This comprehensive training course consists of two modules which can be booked as a 10-Day Training event, or as individual, 5-Day training courses.

Module 1 - Financial Bootcamp for Non-Financial Professionals

Module 2 - The Essentials of Budgeting & Cost Control

This training course is designed for those non-financial staff who have a significant role in ensuring the success of their organization. These could include professionals in the areas of:

• Sales and marketing
• Logistics and supply
• Human resource
• Production and engineering
• Risk management and internal audit

This training course would also be useful for consultants and advisors who work with business organizations, such as bankers and lawyers, and non-executive directors.

Business professionals and managers in any organization rely upon financial information to enable them to effectively undertake their roles. Financial information can provide a clear picture of events that have occurred, and a sound basis for forecasting future events. It can also show whether activities are cost-effective, whether targets have been met, and can be used to measure comparative performance and profitability. It is vitally important that managers are able to understand, interpret, and utilize financial information and reports, and can acquire the knowledge and skills to apply financial techniques to financial data, to inform logical and worthwhile decision-making. This training course will feature:

• The role of the Finance Function, in transaction recording and reporting, management control and decision-making, raising finance, internal control, and risk management
• The basic principles of financial accounting and reporting, the three main financial statements, and how they are prepared and presented
• Review and analysis of published financial reports, and how they are perceived by various stakeholder groups
• Internal accounting procedures and techniques used in organizations to control operations and inform profitable decision-making
• Identifying, managing, and controlling financial risks wherever they occur in our business

By the end of this training course, participants will be able to:

• Explain the purpose of the three key financial statements ‘Income Statement, Statement of Financial Position, and Cash Flow Statement’
• Evaluate the performance and position of an organization by analyzing its Annual Financial Report
• Apply the internal accounting procedures & techniques of ‘product costing, cost-volume-profit analysis, and budgeting
• Apply a range of investment appraisal techniques to determine whether proposed investments are likely to be worthwhile
• Demonstrate a range of methods, tools and techniques available to manage financial risks in multinational organizations

This Bootcamp training course will develop and reinforce delegate’s practical skills, and abilities in understanding and applying financial information and techniques. Delegates will be provided with high quality, comprehensive, but accessible course notes. This will ensure that they are well prepared to become actively involved with the course and to work effectively as individuals and in teams, on the teamwork exercises in each topic area, supported by help and advice by the trainer.

Day One: The Nature and Purpose of Accounting and Finance

• Why are accounting and finance necessary?
• The role and structure of the Finance Function
• Basic principles of financial accounting
• Teamwork Exercise: Recording business transactions
• Teamwork Exercise: Applying financial judgment in accounting reporting
• Teamwork Exercise: Preparing simple financial statements

Day Two: Understanding the Financial Statements

• The format and structure of the Income Statement and the Balance Sheet
• Why cash flow is important
• Teamwork Exercise: Preparing a Cash Flow Statement
• Published financial reports – format and content
• Techniques for interpreting financial reports
• Teamwork exercise and presentation: Using ratios to assess a company’s performance

Day Three: Using financial Information for Control and Decision-Making

• Analyzing and using financial information
• Teamwork Exercise: Preparing a product cost summary
• Cost-Volume-Profit and Break-Even Analysis
• Teamwork Exercise: Using CVP analysis for decision-making
• Preparing budgets – how and why?
• Teamwork Exercise: Preparing budgets for a manufacturing business

Day Four: Finance and Investment

• Sources and types of long term finance
• Short-term finance and working capital
• Teamwork Exercise: Preparing a business plan
• Estimating our cost of capital
• Why investment is essential for profitability and growth
• Teamwork Exercise: Appraising new investment proposals

Day Five:  Controlling financial risks

• The financial risks faced by our business
• Managing financial risks using the ‘four Ts
• Techniques for dealing with investment risk
• Teamwork Exercise: Assessing and managing investment risk
• Techniques for dealing with foreign currency risk
• Teamwork Exercise: Hedging the risks of foreign currency transactions