How to Forecast Revenue & Growth for Your Business

This is a FREE Workshop sponsored by DECD. Pre-registration is required - space is limited.

Writing a business plan requires financial projections. In this advanced workrshop, you will learn how to prepare detailed financial projections, including start up costs, and projected cash flow analysis.

Workshop Requirements:

You have taken SCORE's Your Business--Your Money: Financial Literacy workshop or have equivalent knowledge of the key financial statements
A laptop capable of running Excel.
The Portland SCORE Financial Projections Template, which you can download here (this template fulfills requirements for commercial lenders)

As a result of this workshop, and its hands-on examples, participants will better understand:

How to project cash flow
How to complete your cash flow analysis
How to create financial projections required for a business plan and by potential lenders

There is a critical difference between businesses that succeed and those that fail—and it's not a matter of luck. Planning and careful financial analysis are the keys to success, and financial plan is the road map for success or failure.

Your Presenter - Ann Marie Swenson

Ann Marie Swenson is CFO at Thornton Academy. She joined the school in 2018 and is responsible for the Finance, IT, Facilities and HR functions.

Ann Marie’s background is quite diverse. Prior to the Academy, she was Regional Manager Business Banking for the State of Maine at People’s United Bank. Her team worked with commercial clients with borrowing needs up to $2MM. She was with the Bank for 15 years and prior positions include Business Banking Team Leader, Windham Market Manager and Sr. Credit Analyst.

After graduating from college with a degree in Finance, she spent 9 years as a financial analyst at GE, Budget Rent A Car and Genzyme, a biotech company in Boston.

In 1995 she moved to Maine to pursue a life time goal of owning her own homemade super premium ice cream shop. In 1996 Ann Marie opened Q’s Ice Cream in Portland and operated the business until 2001. The company was voted Portland’s best ice cream, was featured on an episode of the PBS tv show Made In Maine and even appeared in Bon Appetit magazine.

In 2001 she exited the business and began working with others to help them open and grow successful businesses. She worked for the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development for 1 1/2 years and ultimately landed at Maine Bank & Trust, now People’s United Bank.

Ann Marie is very active in the community and is a strong proponent of economic development in the region. She serves on a number of volunteer boards and organizations.