for each. Also show the minimum cash balance and the month it occurs.

Pricing model

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We're considering changing our pricing from $149/month flat to a tiered model:
- Starter: $99/month (up to 5 users)
- Professional: $199/month (up to 20 users)
- Enterprise: $499/month (unlimited users)


Based on our current customer distribution [upload customer data], model the revenue impact:
- What percentage of customers fall into each tier?
- What's the net revenue change vs. current flat pricing?
- What's the break-even point — how many customers do we need to lose before the new pricing is worse than the old?


Build this as an Excel model with the tier definitions as adjustable assumptions.

Stress-testing a business decision

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We're deciding whether to open a second office in Melbourne. Model the costs:
- Lease: $8,500/month (12-month commitment)
- Fitout: $45,000 (one-off, month 1)
- 3 new hires: $95K average salary + 25% burden, starting month 2
- Travel between offices: $3,000/month


Against the expected benefit:
- 20% improvement in close rate for Melbourne-based prospects (currently 15% of pipeline)
- Current Melbourne pipeline: $420,000 annually


What's the payback period? At what pipeline value does this investment break even? Show me a 24-month view with cumulative cost vs. cumulative incremental revenue.
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