Pro Forma Template
A starter pro forma template for consulting. Download the .xlsx, then ask the Deckary AI Excel Agent to fit it to your numbers, your reporting structure, and your output sheets.
Free download. No signup required.
Sheets in this workbook
- Assumptions
- Revenue Projections
- Expense Projections
- Projected P&L
- Cash Flow Projection
- Dashboard
About pro forma templates
Pro forma templates give you a multi-year projection structure with assumptions, revenue build, and output statements. Open one in Excel and ask the agent to start from your current run-rate, add scenarios, or audit the formula chain.
What a good pro forma template should include
Most template downloads stop at the file. The useful part is whether the workbook has the sections, checks, and formulas needed for real Excel work.
Forward-looking assumptions
A pro forma template should expose growth, pricing, cost, hiring, and margin assumptions rather than hiding them in formulas.
Projected statements
Revenue, expenses, cash flow, and supporting schedules should connect to a forecast that can be reviewed under different cases.
Scenario outputs
Base, upside, and downside outputs make the workbook useful for planning, fundraising, lending, or internal decision-making.
How to use this template in Excel
Start from the current run-rate, not from an abstract growth target. A pro forma template is strongest when it connects today's revenue, margins, headcount, and cash position to the forecast period.
Build the forward view from drivers. Revenue should connect to volume, price, customers, contracts, or pipeline. Expenses should connect to hiring, departments, vendor plans, and operating assumptions.
Use scenarios to test the story behind the forecast. Ask Deckary to add base, upside, and downside cases so the workbook shows which assumptions move revenue, EBITDA, cash, and funding need.
Customize these inputs first
- Current run-rate and latest actual period.
- Revenue drivers by product, customer, contract, or unit.
- Gross margin and operating expense assumptions.
- Hiring plan, capex, financing, and cash assumptions.
- Scenario cases and sensitivity inputs.
Check before you rely on the output
- Forecast months start from reported actuals.
- Output statements change when assumptions change.
- Scenarios are linked to drivers, not separate hardcoded models.
- The summary view shows the assumptions behind each case.
When to use this Excel template
Start with the closest workbook, then let Deckary adapt the structure to your actual data and reporting cadence.
Business planning
Use the template when you need to show what the business could look like under a clear set of assumptions.
Fundraising or lending support
Ask Deckary to turn the pro forma into a cleaner summary with assumptions, cash runway, and major sensitivities visible.
Scenario comparison
Use the agent to add downside and upside cases without manually duplicating every formula and output row.
Common mistakes to avoid
These are the problems that usually make an Excel template look complete while still being hard to trust, update, or explain.
Forecasting with top-down percentages only
A flat growth percentage may be useful for a quick case, but it rarely explains the business. Add operational drivers that a reviewer can challenge.
Creating disconnected scenarios
Copying the model three times creates version risk. Scenarios should use shared formulas with controlled input changes so differences are easy to trace.
Leaving cash out of the forecast
Revenue growth can still create cash pressure. Include working capital, capex, debt, and funding assumptions if the pro forma is used for planning or fundraising.
What the template will not solve by itself
A pro forma template will not make a forecast credible by itself. The forecast needs drivers that connect to the current run-rate, pipeline, pricing, hiring plan, capacity, margins, and cash position.
It also will not validate market assumptions. Growth rates, conversion, churn, customer volume, and pricing still need to be tested against actual performance, market evidence, or management commitments.
The template can produce a clean projection, but the model is incomplete if cash and financing are omitted. Revenue growth, working capital, capex, debt, and funding need should be included when the forecast informs real decisions.
Templates get you 30% there.
The other 70% — fitting it to your business, your data, your actuals, your reporting structure — is what the Deckary AI Excel Agent does.
Available pro forma templates by industry
Pick the closest industry starter, download the .xlsx, then ask the Deckary AI Excel Agent to adjust line items, formulas, and outputs to your business.
What to ask the agent once you've opened the template
Templates handle the layout. Paste any of these into the Deckary AI Excel Agent and it will do the customization, audit, or output work for you.
Build a 3-year pro forma starting from my current run-rate.
Add scenario columns (base / best / worst) with sensitivity inputs.
Audit the formulas so growth assumptions flow through cleanly.
Adapt the template for a SaaS model with cohort retention.
Build an output sheet ready for a board or investor pack.
Pro Forma Templates FAQ
What is a pro forma template in Excel?
A pro forma template is a forward-looking financial workbook that projects future performance using assumptions. It is used for planning, fundraising, lending, acquisitions, and major business decisions.
What should a pro forma template include?
It should include assumptions, revenue forecast, expense forecast, cash flow, projected income statement, supporting schedules, and scenario outputs.
Can Deckary add scenarios to a pro forma template?
Yes. Ask Deckary to create base, best, and worst case scenarios, link them to assumptions, and summarize how the cases affect revenue, EBITDA, cash, or valuation.
Is a pro forma the same as a financial model?
A pro forma is often part of a financial model. Financial models can be broader, while pro formas focus specifically on projected statements and forward-looking assumptions.
Keep going inside Excel
The template is the starting point. The Deckary AI Excel Agent builds on it, audits it, and reshapes it to match your business.