Finance for Non-Specialists in London

This course is designed to provide professionals with no formal financial background a clear and practical understanding of core financial principles. Participants will explore how financial data is used in business decision-making, understand key financial statements, and develop confidence in communicating with finance professionals. The course uses real-world examples, simplified concepts, and hands-on activities to make finance accessible to everyone, regardless of their job role.

Course Objectives:

By the end of this course, participants will:

• Understand basic financial terminology and concepts.

• Read and interpret key financial statements.

• Analyze financial performance using key ratios.

• Understand budgeting and forecasting fundamentals.

• Gain insights into decision-making based on financial data.

• Communicate more effectively with finance teams.

Learning Outcomes:

After completing the course, learners will be able to:

• Define and explain the purpose of the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement.

• Identify the financial health of a business using key performance indicators.

• Create and manage a basic departmental budget.

• Evaluate business performance using financial data.

• Participate in financial discussions with confidence.

Five-Day Outline:

Day 1: Financial Fundamentals

• What is finance?

• Key terms and concepts (assets, liabilities, revenue, expenses, profit)

• Overview of business finance and its importance

• Introduction to financial statements

Day 2: Understanding Financial Statements

• The Balance Sheet: structure and interpretation

• The Income Statement: revenues, expenses, profit

• The Cash Flow Statement: understanding liquidity

• Relationships between the three statements

Day 3: Financial Analysis

• Introduction to financial ratios (liquidity, profitability, efficiency)

• How to analyze a company’s performance

• Hands-on practice: calculating and interpreting ratios

• Case studies and real-life examples

Day 4: Budgeting and Forecasting

• The purpose and process of budgeting

• Types of budgets (operational, capital, cash)

• Forecasting basics

• Creating a simple budget (group activity)

Day 5: Decision-Making & Communication

• Financial data in decision-making

• Cost-benefit analysis and ROI

• Communicating financial information to non-finance audiences

• Final simulation: business scenario and team presentation