Financial Training For Non-Financial Managers

Fundamental knowledge of finance is essential for all professionals, even if they do not have a direct role to play in the finance and accounting departments in their organization.

Managers who lack the capacity to make intelligent assessments of financial data will find themselves handicapped and unable to understand the impact of their strategies on the financial bottom-line.

Many managers are promoted through skills in their own field – which may not include much financial skill and exposure.

Having the responsibility of submitting and working to tighter budgets, reducing costs, and coming up with ideas for improving profits may have many non-financial managers feeling out of their comfort zone.

These trainings are normally designed not to turn non-financial managers into financial experts. They are however designed to introduce them to finance and accounts.

Key topics include the role of the finance function, understanding and interpreting the financial statements, and preparing and managing budgets.

The need for all of your managers to understand finance stems from the core business goal: This is to generate profit.

If your general management does not understand the processes and strategies involved in managing finances, then your company is reducing its chance of business survival and success.

Here are the core areas of finance that all of your managers should be aware of:

• How the business generates profit (the income statement drivers)
• How capital is invested (the balance sheet drivers)
• How cash is generated and consumed in a business (why profit is different from cash)
• How the business increases cash flow generation
• Commercial KPIs and how they are used to drive performance (what measures of return are typically used and what drives this return)
• How the business measures and manages commercial performance
• How clients measure and manage their commercial performance
• How the business’ products deliver a successful commercial outcome for its clients (demonstrating the value to clients of the products and services the business supplies)

All managers have a role to play in driving performance and reducing risk in their day-to-day activities. To this end, providing them with a practical understanding of finance is critical.

Using Business Simulations in Finance Training

Through activities and simulations designed to emulate genuine workplace context and scenarios, employees have the opportunity to develop their understanding and skills through first-hand practice.

Finance training in the form of business simulations helps enable non-finance managers to gain a broader view of the business and appreciate how some decisions can ripple out and affect other areas of the business and, ultimately, the bottom line.

Business simulations also allow for the collection of quantitative and qualitative data, which more traditional training methods simply can’t accommodate, helping learners make more informed decisions and change their behavior to better contribute to the bottom line.

This experiential method of training is highly effective in building practical skills, insights, and confidence while giving managers a safe environment in which to learn and practice new skills.

Simulations inject a level of competitiveness, increasing participants’ desire to achieve the learning objectives. The heightened engagement often stimulates accelerated performance and while generating data that can be used for feedback.

Simulations also give learners an opportunity to internalize new ideas and reflect on their effectiveness areas that need further support. They encourage learners to actually use new skills and capabilities in the workplace following the success of their experiences during the learning process.

Business simulations engage learners at a much deeper level than other learning solutions such as seminars or e-learning.

When they are immersed in an engaging business simulation, they quickly make the link between how their actions actually impact the numbers and, as a result, they work in a more business-focused way.

For example, in a business simulation, managers might run a company from start-up through maturity, managing finance throughout. This simulation gives them first-hand experience and provides a memorable learning experience to draw on back in the workplace.

An example of a comprehensive Finance for Non-Finance Managers Training may look as follows

5 Days

TRAINING OBJECTIVES

• To assist the Non-finance professionals to raise their awareness of finance and use the added knowledge to make important managerial decisions
• To create awareness on the short term and long term needs of the businesses and offer possible solutions to counter business failure
• Enable the managers to fully understand the profitability, liquidity, and wealth creation and apply the guiding finance principles in improving their businesses.
• To equip the Managers with the current information on the local and international financial markets, risk management, and fraud reduction techniques.
• To enable business owners in assets management and inventory monitoring

FINANCE FOR NON-FINANCE MANAGERS TRAINING CONTENT

Module 1: Introduction – Workshop expectations

• Workshop Introduction, Setting work objectives and participants expectations
• Counter check materials vis a vis the workshop objectives/expectations
• Introduction to Finance and Accounting
• Basic Terms Used in finance
• Group discussion on basic accounting principles
• Understanding of the effective use of Assets, Liabilities and effective management on the same

Module 2: Financial Statements preparation and interpretation

• Financial statements interpretation
• Income Statement, Statement of Financial Position
• The statement of cash flow

Module 3: Decision Making & Budgeting

• Cash Flow vs Profitability
• Wealth Creation for businesses
• Techniques in Analyzing the financial statements
• Budgeting techniques – Budget Development and implementation – Budget monitoring and control

Module 4: Capital Budgeting

• Using financial techniques to make investment decisions from various options presented
• Choosing amongst alternatives projects
• Costing for profits organizations / Companies
• Costing for nonprofit organizations

Module 5: Finance and Administrative Policies and Controls

• Setting finance, administrative and logistical policies
• Setting appropriate internal controls in a business
• Importance of Audit
• Risk and Fraud management techniques

CUSTOMIZED TRAINING

In conclusion, the training can also be customized to fit institution needs upon request. It is also possible to have it delivered at the location that you prefer.

Financial Training For Non-Financial Managers

Financial Training For Non-Financial Managers