Course Overview

Understanding finance is no longer limited to accountants—today’s managers are expected to make informed decisions backed by financial insight. Those who can interpret numbers, understand performance, and communicate effectively with finance teams consistently achieve stronger business outcomes.

The Finance for Non-Finance Managers programme is designed to make financial concepts clear, practical, and relevant for professionals from all backgrounds. It focuses on building confidence in reading financial information, understanding business performance, and supporting strategic decisions.

Through real-world examples and hands-on exercises, participants will learn how to interpret financial statements, manage budgets, and evaluate investment opportunities without requiring a formal accounting background.

The programme also explores modern tools, including AI-enabled forecasting, helping participants connect financial data with strategic planning and operational performance.

Agenda

Day — 1 Understanding the Foundations of Finance & Accounting

• Understanding the nature and purpose of finance and accounting in organisations
• Exploring the accounting cycle and its main phases
• Introducing key financial statements and their significance:
  • Income statement
  • Balance sheet
  • Statement of owners’ equity
  • Statement of cash flows
• Understanding the five core elements of financial statements and their relationships:
  • Assets
  • Liabilities
  • Equity
  • Revenues
  • Expenses
• Comparing accrual basis and cash basis accounting with practical examples
• Understanding the relationship between assets, liabilities, and equity, and the importance of cash flow in business operations
• Examining the roles of internal and external auditors
• Group discussion: Evaluating how financial statements influence operational and strategic decision-making

Day — 2 Financial Statements Analysis

• Understanding financial analysis and the role of ratios in evaluating performance
• Applying key analysis techniques to identify trends and changes:
  • Horizontal analysis
  • Vertical (common-size) analysis
  • Trend analysis
• Interpreting major categories of financial ratios:
  • Liquidity ratios
  • Solvency ratios
  • Activity ratios
  • Profitability ratios
• Recognising limitations of ratio analysis and interpreting results in context
• Using building-block analysis to extract deeper managerial insights
• Exploring AI tools for predictive financial ratio analysis
• Case study: Analysing financial statements of real companies using ratios
• Excel workshop: Performing trend and vertical analysis in Excel

Day — 3 Working Capital Management & Financial Management Fundamentals

• Defining working capital and its role in day-to-day business operations
• Applying strategies to manage current assets and current liabilities effectively
• Understanding the balance between profitability and liquidity
• Analysing the trade-off between profitability and certainty in working capital decisions
• Reviewing practical examples of working capital management across industries
• Exploring AI-based forecasting tools for predicting cash flow
• Exercise: Assessing how changes in receivables and inventory affect cash flow cycles
• Differentiating between accounting and finance functions and their interaction in management
• Understanding the three core pillars of financial management:
  • Financing decisions
  • Investing decisions
  • Operating decisions

Day — 4 Breakeven Analysis & Operating Budgeting Techniques

• Understanding fixed and variable costs and their role in cost behaviour
• Exploring breakeven analysis techniques:
  • Break-even point approach
  • Graphical representation
  • Contribution-based analysis
• Applying sensitivity analysis to assess the impact of changing assumptions
• Understanding the purpose of operating budgets and key steps in budget preparation
• Exploring components of a master budget and budgeting approaches:
  • Incremental budgeting
  • Zero-based budgeting
  • Rolling budgeting
• Applying budgetary control techniques and corrective actions
• Using scenario planning and AI-driven tools in budgeting processes
• Excel workshop: Building a breakeven chart and preparing an operating budget

Day — 5 Capital Budgeting & Strategic Investment Decisions

• Understanding capital budgeting and the concept of time value of money
• Identifying and classifying project cash inflows and outflows
• Applying key investment appraisal techniques:
  • Net Present Value (NPV)
  • Internal Rate of Return (IRR)
  • Payback Period
  • Profitability Index (PI)
• Evaluating risk and uncertainty in investment decisions using:
  • Sensitivity analysis
  • Scenario analysis
• Understanding the required rate of return and assessing project feasibility under resource constraints
• Exploring AI-powered tools for financial modelling and investment appraisal
• Excel workshop: Evaluating a project using NPV, IRR, and payback methods

Learning Outcomes

By attending this Finance for Non-Finance Managers programme, you will be able to:

• Understand the role of finance and accounting in organisational decision-making and business performance
• Read and analyse key financial statements, including income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, and statement of owners’ equity
• Apply financial ratio analysis and performance evaluation techniques to assess business health and trends
• Manage working capital by balancing liquidity, profitability, and risk
• Differentiate between accounting and finance functions and apply core financial decision areas: financing, investing, and operations
• Use break-even, cost-volume-profit, and budgeting techniques for operational decision-making
• Develop and analyse operating and capital budgets using Excel tools with scenario planning
• Evaluate investment opportunities using capital budgeting methods such as NPV, IRR, Payback Period, and Profitability Index
• Apply AI-enabled tools and forecasting models to improve budgeting, analysis, and investment decisions

Who Should Attend

This programme is ideal for professionals with limited or no formal financial background who want to strengthen their financial understanding, including:

• Department Heads, Supervisors, and Team Leaders managing budgets and resources
• Project, Operations, and Production Managers seeking financial insight
• HR, Marketing, and Procurement Professionals involved in cost planning and control
• Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners aiming to improve financial oversight
• Administrative and Executive Officers working closely with finance teams
• Anyone looking to interpret financial reports confidently and contribute to strategic decision-making