Training course · Claude Code · Controlling

Claude Code for Controllers

Agentic coding with Claude Code in the terminal and IDE: CLAUDE.md, subagents, hooks, MCP, CI pipelines and secure permissions.

Duration
2 days (14 hrs)
Format
Online or on-site
Language
German or English
Participants
open dates or exclusive for your team
Certificate
Certificate of attendance

Overview

“Claude Code for Controllers” is a hands-on course for roles such as Controllers and finance business partners, Heads of controlling and FP&A analysts. Rather than learning Claude Code in the abstract, you work on tasks from your daily routine – with examples, exercises and templates from Controlling.

Claude Code is not only for professional developers. Business users with no programming background can use it to analyse data, clean up Excel and CSV files, generate reports or build small internal tools, all in plain language. You describe what should happen, and Claude Code writes and runs the necessary scripts itself. This course variant shows you how to put these capabilities to work in your daily job without needing to understand code, and how to check the results reliably before anyone relies on them.

You will work through realistic office scenarios: merging exports from several systems, producing analyses with charts, generating documents and mail merges automatically, or turning repetitive file chores into a single command. Working safely is a central theme: which data may be processed, how you stay in control of approvals, and when to involve your IT department. The result is a set of useful helpers that take load off your team while remaining transparent and easy to hand over.

Controlling depends on reliable figures, fast analysis and clear communication with management. Generative AI supports controllers at exactly these points: AI assistants explain variances in the monthly report, suggest formulas and pivot structures, sanity-check planning assumptions and turn findings into plain-language management commentary. AI agents and automation pull data from the ERP, BI tools and spreadsheets, prepare forecasts and generate standard reports. This accelerates the shift from number cruncher to business partner who explains root causes and prepares decisions. A clean data foundation, clearly defined KPIs and expert review of every AI result remain essential before anything reaches a report or a board paper.

The course is delivered live – either online in a virtual classroom or on-site in our training rooms in Munich, Salzburg, Berlin, Augsburg, Hanover, Bremen, Stuttgart and Kaiserslautern. We can also run it exclusively for your team.

Who is this course for?

  • Controllers and finance business partners
  • Heads of controlling
  • FP&A analysts
  • Cost centre and project controllers
  • Sales and manufacturing controllers

Typical challenges we address

  • Commenting on monthly reports and explaining variances under time pressure
  • Consolidating plans and forecasts from many spreadsheets and departments
  • Defining KPIs consistently and presenting them for different audiences
  • Answering ad-hoc management questions quickly and reliably

What you will be able to do

  • You commission data analyses and file tasks from Claude Code in plain language.
  • You clean and combine Excel and CSV data and check the results for plausibility.
  • You automate recurring document and reporting tasks with reusable instructions.
  • You have small internal helper tools built and refine them step by step.
  • Use AI for variance analysis, forecasting and management commentary with traceable results.
  • Have AI build formulas, queries and small reporting automations and validate them confidently.
  • Establish rules for quality assurance and confidential use of controlling data.

Course outline

Day 1

Module 1 Getting started without coding skills
  • What a coding agent is and what it is allowed to do on your computer
  • Launching Claude Code and setting up a protected working folder
  • Describing tasks in everyday language: goal, input files, expected result
  • Understanding approval prompts and consciously accepting or declining them
Module 2 Analysing data in Excel and CSV files
  • Cleaning exports: duplicates, date formats, missing values
  • Combining several tables and calculating key figures
  • Producing charts and summaries as Excel files or images
  • Sanity-checking results with spot checks and cross-calculations
Module 3 Automating documents and routine tasks
  • Generating reports, minutes and mail merges from templates and data
  • Renaming, sorting and converting files automatically
  • Saving recurring procedures as reusable instructions
  • Writing a simple team guide in CLAUDE.md
Module 4 Building small scripts and internal tools
  • From idea to working helper: stating requirements clearly
  • Having simple input forms or local web interfaces created
  • Improving step by step: describing problems instead of debugging yourself
  • Documenting results so colleagues can use them

Day 2

Module 5 Working safely and responsibly
  • Handling personal and confidential data correctly
  • Limiting permissions and working only in approved folders
  • Recognising limits: when a tool should be handed over to IT
  • Coordinating with IT, data protection and business owners
Module 6 Hands-on project: your own solution for Controlling
  • Variance explorer – A web app that imports plan and actual data from CSV, breaks variances down by dimension and generates a draft AI commentary at the click of a button.
  • Cost centre briefing – An internal tool that automatically produces a one-page monthly summary per cost centre with budget usage, anomalies and open questions.
  • Scenario simulator – A calculator with sliders for volume, prices and costs that shows the impact on contribution margin and EBIT in real time and lets users save scenarios.
Module 7 Data protection, quality & transfer to daily work
  • Controlling data contains trade secrets and often personal data such as payroll costs per employee; only use approved AI environments and pseudonymise data in line with GDPR principles. Listed companies must also protect inside information under MAR.
  • Ground rules for safe AI use in your team
  • Checking results: facts, sources, tests and the four-eyes principle
  • Personal action plan for the next 30 days
  • Open questions, outlook and resources for further learning

Practical scenarios from your field

Variance commentary

An AI assistant analyses budget-to-actual and prior-year comparisons, identifies the biggest drivers by cost type, product or region and drafts commentary for the monthly report for controllers to review.

Formulas and queries

Describe the analysis you need in plain words and receive suggested spreadsheet formulas, pivot logic, Power Query steps or SQL queries with explanations that you can test straight away.

Challenging forecast assumptions

AI questions planning assumptions on volumes, prices and costs, highlights inconsistencies between departmental plans and builds best, base and worst-case scenarios as a basis for discussion.

Management reporting

KPIs and raw data are turned into concise executive summaries, slide outlines and traffic-light commentary tailored to executives, divisional heads or cost centre owners.

Reporting automation

A workflow pulls ERP and BI exports, checks completeness, refreshes standard reports and sends drafts to cost centre owners, who add their comments before the pack is finalised.

KPI glossary

An AI assistant helps document KPI definitions, calculation logic and data sources consistently, so that business units and management speak the same language and discussions about figures become more objective.

Possible hands-on projects

Variance explorer

A web app that imports plan and actual data from CSV, breaks variances down by dimension and generates a draft AI commentary at the click of a button.

Cost centre briefing

An internal tool that automatically produces a one-page monthly summary per cost centre with budget usage, anomalies and open questions.

Scenario simulator

A calculator with sliders for volume, prices and costs that shows the impact on contribution margin and EBIT in real time and lets users save scenarios.

Prerequisites

No programming knowledge is needed; confident use of Excel, files and folders on your own computer is sufficient. You work in controlling or FP&A and are comfortable with spreadsheets and core cost accounting metrics.

Technical requirements

Your own laptop with admin rights, Git, a Node.js runtime and an up-to-date editor; a Claude subscription or Anthropic API access is required for the exercises.

Data protection & compliance

Controlling data contains trade secrets and often personal data such as payroll costs per employee; only use approved AI environments and pseudonymise data in line with GDPR principles. Listed companies must also protect inside information under MAR.

Suggested dates

All dates are suggestions – your preferred date is always possible.

  • Thu, 26 November 2026 – Fri, 27 November 2026 Online Request
  • Wed, 9 December 2026 – Thu, 10 December 2026 Stuttgart Request
  • Tue, 12 January 2027 – Wed, 13 January 2027 Online Request
  • Wed, 27 January 2027 – Thu, 28 January 2027 Berlin Request
  • Thu, 11 February 2027 – Fri, 12 February 2027 Online Request
  • Tue, 16 February 2027 – Wed, 17 February 2027 Munich Request

Frequently asked questions

How is Claude Code different from traditional code completion?

Code completion suggests the next few lines, whereas Claude Code acts as an agent that handles whole tasks: it searches the repository, plans changes across several files, runs tests and commands, and corrects itself based on the results. You define the goal and review the outcome instead of steering every single line yourself.

Is Claude Code secure enough for enterprise use?

By default, Claude Code asks for approval before editing files or running commands. Permission rules, sandboxing, managed settings and hooks let you define precisely what the agent may do. During the course you learn to configure these mechanisms to match your security and data protection requirements and to assess risks such as prompt injection.

Does Claude Code work with my language and tech stack?

Yes. Claude Code is language-agnostic because it works with files, terminal commands and your existing build and test tooling. Whether you use Python, Java, TypeScript, Go, SAP-related code or infrastructure as code, what matters most is a well-written CLAUDE.md describing your commands and conventions. Each course variant adds the relevant domain focus.

Will AI replace our BI system?

No. BI systems and data warehouses remain the reliable data foundation. AI adds a layer for interpretation, commentary and fast ad-hoc analysis. In the course we show how to pass exports to AI assistants sensibly, check results against the source and automate recurring steps without creating shadow IT.

How reliable are figures calculated by AI?

Language models can miscalculate or mismatch data. Prefer having calculations run through generated, reviewable code or formulas, and reconcile totals with the source. We practise checking routines that let you confirm plausibility quickly before any number makes it into a report.

How much does “Claude Code for Controllers” cost?

The course costs a flat €949 plus VAT per participant – whether online or on-site. This includes 2 training day(s) with a live trainer, course materials, a lab environment and a certificate of attendance.

Can I suggest my own date?

Yes. Our suggested dates are just a guide. In the request form you can always describe your preferred date or period in free text – we check availability and confirm within one working day.

Is the course online or on-site?

Both are possible: live online in a virtual classroom or on-site in Munich, Salzburg, Berlin, Augsburg, Hanover, Bremen, Stuttgart or Kaiserslautern. We can also run the course exclusively for your team.

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