Certificate In Advance Budgeting and Forecasting

Financial planning is the process of raising funds and allocating these funds based on the overall business strategy. The starting point of the financial plan is therefore organisation’s Mission/ Vision Statements. It is almost impossible for an organisation to be financially viable without preparing a proper financial plan.

Not all businesses achieve success and one of the reasons is the lack of financial planning. Budget is an inherent part of the corporate financial planning process.

It is therefore crucial that every business, irrespective of its size, must prepare an annual budget and review it at least every quarter. The Budget should include, inter alia, sales forecast, associated cost of sales, operating overheads, and capital expenditure plan for the year.

Financial reports give a deep insight into the financial health of the company. Business owners, directors, and the top management must have the ability to go behind the figures mentioned in the financial report so as to understand the current financial health and plan for the future. Besides, the preparation of the annual budget should not be left to the CFO only.

Course Objectives:

Objectives of this Certificate in Advance Budgeting and Forecasting course are to ensure that the participants:

• Appreciate the importance of effective budget preparation and financial planning
• Understand Various sources of finance with their utilisation, based on the cost of capital
• Take sound investment decisions based on proper appraisal
• Obtain an overview of the financial statements and management reports to evaluate the company’s performance
• Understand the concepts of ratio/ horizontal/ vertical analyses
• Prepare competitor analysis, market trends, and related explanations for top-level discussions
• Understand cost behaviour and its effect on financial planning
• Provide detailed analysis and observations on the results of individual business units
• Understand various types of budgets and use the one most suited to the organization
• Use financial modeling to forecast the profitability and cash flows with sensible assumptions
• Understand the different components of working capital and reduce the operating cycle
• Get equipped to manage and control budgets and forward plans
• Understand the best practice of financial planning and management