Finance, Accounting and Budgeting Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Finance Officers, Budget Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-FM-089

Before you join: Participants should have basic familiarity with organisational budgets, invoices, expenses, revenue or financial reports.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Finance managers and non-finance leaders are expected to turn accounting records into decisions on spending, pricing, investment, liquidity and performance. That requires more than reading a profit figure. They need to understand how transactions affect the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement; distinguish profit from cash; challenge budget assumptions; and explain material variances to senior stakeholders. Weak financial control or poorly constructed forecasts can lead to overspending, avoidable funding gaps, missed targets and decisions based on incomplete information.

This course develops practical financial management capability across accounting, budgeting, forecasting, costing, analysis and control. Participants interpret financial statements using IFRS concepts, calculate and explain key ratios, assess cost behaviour, build driver-based budgets and prepare rolling cash forecasts. They also use variance analysis to identify operational causes of underperformance, appraise capital investments using discounted cash flow methods, and apply internal controls to core financial processes. The course connects finance techniques to management decisions rather than treating accounting as a reporting-only function.

Teaching combines instructor briefings with worked financial cases, team analysis, spreadsheet-based calculations, budget and cash-flow simulations, and structured discussions. Cases reflect decisions commonly faced in corporate, public-sector, banking and NGO settings, including funding restrictions, procurement controls, project investment and cost pressures. Participants leave with a set of reusable working documents: a ratio analysis model, driver-based budget template, 13-week cash forecast, variance investigation framework, capital appraisal model and financial controls checklist.

The course suits professionals who work with budgets, financial reports, operational costs or investment proposals and need greater confidence in financial analysis and financial decision-making.

What you will be able to do

  • Interpret IFRS-based financial statements and trace transactions through the accounting cycle
  • Calculate liquidity, profitability, efficiency and return ratios from published accounts
  • Apply contribution analysis, break-even analysis and relevant-cost analysis to operational decisions
  • Prepare a driver-based operating budget with documented assumptions and approval responsibilities
  • Build a 13-week rolling cash forecast from receipts, payments, payroll and financing data
  • Analyse budget variances using flexible budgets, price-volume-mix analysis and root-cause methods
  • Appraise capital projects using net present value, internal rate of return and sensitivity analysis
  • Design financial controls for purchase-to-pay, order-to-cash and bank reconciliation processes

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Greater confidence explaining profit, cash flow and financial position to managers
  • Ability to challenge budget assumptions and cost proposals using financial evidence
  • Practical skill in preparing rolling cash forecasts and identifying funding pressures
  • Stronger contribution to investment decisions, pricing discussions and performance reviews
  • Reusable analysis methods for finance, operations, project and commercial roles

For your organisation

  • More reliable budgets built from documented operational drivers and assumptions
  • Earlier identification of cash shortfalls, collection issues and funding requirements
  • Clearer explanations of financial variances and accountable corrective actions
  • Better capital allocation through consistent investment appraisal methods
  • Reduced financial control exposure in payment, billing and reconciliation processes

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can explain how accounting information supports financial management decisions.

  • Finance, accounting and budgeting roles within management decision cycles
  • Accounting equation effects of routine transactions on financial position
  • Accrual accounting, matching and materiality under IFRS reporting principles
  • Chart of accounts design linking transactions, ledgers and reports
  • General ledger, subledgers and trial balance reconciliation logic
  • Management accounting information compared with external financial reporting requirements

Participants can interpret the three primary financial statements and their connections.

  • Income statement structure: revenue, cost of sales, expenses and profit
  • Balance sheet classification of assets, liabilities and equity accounts
  • IAS 7 cash flow categories: operating, investing and financing
  • Trace transactions through journals into the three primary statements
  • Working capital movements reconciled between profit and operating cash flow
  • Notes to accounts, accounting policies and material disclosure judgments

Participants can assess financial performance, position and operating efficiency using ratios.

  • Vertical and horizontal analysis identify material movements in reported results
  • Common-size statements separate scale effects from operating performance
  • Liquidity ratios: current, quick and cash conversion measures
  • Profitability ratios assess margin, return on assets and equity
  • Efficiency ratios diagnose receivables, inventory and payables management
  • DuPont analysis connects margin, asset turnover and financial return

Participants can apply cost and margin techniques to operational decisions.

  • Cost behaviour classified as fixed, variable, step and mixed
  • High-low method estimates variable cost rates and fixed components
  • Contribution margin supports volume, pricing and product-mix decisions
  • Break-even analysis calculates required volume, margin of safety and target profit
  • Activity-based costing assigns overhead using cost drivers and activity pools
  • Relevant-cost analysis distinguishes avoidable, sunk and opportunity costs

Participants can prepare a structured budget and maintain relevant financial forecasts.

  • Strategic objectives translated into financial assumptions and budget drivers
  • Driver-based budgeting builds revenue, headcount and operating cost plans
  • Zero-based budgeting challenges recurring expenditure and funding requests
  • Rolling forecasts update assumptions, periods and management actions
  • Capital expenditure budgets separate approval, timing, depreciation and cash impacts
  • Budget calendar defines ownership, submissions, reviews and approvals

Participants can forecast short-term liquidity and identify working capital actions.

  • 13-week rolling cash forecast schedules receipts, payroll and supplier payments
  • Receivables assumptions incorporate billing dates, collection patterns and credit terms
  • Payment run timing models payables, tax, debt service and payroll
  • Scenario analysis tests base, downside and recovery cash positions
  • Cash conversion cycle identifies inventory, receivable and payable interventions
  • Funding gap analysis compares facility limits, covenants and liquidity needs

Participants can investigate financial variances and present appropriate management actions.

  • Flexible budgets restate planned costs at actual activity levels
  • Price, volume and mix variances explain revenue performance
  • Material, labour and overhead variances isolate operational causes
  • Budget-to-actual bridges distinguish timing, scope and execution effects
  • Root-cause analysis links variances to accountable owners and actions
  • Monthly performance packs combine KPIs, commentary, forecast and decisions

Participants can evaluate investment proposals using financial return and risk measures.

  • Time value of money discounts future cash flows appropriately
  • Net present value ranks projects using incremental cash flows
  • Internal rate of return and payback expose investment trade-offs
  • Sensitivity analysis tests assumptions driving project value and risk
  • Post-investment review compares approved business cases with realised outcomes
  • Capital approval papers state benefits, costs, risks and decision gates

Participants can identify and strengthen controls across key financial processes.

  • COSO control components connect governance, risk assessment and monitoring
  • Segregation of duties reduces error and fraud opportunities
  • Purchase-to-pay controls cover authorisation, matching, payment and supplier changes
  • Order-to-cash controls govern credit, billing, collections and write-offs
  • Bank reconciliations and exception reports detect recording discrepancies promptly
  • Audit trails preserve evidence for review, accountability and corrective action

Participants can communicate financial findings clearly and prioritise workplace improvements.

  • Management dashboards focus attention on decisions, exceptions and forecast changes
  • Balanced Scorecard measures link financial outcomes with operational drivers
  • Executive narratives explain results, assumptions, risks and required decisions
  • Finance business partnering challenges proposals using evidence and commercial logic
  • Action plans assign owners, deadlines, measures and review cadences
  • Personal application priorities identify immediate reporting, forecasting and control improvements

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Financial statement ratio analysis model
  2. Driver-based operating budget template
  3. 13-week rolling cash forecast template
  4. Budget variance investigation framework
  5. Capital investment appraisal model
  6. Financial controls checklist

Who should attend

  • Finance Officers — need stronger analysis, forecasting and reporting capability
  • Budget Managers — need to prepare defensible plans and manage budget performance
  • Operational Managers — need to interpret financial results and control departmental costs
  • Accountants — need to connect accounting outputs with management decisions
  • Project Managers — need to budget resources, forecast cash and assess project economics
  • Procurement and Commercial Managers — need to evaluate costs, margins and financial controls

Skills and tools covered

Financial statement analysisBudget preparationCash flow forecastingCost and margin analysisVariance investigationCapital investment appraisal

Tools and standards

IFRS, IAS 7 Statement of Cash Flows, COSO Internal Control—Integrated Framework, Balanced Scorecard

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings followed by worked calculations, financial statement review, group case work and facilitated problem-solving. Participants analyse realistic budgets, management reports, cash positions and investment proposals, then compare conclusions and decision options. Spreadsheet-based simulations are used for forecasting, break-even analysis, variance investigation and capital appraisal. Trainers adapt cases and discussion emphasis to the cohort’s sector, reporting responsibilities and financial maturity. Each participant completes an application plan identifying financial reporting, budgeting, forecasting or control improvements relevant to their role.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic familiarity with organisational budgets, invoices, expenses, revenue or financial reports. They should be comfortable working with percentages, simple arithmetic and spreadsheet tables. Experience in a finance, operations, programme, project, procurement or management role is useful. The course assumes participants can read a basic income statement and balance sheet, although these are refreshed early in the programme. Prior accounting qualifications, advanced Excel skills, audit experience and prior knowledge of IFRS are not required. Participants should bring a calculator or laptop if permitted by their organisation.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should understand basic business terms such as revenue, costs, expenses and budgets. The course refreshes core accounting concepts before moving into analysis, forecasting and appraisal; no accounting qualification is required.

Bring a calculator and, where permitted, a laptop for spreadsheet-based financial work. You may also bring a non-confidential budget, management report or financial question from your workplace to inform your application planning.

It suits finance staff, budget holders, operational managers, project managers and commercial professionals who use financial information in decisions. It is designed for people with some workplace exposure to budgets or reports, rather than complete beginners.

This course focuses on using accounting information for management decisions, budgeting, forecasting, cost control and investment appraisal. It does not train participants to process routine bookkeeping entries in depth, nor does it focus on complex valuation, treasury or financial modelling.

Participants use reusable templates for ratio analysis, budgeting, cash forecasting, variance investigation and control review. The final application plan identifies priority improvements and actions that can be implemented in their own reporting or budgeting cycle.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours, with breaks and lunch scheduled separately. The five days progress from accounting foundations and statements through budgeting, cash forecasting, variance analysis, investment appraisal and financial controls.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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