Whether you are managing a cost centre or a coffee shop, you need to understand finance fundamentals. Financial terms like balance sheets, income statements, liquidity ratios and trade receivables become important as you grow in your career or get to grips with how to run your own business. It’s not just your own confidence that matters – if you don’t understand finance, you can easily get taken advantage of and that’s a costly mistake.
“Debits on the left, credits on the right” just isn’t enough in today’s business world which runs exclusively on finance and financial conventions. It’s the reason the CFO is always the number 2 person in an organization. Sustainability and shared value have become more important but the traditional measure of business success is usually money. Once you’ve grasped key terms and concepts, you need to be able to use them. Don’t rely on your finance manager or tax consultant – successful leadership in business requires ownership of everything, especially “the numbers”.
However, for many it can be a bewildering and confusing world, especially “non-financial” people. Fortunately, Digital Regenesys just launched a new online course Finance for non-finance which takes you through the fundamentals of finance, teaches you how to read financial statements and includes a case study that brings it all together and helps you apply what you’ve learned in the course.
Learn the key ratios that are used in the business world. These are numbers that can be used to compare businesses, diagnose financial health and even value organisations for listing, trading, mergers and acquisitions. You’ll also learn about budgeting, procurement, the time value of money and key legislation that relates to finance. Did you know that IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) is used around the world to standardize the way that financial performance is reported?
There’s a whole section on IFRS in the course, plus quizzes, assignments and plenty of activities. There will get you practicing your new financial skills and applying your knowledge. Also check out the examples of financial statements, budgeting methods, key ratios and the real world scenario that gives you a chance to look at a whole business with increased financial knowledge and skills.
You might not be listing your coffee shop on a stock exchange, but you’ll always benefit from a better understanding of finance.
