Can you read a balance sheet? Or what a profit and loss is telling you? Or recognise the difference between cash and profit? How about interpreting key financial ratios? Or optimising the working capital cycle?

The ability to understand and analyse financial data is essential for successful management. This two-day course is designed to help executives come to grips with the fundamentals of finance and accounting. The programme is ideal for managers who believe a clear understanding of money matters is essential to their career progression. The content transforms the jargon, concepts and ratios of finance into a set of straightforward business tools the non-financial manager can use every day to sharpen performance. Tutorial input is complemented with practical exercises, plus examples taken from case studies, Financial newspapers and (if appropriate) delegates own published accounts.

Participants return to their jobs equipped to apply the fundamentals of finance to influence business decisions, improve profits, sell new business plans, manage budgets and communicate more confidently with finance-based colleagues.

Course Objectives

At the end of the course participants will:

• Know how to read, interpret and understand a set of accounts.
• Be able to hold their own when communicating with financial personnel.
• Know how to prepare and manage a meaningful budget.
• o Be more aware of the financial implications of the decisions they make.