Research and KPO

Guy in a Cube (Adam Saxton — Microsoft Power BI team member) is the #1 Power BI channel globally, recommended universally on Reddit r/PowerBI. Enterprise DNA for finance-specific DAX patterns and dashboard design.

FP&A Dashboard - Budget vs. Actual with Drilldowns

Build a Power BI report for a simulated CFO team. Use a fictional P&L dataset covering 4 business units across 12 months. The report must show: total revenue vs. budget (with RAG status), margin trend, top 5 cost overruns, and a drilldown from BU -> product -> region. Add a slicer for month and BU. The final report should require zero explanation for someone who reads a P&L regularly.

Time box: 3-4 days

Data/source: Simulated dataset you create in Excel; use realistic INR numbers

Built FP&A Power BI dashboard for simulated multi-BU company; enabled budget vs. actual variance analysis with drillthrough by product and region.

ExcelJet (Dave Bruns) is the go-to professional quick reference. BIWS Excel series is the gold standard for IB model hygiene. TrumpExcel (Sumit Bansal) is India's most trusted Excel educator with 500K+ subscribers. Macquarie/Coursera Excel specialisation is the best free structured certificate path.

Audit-Ready Financial Model with Full Checks

Build an analyst-quality Excel workbook for any Indian company's financial projections. The model must follow professional hygiene: blue hard-codes, black formulas, no hard-codes inside formulas, circular reference check, balance sheet check, and a dedicated Assumptions sheet. Add a scenario toggle (Base/Bull/Bear), a sensitivity table, and a summary dashboard page. Someone should be able to audit your model without asking you any questions.

Time box: 3-4 days

Data/source: Screener.in for historical numbers

Built audit-ready financial model in Excel following professional hygiene standards; included balance sheet checks, scenario toggle, sensitivity table, and dashboard output.

Alex the Analyst is the most recommended SQL educator on Reddit r/learnSQL and r/dataanalysis for business/finance contexts — his beginner course has millions of views across multiple platforms.

Financial Transactions Database - Analyst Query Pack

Design and build a SQLite database of simulated financial transactions (imagine a mutual fund's trade log: trade date, security ID, ISIN, quantity, price, fund name, asset class). Populate it with at least 500 rows of realistic data. Then write SQL queries answering 10 analyst questions: total AUM by fund, top 5 stocks by value, daily P&L, sector allocation, and more.

Time box: 3-4 days

Data/source: Simulated data (you generate it), NSE ISIN codes from NSE website

Designed financial transactions database in SQLite and wrote 10 analyst queries covering AUM, sector allocation, P&L, and portfolio attribution.

FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

Messy model cleanup challenge

Refactor a messy finance workbook into a clean analyst model with inputs, calculations, outputs, checks, formatting, and version notes.

Refactored a messy finance workbook into an audit-ready model with checks, clean structure, and version notes.

CFI's 3-statement tutorial (UMYDxmiVin4) is the most-cited free modeling intro globally — r/FinancialCareers, WSO, LinkedIn IB prep groups all recommend it as the starting point. The Valuation School's Step-by-Step series (1.55M+ views) is India's #1 free Hindi/Hinglish modeling resource. BIWS is the gold standard paid path and their free YouTube content is still the best IB-quality free resource.

Three-Statement Forecast Model with Scenarios

Build a complete forward-looking three-statement model for any NSE-listed company. Start from historical actuals (3 years), build revenue and cost assumptions, project 3 years forward, link P&L to balance sheet to cash flow, and add two scenarios (base and bear). Add one sensitivity table showing how EBITDA changes with revenue growth and margin assumptions.

Time box: 4-6 days

Data/source: Screener.in, BSE India, company annual reports

Built integrated 3-year financial model for [Company] with base/bear scenarios and EBITDA sensitivity analysis; model passed internal checks and reconciled to published filings.

BIWS is the global reference for ER mechanics. The Valuation School covers Indian ER (NISM RA exam, Screener.in workflow, BSE filing analysis, reading Indian annual reports). Reading published Motilal Oswal, Kotak, ICICI Securities sell-side reports (all free) is universally recommended as the best way to study professional output.

Initiation-Style Stock Pitch

Write a 4-6 page initiation-style equity research note on any NSE-listed company of your choice. Include: investment thesis (why buy/sell), business overview, financial model summary, valuation (DCF + comps), key risks, and a 12-month price target with upside/downside. Format it as a professional document - readable by a portfolio manager or interview panel.

Time box: 5-7 days

Data/source: Screener.in, BSE India filings, company IR pages

Authored initiation-style equity research note on [Company] with DCF and comps valuation, 12-month price target, and investment thesis; modeled 3-year forward earnings.

BIWS covers credit analysis from a leveraged finance angle — most cited on r/creditanalysis and WSO. CFI's credit course is well-rated across communities. The Valuation School covers Indian credit market context — NPA recognition, CRISIL/ICRA rating methodology, RBI prudential norms.

Credit Memo for an Indian NBFC or Bank Borrower

Select a listed Indian NBFC or mid-cap manufacturing company. Prepare a 4-5 page credit memo as if you were a bank analyst recommending whether to extend a INR 100 Cr term loan. Cover: business overview, key risks, financial analysis (leverage ratios, interest coverage, DSCR), covenant proposal, and credit recommendation with rating rationale.

Time box: 4-5 days

Data/source: Screener.in, BSE India annual reports, CRISIL public rating rationales

Prepared credit memo for INR 100 Cr simulated term loan to Indian NBFC; analyzed leverage, DSCR, and covenant structure; arrived at credit rating rationale using CRISIL methodology.

CFA Institute is the authoritative ESG source globally. SEBI BRSR mandates make ESG essential for Indian listed company analysis. The Valuation School covers India ESG (BRSR framework, NVG/NGRBC, SEBI disclosure requirements). r/ESGInvesting for practitioner discussions.

ESG Scorecard for a NIFTY 100 Company

Choose a NIFTY 100 company. Using its BRSR report and annual report, build an ESG scorecard across Environmental (GHG, water, waste), Social (employee safety, diversity, CSR), and Governance (board independence, related-party transactions, auditor tenure). Score each 1-5 with evidence. Compare to any available third-party rating (MSCI, Sustainalytics, CRISIL ESG). Write a 2-page ESG investment memo.

Time box: 4-5 days

Data/source: BSE India BRSR filings, company annual reports

Built BRSR-based ESG scorecard for [Company]; scored E/S/G dimensions with evidence and wrote 2-page investment memo benchmarked against MSCI/CRISIL ESG ratings.

CFA Institute is the authoritative source for performance measurement. Patrick Boyle covers Sharpe, tracking error, and information ratio with practitioner depth. r/portfoliomanagement consistently references CFA materials for attribution.

Brinson Attribution Model for an Indian Equity Portfolio

Construct a 15-stock Indian equity portfolio allocated across 5 sectors (3 stocks per sector). Track its performance vs. Nifty 50 benchmark over 6 months using historical data. Build a Brinson-Hood-Beebower attribution model in Python or Excel decomposing the active return into: (1) Allocation effect (were you overweight/underweight the right sectors?), (2) Selection effect (did you pick better stocks than the sector average?), (3) Interaction effect. Produce a monthly attribution report for each month of the period. Write a 1-page 'PM letter' explaining the portfolio's performance.

Time box: 5-7 days

Data/source: yfinance (free NSE price data), NSE sector index data (free from NSE India)

Built Brinson attribution model for 15-stock Indian equity portfolio; decomposed 6-month active return into allocation, selection, and interaction effects; produced PM letter explaining performance drivers.

BIWS for research report structure. Studying published Motilal Oswal, Kotak, ICICI Securities reports (all free) is the top community recommendation. Ankur Warikoo for professional writing skills in Hindi. CFA Institute for advanced research standards.

Quarterly Results Update Note - 2 Pages

After a company you follow releases its quarterly results, write a 2-page 'results update note' in sell-side format. First paragraph: recommendation + key takeaway (recommendation must be clear in the first sentence). Then: revenue/EBITDA vs. your estimate. 3 positive takeaways and 3 concerns. Revised price target. Rating. Total readable in under 3 minutes by a busy portfolio manager.

Time box: 2-3 days

Data/source: BSE India quarterly results, company IR pages (earnings transcripts)

Authored sell-side style 2-page quarterly results note for [Company]; assessed earnings quality, updated model, and maintained Buy recommendation with revised price target.

Stanford's Matt Abrahams is the most respected English communication educator for professionals. Ankur Warikoo is undisputably India's #1 career communication resource in Hindi - his combination of ISB MBA background, Fortune recognition, and 5 bestselling career books gives him unmatched credibility for Indian students. FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

3-Minute Stock Pitch - Recorded and Self-Reviewed

Record yourself delivering a 3-minute verbal pitch on a stock of your choice. The pitch must include: investment thesis, key financial metrics, one risk and how you'd mitigate it, and a buy/sell recommendation. Record on your phone or Loom. Review it critically against a rubric: clarity of thesis, handling of numbers, pacing, filler words, eye contact. Revise and record a second version. Compare both.

Time box: 2 days (including revisions)

Data/source: Your own equity research project (link to valuation project above)

Delivered stock pitch for [Company] in simulated investment committee setting; recorded, self-reviewed, and revised against professional communication rubric.

The Pyramid Principle is the non-negotiable framework - learn it before your first day at any finance or consulting firm. The Coursera Business Writing course is the best free structured path. Warikoo covers the Hindi-language side of professional communication with credibility. FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

Investment Memo - 2 Pages, Pyramid Structure

Write a 2-page investment memo for a fictional IC (Investment Committee) recommending whether to invest INR 10 Cr in a listed Indian mid-cap company. Use the Pyramid Principle: lead with your recommendation, then support it with 3 key arguments, then provide evidence for each. No bullet-point dumps - write in professional prose. Get someone to read it cold and tell you what your recommendation was after reading only the first paragraph.

Time box: 2-3 days

Data/source: Your valuation project as the analytical foundation

Authored 2-page IC-format investment memo for INR 10 Cr equity investment using Pyramid Principle structure; memo communicated recommendation within opening paragraph.

HBR YouTube is the English professional standard for stakeholder management education. Warikoo is the Hindi equivalent for Indian workplace context. The most important principle: over-communicate before deliverables are late, not after. This single habit separates trusted analysts from unreliable ones. FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

Stakeholder Map + Difficult Conversation Role-Play

For any internship, college project, or mock deal scenario you have done: create a stakeholder map identifying all people involved, their interests, their power level, and how you would manage each. Then write out 3 difficult conversations you would need to have (e.g. telling an MD the model has an error, asking a client for an extension, pushing back on an unrealistic deadline). Script each conversation using the HBR 'SBI' (Situation-Behavior-Impact) framework. Role-play them with a friend or record yourself.

Time box: 2-3 days

Data/source: Your own experience (internship, project, capstone)

Managed cross-functional stakeholder communication across [X] parties during [project]; navigated conflicting priorities by proactive expectation-setting and structured escalation.

Ali Abdaal for evidence-based productivity systems in English. Warikoo for the Hindi-language equivalent with Indian professional context. The most important thing is not which system you choose - it is building the habit of weekly planning and daily prioritization before you start your job, not after. FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

Personal Workflow Audit and System Build

Conduct a 2-week time audit using Toggl (free). Track every hour across 5 categories: deep work, reactive work (email/messages), meetings, admin, and breaks. Analyse where your actual time goes vs. where you think it goes. Then design your personal workflow system: weekly planning template, daily top-3 priorities method, email batching, and a focus block schedule. Run the new system for 2 weeks and compare output quality and stress levels before/after.

Time box: 4 weeks total (ongoing habit, not a one-time task)

Data/source: Your own time tracking data

Designed and implemented personal productivity system using time-block scheduling and weekly review; sustained output quality across 80+ hour simulated deal week during capstone project.

FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

Role-specific interview answer bank

Create a technical and behavioral interview bank for a target finance role with STAR stories, model explanations, and project talk tracks.

Built a role-specific finance interview bank with technical answers, behavioral stories, and project talk tracks.

Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic is the undisputed authority on data storytelling - her book and YouTube channel are used in MBA programs globally. For Hindi-language visual communication education, Avi Singh covers the finance-specific application. The most impactful exercise: take your last financial model output and redesign it as if you were presenting it to someone who has never seen a spreadsheet. FinPreparoo prioritizes free or free-to-audit resources so cost does not block learning. Crowd research uses public Reddit threads, web results, and YouTube search — not private social feeds.

Annual Report Turned Into a 5-Slide Data Story

Take the annual report of any listed Indian company and distill its financial performance story into exactly 5 slides - no more. Each slide must make one clear point. No data dumps, no standard bar charts copied from Excel. Every chart must be redesigned following Cole Nussbaumer's SWD principles: clear title that states the insight, minimal non-data ink, one highlighted data point that drives the message. The audience is a CEO with 5 minutes.

Time box: 2-3 days

Data/source: BSE India annual reports (free)

Distilled [Company] annual report into 5-slide CEO-facing data story; redesigned financial charts following SWD principles to drive single clear insight per slide.