Introduction

The aim of this qualification is to enable learners to have an understanding of the preparation of numerical, graphical and financial formats sufficient to provide useful information for management needs in monitoring, decision making and problem-solving.

The qualification will:

• Meet the needs of candidates who work or want to work in job roles such as:

  • Accounts Assistant

  • Accounting Technician

  • Office Administrator

  • Clerical Assistant

  • Manager (non-financial roles)

  • Team Leader

• Allow candidates to learn, develop and practice the skills required for employment and/or career progression in the business sector

Objectives

After attending the program delegates will be able to:

• Know how to prepare business budgets

• Understand budget deviations and variances

• Know how a business may maintain liquidity

• Prepare to cost information for business

• Record stock movements in a business

• Understand the principles of credit control

• Understand how to use business performance indicators

Target Audience

• Accounts Assistants
• Accounting Technicians
• Office Administrators
• Clerical Assistants
• Non-financial Managers
• Team Leaders
• Junior finance staff and trainees
• Business support staff involved in budgeting and reporting
• Employees seeking basic accounting and budgeting skills
• Candidates preparing for entry-level accounting qualifications
• Professionals aiming for career progression in business and finance roles

Outlines

Day 1

Preparing Business Budgets

• Calculate increases and decreases in quantities and money value of materials

• Calculate increases and decreases in hours, wage rates and labor costs

• Calculate increases and decreases in expenses

• Calculate increases and decreases in amounts and money value of income

• Make allowance for the timing of receipts and payments arising from credit transactions

• Prepare sales, production, materials, labor, expenses and cash budgets

Day 2

Managing Budgets - Budget Deviations/Variances and Costing

• Identify variances (deviation) between actual outcomes and budget information

• Calculate variances (deviation) between actual and budget data

• Identify fixed, variable, direct and indirect costs

• Extract data about income and expenditure from given information

• Prepare estimates and job costs

• Check estimates and job for accuracy

Day 3

Liquidity Management

• Identify how a business may maintain a level of liquidity in accordance with cash budgets and forecasts

• Invest surplus funds

• Investment risk

• Obtain loans and obtain overdrafts

• Interest rate risk

• Recent events in the banking and financial markets

Day 4

Stock & Credit Control

• Apply stock valuation methods to record the movement in stock using First In, First Out (FIFO), Last In, First Out (LIFO) and Weighted Average Cost (AVCO) perpetual method.

• Calculate cost information

• Explain the benefits and risks of providing credit

• Calculate credit prices and compare them with cash prices

• Use an age analysis of debtors to determine the appropriate action in accordance with given policies and circumstances

• Calculate average periods of credit given and bad and doubtful debts

Day 5

Measuring Performance

• Key performance indicators

• Extract and organize information into an appropriate form from data provided in tables or graphical format

• Calculate performance indicators measuring customer growth, satisfaction, quality of service, efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity.

• Prepare information about financial and non-financial performance in graphical format - line graphs, bar charts, and pie charts

• Compare performance indicators/trends over time and benchmark information against a comparative organization or collected industry-relevant data

• Financial ratio analysis

Assessment leading to City & Guilds Award in Business Finance – Level 2:

This unit will be assessed by a one-hour thirty-minute question paper, which will be externally marked The examination paper consists of a number of practical tasks, all of which should be completed by the candidate. Pro-forma will be provided for the completion of graphs, charts, tables and business documents testing the application of understanding.