Key information
Course Overview
Understanding the essential concepts of finance and accounting are career-critical skills in our hyper-competitive, hyper-connected world. Whatever your industry or market, staying ahead means grasping the connection between operating decisions and financial results, and using financial data and key metrics effectively and with confidence.
Imperial’s Fundamentals of Finance programme is an immersive 5 day learning experience at our South Kensington London campus that delivers the knowledge, insight and understanding to use the language and methods of finance, to think critically and autonomously, and to drive efficiencies and profitability for your organisation, as you accelerate your own career.
This fully engaging and transformational programme harnesses the full expertise of Imperial College Business School faculty. Through live, interactive sessions and hands-on case studies and simulations, you will:
- Master how to read and understand financial information
- Integrate this information to make solid financial decisions
- Discover how operating decisions can be leveraged to drive financial results, and how financial decisions can be used to the same end
- Learn to combine finance and strategy to deliver value
- Lean how to assess the economic value and cost-effectiveness of a project
Who should attend?
Imperial’s Fundamentals of Finance programme is expertly designed to equip managers with the core financial knowledge and tools to make better business decisions. Participants join us from all over the world and a breadth of backgrounds, including STEM or any other non-finance specialisms.
This training course is ideal for mid-level managers seeking a solid foundation in finance and accounting and looking to understand how finance aids strategic decision making. No previous financial education is required.
Learning objectives
- Appreciate how accounting numbers come from operating decisions and learn to analyse the Balance Sheet.
- Explore Income Statements and Statements of Cash Flows and how they relate to the Balance Sheet. Distinguish cash and profit.
- Discover the DuPont System and how to translate numbers from financial systems into a greater understanding of profitability. See how finance and strategy together can be used to build value. Use the DuPont System to benchmark companies in the same industry.
- Learn about discounted cash flow and how it is used to allocate resources and pinpoint optimal investments. Using a case study, explore how concepts such as Net Present Value can be leveraged to make critical investment decisions.
- Understand how any investment will affect the future of a business. Using the same case study, calculate how to derive free cash flow by grasping how the investment will be executed according to the strategy of the company and contract Net Present Value with other metrics, such as Internal Rate of Return.
- Explore the optimal method of financing a project depending on industry, maturity, and growth opportunities. Analyse the trade-off theory of capital structure which hinges on an understanding of the influence of taxes and risk in financial decisions.
- Look at the other factors influencing financial decisions, like future growth opportunities or over and under valuation of companies. Analyse the costs of financial distress.
What you will learn
Using Financial Information Intelligently
This session focus on understanding how accounting numbers come from operating decisions. It will develop an understanding of accounting rules. It will show how to analyse the Balance Sheet. It uses a company in the Pharmaceutical industry (GSK) throughout the session as a case study.
Analysing the Income Statement and Statement of Cash Flows
This session will focus on the Income Statement and the Statement of Cash Flows and show how these are related to the Balance Sheet. It will focus on the importance of cash and profit, and how to better manage cash flow. It will continue to use the same company in the Pharmaceutical as a case study.
Measures of Business Performance
This session will show how the DuPont System can be used to take the numbers from financial statements and systematically measure and understand the profitability of companies. It shows how finance and strategy can be integrated to build value in a business.
Applying the DuPont System
This session analyses the performance of the company analysed in blocks A and B and benchmark against other outstanding companies in the same industry. It focusses on company profitability and value creation.
Using Discounted Cash Flows
This session explains why discounted cash flow (DCF) is such a popular method which is used by companies all over the world to allocate resources and choose among investment alternatives. The session will explain how Net Present Value (NPV) is used to select investments that are most likely to build value in companies. We will use a case study to study.
Discounted Cash Flow Applications
The most important part of a DCF analysis is the derivation of the correct cash flows. This comes from an understanding of how the investment will affect the future of the business. This session will focus on how to derive free cash flow by understanding how the investment will be executed and the strategy of the company. This session compares NPV with alternative metrics for investment decision making such as Internal Rate of Return (IRR).
Case Study Discussion
Capital Structure
This session deals with the financial strategies of companies. The emphasis will be on the optimal way to finance a business and why that is different depending on the company’s industry, maturity and growth opportunities. The “trade-off” theory of capital structure which involves having an understanding of the influence of taxes and risk on financing decisions, will be explained.
Capital Structure and Financial Strategy
This session will focus on additional factors influencing financing decisions such as future growth opportunities and over and under valuation of companies. It discusses the costs of financial distress.
Case study Discussion
Mergers & Acquisitions
This session will focus on strategic reasons why M&A may be an attractive growth strategy compared to organic growth. The session will deal with alternative types of mergers and when one might be preferred over another.
Mergers & Acquisitions (continued)
This session will focus on how to value and acquisition candidate. The session will discuss how to identify and value synergies than can result from combining the right two businesses together.
Value Creation
This session will integrate the week’s subjects by focusing on how the world’s top performing companies use financial information intelligently to formulate and execute strategies designed to achieve their financial objectives. The session will focus on the importance of non-financial managers in that process. The session will include a small group exercise designed to allow participants to apply the lessons of the week.
Value Creation (continued)
This session will analyse data for companies in many businesses, from all over the world and identify those companies who achieve long term value creation and how those companies differ from less successful companies.
Case study Discussion
Lessons from Industry
Hear from a seasoned Financial Director
Programme Wrap-up
Programme faculty
Cláudia Custódio
Programme Director
Cláudia Custódio is a Professor of Finance at Imperial College Busines School. She holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Previously, she was Assistant Professor at Nova School of Business and Economics in Lisbon, and Assistant Professor at Arizona State University.
Franklin Allen
Professor of Finance & Economics at Imperial College Business School
Franklin Allen is Executive Director of the Brevan Howard Centre at Imperial College London, and Emeritus Professor at the Wharton School, where he was formerly Vice Dean and Director of Doctoral Programs. He has been Executive Editor of the Review of Financial Studies, and Managing Editor of the Review of Finance. He was President of the American Finance Association and is a Fellow of Econometric Society. Professor Allen holds a PhD from Oxford University and his chief areas of interest are corporate finance, asset pricing, financial innovation, comparative financial systems and financial crises. He is the co-author of Principles of Corporate Finance.
Become an Associate Alumni
Take your partnership with Imperial College Business School to the next level by becoming an Associate Alumni. Complete more than eight days of our programmes to claim 'Associate Alumni' status and join our active alumni community.
Key information
Learning & Talent Development
Short executive programmes
Our short executive courses combine our long-established capability in technology with the latest business thinking.
Contact us
Diana Richards
Business Development Manager – Open Programmes