Skip to content

NorthStar Driver Based Planning

Hero Banner

Nova Advisory: A Trusted OneStream Diamond Implementation Partner

Nova Advisory Customer Logo (20) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (28) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (24) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (27) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (17) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (21) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (19) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (18) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (16) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (32) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (31) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (33) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (12) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (30) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (15) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (29)

What is NorthStar Planning?

NorthStar is Nova Advisory’s proprietary financial planning methodology, designed to help organizations transition from disjointed, traditional planning methods to a continuous projection process.

Built on the OneStream platform, NorthStar accelerates planning cycles, improves accuracy, and enables finance teams to focus more time on analysis rather than preparation. 

Nova-NorthStar-RGB

Key Features

Ep.77

 

 

  • Driver-Based Planning: NorthStar leverages user-defined drivers, elastic inputs that influence business performance, to project Budgets, Forecasts, Risk & Opportunity (R&O), Long-Range Plans (LRP), and “What-If” scenarios.

  • Drivers dynamically model scenarios with higher certainty, allowing organizations to select a small number of impactful drivers for maximum efficiency.

  • Continuous Projection Framework: by replacing traditional Bottom-Up or Top-Down planning approaches, NorthStar enables real-time scenario analysis and predictive modeling, reducing latency and improving decision-making.

Why NorthStar?

Relying on traditional budgeting and forecasting models can hinder your ability to make critical decisions for your company swiftly and effectively. Driver-based planning offers a dynamic solution by focusing on the key drivers that directly impact your organization’s performance.

 

AdobeStock_822871487

 

Start Building the System Your Finance Team Deserves

Let’s talk about the challenges holding you back—and how we can solve them together.

Make the Most of Your OneStream Investment

Benefits for FP&A Teams

Reduced Preparation Time

With NorthStar, FP&A professionals spend less time on manual tasks like reconciling spreadsheets or chasing down data discrepancies. By reducing preparation time, teams can redirect their efforts toward strategic analysis, trend identification, and actionable insights that drive business performance.

Scenario Modeling

FP&A teams can quickly model multiple scenarios—such as market volatility, supply chain disruptions, or pricing changes—without rebuilding entire forecasts. This agility enables organizations to anticipate risks, evaluate opportunities, and make informed decisions faster, supporting proactive rather than reactive planning.

Scalable Across Industries

NorthStar's flexible framework has been successfully deployed in manufacturing, consumer goods, healthcare, and global enterprises, adapting to unique business models and operational complexities. Whether you’re managing seasonal demand, global supply chains, or regulatory compliance, NorthStar scales to meet your organization’s needs 

How It Works

 

devin-avery-I8oLKKQhyZA-unsplash

 

1. Define Drivers & Assumptions

Identify the key business drivers that have the greatest impact on performance—such as sales volume, pricing, or production capacity. These drivers should align with your strategic objectives and be measurable, elastic inputs that influence outcomes. 

2. Build Continuous Projection Models

Move beyond static annual budgets. NorthStar enables organizations to continuously update projections based on real-time data and changing business conditions. This approach provides greater agility and accuracy, allowing teams to respond quickly to market shifts or operational changes.

3. Integrate & Automate

Leverage the OneStream platform to integrate with existing ERP and operational systems to create a single source of truth, reducing manual effort and minimizing errors.

4. Analyze & Optimize

With preparation and data gathering automated, FP&A teams can focus on high-value analysis—identifying trends, evaluating risks, and uncovering opportunities.

 

Listen to The CPM Customer Success Podcast

3-2

 

For Finance Leaders Ready to Move Forward

CPM Customer Success, hosted by Nova Advisory’s Andy Smetana, is your guide to what’s possible. Each episode features real finance leaders sharing how they left behind outdated processes, overcame complexity, and took control of their performance management with OneStream.

Listen to Strategic OneStream Guidance

Organizations that trust Nova Advisory to Optimize Their OneStream Platform

Nova Advisory Customer Logo (26) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (25) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (23) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (22) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (14) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (13) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (11) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (10) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (9) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (8) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (7) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (6) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (5) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (4) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (3) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (2) Nova Advisory Customer Logo (1)

Ready to Make Your OneStream Investment Count?

As a trusted OneStream Diamond Implementation Partner, Nova Advisory brings the strategic guidance and technical expertise to ensure your system delivers measurable results — from faster closes and better planning to leadership-ready insights.

  1. Tell us where you are today — whether you're starting fresh or trying to fix what's not working

  2. Share your goals and challenges — we'll listen closely and assess what success looks like for you

  3. We’ll follow up with next steps — including how our proven approach can bring clarity, speed, and confidence to your OneStream investment

 

Start a Conversation