Side-by-side
| Dimension | FP&A Software | Operating Intelligence |
|---|---|---|
| Primary buyer | CFO, head of FP&A | COO, founder, head of ops |
| Primary job | Plan the future | Run the present |
| Time horizon | Annual + quarterly + scenario | Weekly cadence |
| Data scope | GL + budget + headcount | GL + CRM + ads + ecom + subscription |
| Output | Plan, variance, scenario | Decisions, actions, alerts |
| Examples | Mosaic, Cube, Datarails, Pigment | Fairview |
Where they overlap
Both categories produce a forecast. The difference: the FP&A forecast is the plan ("this is the number we will hit"), and the operating intelligence forecast is the projection ("based on current run-rate, this is the number we are likely to hit"). The first is a target; the second is a probability.
The two work in concert. FP&A sets the plan at the quarter. OI runs the weekly decisions that make the plan happen.