This course introduces the fundamental concepts and techniques of finance. It is designed for those without background knowledge in finance. It seeks to develop the financial literacy of the lay person. This course will provide you with a solid foundation in the principles of finance as they apply in the real world. You will develop an understanding of how finance works in business, how finance measures performance, how financial decisions impact upon performance, how to set and manage budgets and how to use finance skills to drive a business forward.
The workshop is designed to deliver a number of significant outcomes, including:
- Understand the scope, methodology and language of the finance function
- Translate your specialisation into the language of finance and accounting
- Prepare realistic budgets and cash flows and control them
- Select and apply appropriate figures for different purposes, such as measuring or decision making
- Understand the effect of your department and your decisions on the bottom line
- Present yourself and your departmental budgets more credibly to your finance colleagues
On completion of this unit, successful students will be able to:
- acquire knowledge of corporate finance
- understand capital budgeting and security valuation
- appreciate the relationship between risk and return
Anyone, at any level, who wants (or needs to) know more about financial management including executive management, budget holders, administrators, salespeople, marketers, operational managers, project managers and anyone involved in business planning.
Non-financial Managers with budgetary control or input, or those who need an understanding of financial measures and statements.
The Finance Function
- How finance operates
- How finance drives the strategy of the business
Finance Concepts
- The keys to understanding business performance
- Fixed and variable costs
- Capital and revenue concepts
- Direct and indirect cost allocations
Reporting Systems and Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s)
- KPI’s for different parts of the business
- Controls, procedures and reports
- Review of the profit & loss account
Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statement
- Business ratios and how they put information into perspective
Published Financial Statements
- A review using specific techniques
Capital Procurement and Investment Appraisal
- Decide what to invest and whens
Capital Budgeting
- Summarise plans and measure the impact upon the business
- Budgeting and Forecasting
- Plan for success and measure against the operating budget
- Information and terms used
- Information sources
- Managing costs
- Measuring against the plan
- Linking the format to the profit & loss account and balance sheet
- Incremental and zero based budgets
Relating an Operating Budget to the Participants’ Own Area of Operation
Moving from Budget to Forecast
Setting Prices, Measuring Margins
- Set selling prices to make sure profit is generated
- Handling discounts and controlling costs
- Break even analysis
Cash Flow Forecasting
- Preparing a cash flow
- The importance of cash
- The link between cash flow and profitability
- How changes can positively impact upon cash flow and profitability
Management Accounts
- Compared and contrasted to financial accounts
Marginal Costing
- Highlighting the contribution of activities to profit
