Expanding the horizons of financial analysis: integration of informal methods

Abstract

The article analyses modern approaches to assessment of financial and economic activity of enterprises with a focus on informal methods. The necessity of integrating experience, intuition and creative thinking into the process of analysis, especially when solving strategic tasks, is substantiated. The study covers a wide range of informal methods, such as SWOT analysis, expert evaluation methods, brainstorming, and others. The results of empirical studies confirming the effectiveness of the combined use of formal and informal methods in management practice are presented. It is recommended to spread the use of informal methods in financial due diligence based on the requirements of the Business Analysis Standard, which will significantly increase the efficiency of the analysis results.