What is the 'Link to Budget' onboarding option?

If you would like to build your forecast from a budget or an existing forecast, then you can use the ‘Link to Budget’ option when setting up your Fathom forecast.

The ‘Link to Budget’ forecast will bring data into your forecast from the budget you have imported into Fathom. If you have an existing forecast you want to use, then you can load that forecast into Fathom as your company budget from your source accounting system or Excel.

❗Note: The 'Link to Budget' onboarding specifically links your imported P&L budget to your forecast. Your forecast Balance Sheet and any Balance Sheet derived P&L accounts (e.g. interest, depreciation, amortisation) will not be linked to your imported budget. Instead, those values will be determined by the timing profiles, journals, and schedules you set up in the entity's forecast.

💡Pro Tip: When you first enter Fathom forecasting, there are three different onboarding options (Custom Forecast, Quick Start, and Link to Budget). Learn more in the 'Creating a Forecast in Fathom' article.

Onboarding process

To set up a ‘Link to Budget’ forecast,

Select the ‘Forecasting’ option for the company on the ‘My Companies’ page. If a forecast has not yet been created for the company, then you’ll be taken to a short overview video.
Select ‘Let’s get started’
Choose the ‘Link to Budget’ option
Set the default value rules for your Revenue, Expense, and Cost of Sales accounts. They will all start with the ‘Link to Budget’ option selected. You will also be able to set up default timing profiles for these account classifications. You can edit these value rules and timing profiles at the individual account, heading, or classification level once the forecast is generated.
Select ‘Next’ in the lower right corner
Choose the main accounts for your Balance Sheet classifications (e.g. choose a ‘Cash & Equivalents’ account to be your main or default cash account).
Select ‘Next’ in the lower right corner
Review and set up any taxes and select ‘Next’ in the lower right corner once done.
Review and set up loans and depreciation accounts in your forecast (linking the correct asset account to the P&L loan account and choosing the depreciation method).

❗Note: If you have loan or depreciation accounts in your chart of accounts but they are not showing up during that step of the onboarding, then those accounts are likely not classified as such in ‘Step 3 - Chart of Accounts’ in Fathom.
Select ‘Create Forecast’ in the lower right corner

Once you’ve reviewed all of the above, select ‘Create Forecast’ and you’ll be taken to the forecasting main grid.

💡Pro Tip: Any decisions you make during the onboarding process can be changed once you are in your forecast.

Next steps

Congratulations on completing the 'Link to Budget' onboarding! You should now be in the main grid of your forecast. Continue the 'Forecast Creation & Setup Workflow' by choosing from one of the next steps below:

What you want to do:	Where to go next:
Navigate the main forecasting grid	Forecasting Main Grid
Tailor and customise your forecast with value rules	Setting up Value Rules

Contents:

What is the 'Link to Budget' onboarding option?

Onboarding process

Next steps

Additional knowledge & common questions: