15 Finance For Non Finance Managers courses

OVERVIEW -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In today's competitive business world firms are under unprecedented pressure to deliver value to their shareholders and other key stakeholders. Senior executives in all parts of the organisation are finding that they need some degree of financial know-how to cope with the responsibility placed on them as business managers and key decision-makers; monitoring and improving business performance, investing in capital projects, mergers and acquisitions and budgets. All require some degree of financial knowledge. 

In today's competitive business world firms are under unprecedented pressure to deliver value to their shareholders and other key stakeholders. Senior executives are finding that they need some financial know-how to cope with the responsibility placed on them as decision-makers. Key financial skills are not as difficult to learn as many people believe and in the hands of an experienced senior executive can provide a formidable competitive advantage.   This one-day workshop is not intended to take you from a managerial position to that of a Chief Financial Officer. However, these topics will familiarise you with the most common terms and practices in terms of working with finance.   This course is suitable for managers and others in finance related roles: * with some or no financial knowledge * who need to understand the financial implications of every day decision making? * who need to increase profitability and performance of their business? This one-day workshop will help you teach participants how to: • Understand fundamental business finance concepts • Understand the vital difference between profit and cash flow • Evaluate pricing decisions • Use powerful analytical tools to measure performance of their own company and competitors • Understand the role of business finance in formulating and implementing competitive strategy   Course Overview You will spend the first part of the day getting to know participants and discussing what will take place during the workshop. Students will also have an opportunity to identify their personal learning objectives.   Business and finance fundamentals The objectives of the firm: delivering value to shareholders and key stakeholders, leading to a better understanding the drivers of shareholder return and who uses financial statements and why.   Basic principles Understanding business funds flow, using the balance sheet the profit statement. This would help to recognise the vital difference between profit and cashflow and what financial statements can and cannot tell us.   Managing and improving Budgets and Forecasting We will look at why you need to set budgets and what is known as ‘the bottom line’. We will also explore the purpose of forecasting over a period of monthly, quarterly and also annually.   Managing and improving profit Understanding how profits generate cashflow. The fundamental nature of costs: fixed and variable business costs and realising gross margin and break-even   Managing business performance We will explore the business planning cycle, by using budgets to support business strategy and monitoring and managing financial performance. We will look at a ‘Pyramid of Ratios’ to manage business performance that will help us understand and use key performance indicators   Measuring and managing business performance We will understand Return on investment (ROI): the ultimate measure of business performance and how profit margin and net asset turnover drive return on net assets. We shall do a case study on why some companies are more profitable than others.   Workshop Wrap-Up At the end of the course, students will have an opportunity to ask questions and fill out an action plan.

Understanding how to plan for capacity, be able to forecast and manage budgets is a critical skill in today's leadership and management environment. This programme will not only support your understanding but will also help you to practically put the learning into practice.

Learn the basics of financial awareness and better understand the language used by accountants and how financial statements fit together within organisations. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COURSE OVERVIEW Duration: 2 days (13 hours)  This workshop will provide participants with a grasp of basic financial awareness, to help them to better understand the language used by accountants and how financial statements fit together.   Training is done in a jargon-free way that is aimed building attendees’ confidence in using financial terms and concepts within their organisation.  Competent financial management has many aspects, it is wide reaching and requires multiple skills but if participants work to become organised and effective in planning, these skills can be easily acquired. There is a misconception that to be a good operational manager dealing with financial decisions people must be accounting or numerical geniuses. There are basic skills that attendees can easily learn that will support them in those areas.  OBJECTIVES  By the end of the course you will be able to: * Identify the importance of financial management and its impact * Identify the link between financial information and decision making * Set, manage, monitor and review budgets * Analyse financial statements * Demonstrate the link between the statements, budgets and decision making. CONTENT Financial Management * Budgeting process (generic / client specific if possible) * Forecasting and re forecasting process * The need for accurate forecasting * Accrual v cash accounting revisited * Financial Objectives of the business * Users of the accounts Financial Tools * Depreciation and Amortisation * Accruals and Prepayments * Deferred and Accrued Income * Costs, Opex and Capex Financial Statements * The Income Statement * The Balance Sheet * Understanding capital employed * The relationship between balance sheet and income statement * The cash flow statement * Profitability: gross, operating and net margins * Review of client’s management information reports Building the Business Case * Break even analysis * Discounted Cash Flow * Discount factors * Net Present Value (NPV) * Internal Rate of Return (IRR)

Fraud should not happen, but it does. It can happen at the highest to lowest levels in an organisation. Recent surveys show that incidents of fraud are not decreasing. Fraud costs companies money and, perhaps even more importantly, reputational damage. The losers are not just the shareholders, suppliers, customers, etc, but society as a whole. This programme shows why frauds happen, how organisations put themselves at risk and what they can do to prevent it. This programme will help directors and others understand: * The motives for committing fraud * Directors' responsibilities for identifying and reporting fraud * What types of frauds there are * How frauds are perpetrated * How they can be prevented * How regulators deal with fraud Above all, the principal objective of this programme is to help make your organisation as secure as possible from the threat of fraud. 1 MOTIVES FOR COMMITTING FRAUD - DRIVERS OF FRAUD Session objective: to understand why people might commit fraud * Drivers of fraudulent behaviour * Ambition * Greed * Theft * Conceit? * And more! 2 ACCOUNTING MECHANISMS THAT ALLOW FRAUD Session objective: to review the elements of the accounting, internal control and management processes that allow creative accounting * Income or liability? * Asset or expense? * Coding errors and misclassification * Netting off and grossing up * Off-balance sheet items 3 STRUCTURES THAT ALLOW FRAUD Session objective: to consider company and trading structures that allow frauds to be perpetrated * Group structures * Trading structures * Tax havens * Importing and exporting 4 INTERPRETATIONS AND OTHER NON-COMPLIANCE THAT ALLOW FRAUD Session objective: to look at how creative interpretations of law and accounting practice may permit fraud * The place of accounting standards * Accounting policies * Trading methods * The place of auditing standards 5 MONEY LAUNDERING Session objective: to review what constitutes money laundering * Types of money laundering * Identifying laundering * Preventing laundering 6 PREVENTING FRAUD - PROPER MANAGEMENT STRUCTURES Session objective: to review the place of proper corporate governance * Corporate governance * Company management structure * Audit committees * The place of internal audit 7 PREVENTING FRAUD - PROPER ACCOUNTING Session objective: to review best accounting and auditing practice * Accounting standards * Internal accounting policies * Adequacy of internal controls * Internal audit 8 PREVENTING FRAUD - REGULATION Session objective: to look at how regulators aim to prevent fraud * The regulatory environment * Financial services regulation 9 CONCLUSION * Course review * Open forum * Close 10 COURSE SUMMARY - DEVELOPING YOUR OWN COST ACTION PLAN * Group and individual action plans will be prepared with a view to participants identifying their cost risks areas and the techniques which can be immediately applied to improve costing and reduce costs

In today's competitive business world firms are under unprecedented pressure to deliver value to their shareholders and other key stakeholders. Senior executives in all parts of the organisation are finding that they need some degree of financial know how to cope with the responsibility placed on them as business managers and key decision-makers; monitoring and improving business performance, investing in capital projects, mergers and acquisitions: all require some degree of financial knowledge. The key financial skills are not as difficult to learn as many people believe and in the hands of an experienced senior executive they can provide a formidable competitive advantage. After completing this course delegates will be able to: * Understand fundamental business finance concepts; understand, analyse and interpret financial statements: Profit Statement, Balance Sheet and Cashflow Statement * Understand the vital difference between profit and cashflow; identify the key components of working capital and how they can be managed to generate strong cashflow * Evaluate pricing decisions based on an understanding of the nature of business costs and their impact on gross margin and break-even sales; managing pricing, discounts and costs to generate strong business profits; understand how lean manufacturing methods improve profit * Use powerful analytical tools to measure and improve the performance of their own company and assess the effectiveness of their competitors * Apply and interpret techniques for assessing and comparing investment opportunities in capital projects, business acquisitions and other ventures; understand and apply common methods of business valuation * Understand the role of business finance in formulating and implementing competitive business strategy; the role of budgeting as part of the planning process and the various approaches to budgeting and performance measurement 1 BASIC PRINCIPLES * Delivering value to key stakeholders * Accounting concepts, GAAP, IFRS and common terms * Understanding and using the balance sheet * Understanding and using the profit statement * Recognising the vital difference between profit and cashflow * Understanding and using the cashflow statement * What financial statements can and cannot tell us 2 MANAGING AND IMPROVING CASHFLOW * Sources of finance and their advantages and disadvantages * What is working capital and why is it so important? * Managing stocks, debtors and creditors * Understanding how working capital drives business growth * Understanding and avoiding the over-trading trap * Unlocking the funds tied up in fixed assets: asset backed loans and leasing 3 MANAGING AND IMPROVING PROFIT * Understanding how profits generate cashflow * The fundamental nature of costs: fixed and variable business costs * Understanding gross margin and break-even * How common pricing methods affect gross margin and profit * Effective strategies to improve gross margin * Using value chain analysis to reduce costs * Lean manufacturing methods * Understanding Just-in-time, 6 Sigma and Kaizen methods * Improving profit * Effective and defective strategies 4 MEASURING AND MANAGING BUSINESS PERFORMANCE * Measures of financial performance and strength * Investor behaviour: the risk and reward relationship * Return on investment (ROI): the ultimate measure of business performance * How profit margin and net asset turnover drive return on net assets * Why some companies are more profitable that others * Understanding competitive advantage: cost and differentiation advantage * Why great companies fail * What happened to Kodak? * Using a 'Pyramid of Ratios' to improve business performance * Using Critical Success Factors to develop Key Performance Indicators 5 BUDGETING AND FORECASTING METHODS * Using budgets to support strategy * Objectives and methods for effective budgets * Using budgets to monitor and manage business performance * Alternative approaches to budgeting * Developing and implementing Balanced Scorecards * Beyond Budgeting * Forecasting methods and techniques * Identifying key business drivers * Using rolling forecasts and 'what-if' models to aid decision-making

Finance doesn't have to be a puzzle. And if you want to get anywhere with your career, it had better not be! Whatever your role, you have an impact on the financial wellbeing of the organisation you work for, whether you've got specific financial responsibilities or not. This thoroughly practical, fun and enjoyable one-day workshop will help unpuzzle finance for you. It's an ideal opportunity to master the terminology, get to grips with the concepts, learn how 'the finance department' works and understand the part you play. This course will help participants: * Appreciate the role and importance of Finance within organisations * Be able to recognise and describe some of the common items and jargon used * Identify the elements of the Profit & Loss and the Balance Sheet * Understand cashflow * Make better decisions * Manage budgets 1 INTRODUCTION * Expectations * Terminology * Key financial principles * Accruals * Consistency * Prudence * Going concern 2 THE THREE MAIN FINANCIAL STATEMENTS * Profit & Loss account * Income * Cost of sales * Gross profit * Administrative expenses ('overheads') * Net profit/(loss) for the financial year (the 'bottom line') * P&L format * Balance Sheet * Terminology * Fixed Assets * Current Assets * Current Liabilities * Long-term Liabilities * Capital * B/S format * Cashflow Statement * Financial and management information systems 3 BUDGETS AND FORECASTS * Why budget? * Types of budget - incremental or zero-based * Budgeting for costs - fixed and variable * Budgeting for income * An eight point plan for budgeting for your department * Case study: Small Brother Ltd * Problems and solutions 4 ACCRUALS * Accruals - what and why? * Prepayments 5 OPEN FORUM

Budgeting is more than mere vague oversight. Budgeting should deliver the corporate strategy, add shareholder value and lead to a well-run business - for the benefit of all involved in it. Effective budgeting leads to real control - effective day-to-day operational control and more. This course demonstrates what proper budgeting and operational control can do. This course will help ensure that participants: * Appreciate the importance of the budgeting process * Take ownership of it * Use it as a daily working tool - not an annual exercise - to help run their part of the operation * Improve their reporting against budget * Ensure their delivery against budget 1 OBJECTIVES OF BUDGETS * The budget process * Stages - what is the prime aim of a budget? * What is forecasting? * Objectives * Planning * Implementation 2 BUDGET AND COST CONTROL FOCUS * Choosing objectives * Links with corporate strategy * Links with resource management * Can the accounting systems cope? 3 TRADITIONAL BUDGETING AND CONTROL * Benefits and drawbacks * The process * Control and feedback * Reporting - what can be expected? 4 ADVANCED BUDGETING AND CONTROL * Understanding the business process * Taking out costs * Cost awareness * ZBB - as valid as ever 5 REPORTS * Reports for action * The purpose of a report * Content - deliverables and feedback * Culture is so important

No-one in business will succeed if they are not financially literate - and no business will succeed without financially-literate people. This is the ideal programme for managers and others who don't have a financial qualification or background but who nonetheless need a greater understanding of the financial management disciplines essential to your organisation. This course will give the participants a sound understanding of financial reports, measures and techniques to make them even more effective in their roles. It will enable participants to: * Overcome the barrier of the accountants' strange language * Deal confidently with financial colleagues * Improve their understanding of your organisation's finance function * Radically improve their planning and budgeting skills * Be much more aware of the impact of their decisions on the profitability of your organisation * Enhance their role in the organisation * Boost their confidence and career development 1 REVIEW OF THE PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL STATEMENTS * What each statement contains * Outline * Detail * Not just what the statements contain but what they mean * Balance sheets and P&L accounts (income statements) * Cash flow statements * Detailed terminology and interpretation * Types of fixed asset - tangible, etc. * Working capital, equity, gearing 2 THE 'RULES' - ACCOUNTING STANDARDS, CONCEPTS AND CONVENTIONS * Fundamental or 'bedrock' accounting concepts * Detailed accounting concepts and conventions * What depreciation means * The importance of stock, inventory and work in progress values * Accounting policies that most affect reporting and results * The importance of accounting standards and IFRS 3 WHERE THE FIGURES COME FROM * Accounting records * Assets / liabilities, Income / expenditure * General / nominal ledgers * Need for internal controls * 'Sarbox' and related issues 4 MANAGING THE BUDGET PROCESS * Have clear objectives, remit, responsibilities and time schedule * The business plan * Links with corporate strategy * The budget cycle * Links with company culture * Budgeting methods * 'New' budgeting * Zero-based budgets * Reviewing budgets * Responding to the figures * The need for appropriate accounting and reporting systems 5 WHAT ARE COSTS? HOW TO ACCOUNT FOR THEM * Cost definitions * Full / absorption costing * Overheads - overhead allocation or absorption * Activity based costing * Marginal costing / break-even - use in planning 6 WHO DOES WHAT? A REVIEW OF WHAT DIFFERENT TYPES OF ACCOUNTANT DO * Financial accounting * Management accounting * Treasury function * Activities and terms 7 HOW THE STATEMENTS CAN BE INTERPRETED * What published accounts contain * Analytical review (ratio analysis) * Return on capital employed, margins and profitability * Making assets work - asset turnover * Fixed assets, debtor, stock turnover * Responding to figures * EBIT, EBITEDIA, eps and other analysts' measure 8 OTHER KEY ISSUES * Creative accounting * Accounting for groups * Intangible assets - brand names * Company valuations * Fixed assets / leased assets / off-balance sheet finance

What do engineers and project managers need to know of finance? 'Nothing - leave it to the accountants!' No, no, no! Engineers must be conversant with the terminology and statements that accountants use. Technical expertise in projects, service delivery, production or other areas can only really be harnessed if the managers understand the accounting and reporting that drives businesses. This course gives the necessary understanding to project, production and technical managers. It develops their skills in understanding financial and management accounting. Accountants may not always like it but a major part of their work is to be the 'servants of business' and to gather, compile and present your figures. So you must understand the figures - they belong to you, your processes or projects. There are many reasons for maintaining accurate accounts. This course focuses on the strategic issues (those over-used words) - what figures reveal about the drivers of business and what they reveal about the day-to-day issues that accountants bother you with. The course will enhance your understanding of finance and of the accounting issues which affect your projects, production and technical areas of business. This course will help you: * Understand the business world in figures - make sense of what the accountants are telling you * Appreciate what drives business - and how this affects your role in your part of the business * Relate your activities to the success of the business - through figures * Gain the skills to advance in management - financial awareness is a 'must have' if you are to progress in your career 1 WHAT DO ACCOUNTANTS DO? * The finance function, types of accountant, financial v management accounting and the treasury function * Understanding the role of the finance function and how the information you provide may be used 2 THE BASIC FINANCIAL STATEMENTS * Balance sheets and income statements (P&L accounts) * What they are, what they contain and above all what they can reveal - how to read them * The accounting process - from transactions to financial statements * What underpins the statements - accounting systems and internal controls 3 WHY BE IN BUSINESS - FROM A FINANCIAL PERSPECTIVE * The driving forces behind financial information * Performance measures - profitability, asset utilisation, sales and throughput, managing capital expenditure 4 ACCOUNTING RULES - ACCOUNTING STANDARDS * Accounting concepts and the accounting rules: accruals, 'going concern' - substance over form and other 'desirable qualities' * Accruals - why the timing of a transaction is so important to the finance function * Depreciation and amortisation - the concepts and practice * Accounting standards - the role of International Financial Reporting Standards 5 CASH * The importance of cash flow - working capital management * Cash flow statements - monitoring overall cash flows * Raising cash - levels of borrowing, gearing * Spending cash - an outline of capital expenditure appraisal 6 BUDGETING * Why budget? - good and bad practice * Determining why budgets play a key role and should not be simply an annual ritual * Justifying your budgets - the link between the strategic plan and day-to-day budgeting - alignment of company culture * Budgets as motivators - the importance of the right culture * Techniques to improve budgeting - whether day-to-day or capital budgeting 7 COSTING * The type and detail of costing very much depends on your business - eg, manufacturing piston rings is quite different from the construction of a power plant * Issues with overhead allocation * Accounting for R&D 8 READING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS * Annual financial statements - why they are produced, what's in them and what you should look for * Learning what a set of accounts reveals about a company's current situation, profitability and future prospects 9 PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT - ANALYTICAL REVIEWS AND RATIO ANALYSIS * ROI/ROCE * Profitability, margins and cost control * Sales - asset turnover * Efficiency (asset / stock turnover, debtor / creditor days) * 'City' measures * Investment (interest / dividend cover, earnings per share, dividend yield)