Finance for the Non-finance Executive
Boosting accounting and financial skills
Managers in complex organizations are seldom encouraged to consider where their operations sit in the value chain of which they are part, and how much value is created by all the players in the chain. Likewise, many are not confident with the underlying principles or practical applications of basic investment appraisal techniques.
This innovative, action-oriented, hands-on program is designed for non-financial managers. In this program you will learn how accounting and financial processes work and how to interpret the powerful messages that can emerge from the numbers. The program concentrates on identifying, and removing, financial management road blocks and helps put in place a sustainable program of financial discipline and awareness.
Target Audience
Past Participants' Level of Responsibility
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Selection of countries 2003-2008
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Malaysia, Netherlands, Poland, P.R. of China, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States
Key Topics
- Developing an awareness of external financial markets and the requirements that they impose on your management decisions
- Explaining the interrelationships between revenue and costs in the one hand and asset management on the other hand, how return on capital employed (ROCE) is built up from these two constituents, and how profits differ from cash
- Reading cash flow statements in a forensic way to predict financial stress
- Understanding the basic valuation framework surrounding investment decisions and measuring both the consequences of adjusting timing and the amount of relevant cash flow and risks
- Introducing you to new techniques in cost measurement such as activity-based costing and value-chain analysis and discussing the relevance of these tools
- Equipping you to work more effectively with financial specialists within and outside your organization
Take-Home Value
You will gain a rigorous understanding of the dynamics through which the profit and loss account, the balance sheet and the cash flow statement operate. In addition, you will gain the ability to identify relevant costs and revenues. (For example, decisions that emerge from a company’s housekeeping processes may be dangerously wrong since they contain a mixture of relevant and non-relevant numbers.)
Special Features
At ESMT, one of the most valuable learning opportunities is derived from the diversity of the professionals taking part in a program. Each class is made up of men and women from a variety of companies and industries, benefiting both benchmarking and learning.Meet the Faculty
Jörg Rocholl (Program Director)Full biography
Jörg Rocholl has been the acting president of ESMT since July 2011 and is dean of faculty. He came to ESMT from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he taught EMBA, MBA, and BSBA courses in Corporate Finance, Entrepreneurial Finance, and International Finance. Jörg’s research interests are in the areas of Corporate Finance, Corporate Governance, and Financial Intermediation. Currently, he is researching the impact of political connections on firm value and the raising of funds in capital markets through initial public offerings (IPOs) and treasury auctions.
Niall Lothian
Full biography
Niall Lothian is a Professor for Accounting and Control at the Edinburgh Business School, Heriot-Watt University, a member of the international visiting faculty of INSEAD, Fontainebleau, and a former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland. Professor Lothian' research and consulting interests lie in both financial reporting and managerial accounting and control. He has led seminars and managerial briefings for a number of multinationals in Europe and the Far East, including joint ventures in China.
ESMT European School of