Improve your ability to interpret key financial tools
Financial statements are the pulse of a business, and one of the clearest indicators of its health. This program will provide you with a basic understanding of financial statements and the use of key financial analysis tools. You will use actual financial statements to learn and apply the techniques being examined.
Participants are not expected to have any formal accounting experience.
Any executive or manager with responsibilities for the financial health of an organization. Participants are not expected to have any formal accounting experience.
Gain a basic understanding of generally accepted accounting principles, financial analysis tools and various types of financial statements
Understand the relationships between investment, operational and financing decisions
Identify the danger signals when assessing the viability of an enterprise
Be able to interpret key financial figures and their impact on your business
Recognize the limitations of financial statements
Better comprehend financial information seen in the media
Content and Format of Financial Statements
Accounting standards, current issues
Making Sense of Individual Financial Statements
The balance sheet, income statement/retained earnings, cash flow statements, notes to statements
Analyzing Financial Statements
Analyzing ratios: liquidity, leverage, profitability and activity ratios
Common size analysis
Making comparisons over time or vs. other firms/industries
Special features
There will be a discussion on “earnings management” and “aggressive financial reporting,” and how some companies (e.g. Enron, WorldCom) used these techniques to manipulate their financial statements. You will also learn how to uncover some of these irregularities in financial statements.
Scott Sinclair
Faculty
Scott is a faculty member at the UBC Sauder School of Business. He has been actively involved in professional accounting education for more than 35 years. He was the principal author for the CA School of Business in Western Canada between 2000 and 2010, and has won multiple awards for teaching excellence. He has also worked with Coopers & Lybrand Chartered Accounts, serving small business and mining clients.
"This course delivers what it promises, giving us very applicable skills and tools to use on the job. I would recommend it to all managers with responsibility for the financial performance of their company.”
"A practical real-world course that inculcated a skill set that will make me more effective in my work.”