Financial Management for Office Administrators Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Office Administrators, Executive Assistants 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-094

Before you join: Participants should have at least six months of office administration, executive support, project coordination or office management experience.

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

Office administrators, executive assistants and secretaries often control the information and workflow behind budgets, supplier payments, expense claims, purchase orders and management reports. Errors in coding, approvals, cash records or supporting documents can delay operations, create overspend, weaken audit evidence and expose the organisation to fraud. Finance teams need administrators who can interpret financial information, follow controls and identify issues before they become costly.

This course builds practical financial management skills for professionals who support managers, departments and finance functions. Participants learn how financial statements connect, how budgets are built and monitored, how procure-to-pay controls work, and how to manage invoices, expenses, cash records and reconciliations. They also learn variance analysis, cost allocation, spreadsheet-based reporting, internal controls, risk registers and financial communication for non-finance colleagues.

Teaching combines instructor briefings with realistic cases involving departmental budgets, supplier invoices, travel claims, payment queries, cash forecasts and month-end reporting. Group work, spreadsheet tasks and decision simulations allow participants to apply methods before returning to work. Each participant leaves with a practical financial administration toolkit containing budget-monitoring, cash-control, invoice-review and reporting templates that can be adapted to their role.

The course is suited to experienced administrative professionals who already handle financial documents or support budget holders. It is also relevant to office managers, project coordinators and executive assistants moving into roles with greater responsibility for expenditure, records, purchasing or financial reporting.

What you will be able to do

  • Interpret income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements for administrative decisions
  • Prepare a departmental budget using cost assumptions, phasing and contingency provisions
  • Apply procure-to-pay controls including quotations, purchase orders and three-way matching
  • Review invoices, expense claims and payment records for coding, approval and documentation errors
  • Produce a 13-week rolling cash forecast from receipts, payroll and supplier commitments
  • Analyse budget variances using price, volume, timing and scope causes
  • Build Excel-based expenditure reports using SUMIFS, XLOOKUP, PivotTables and data validation
  • Create an internal control action plan using COSO components, risk registers and RACI responsibilities

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Greater confidence discussing budgets, payments and financial exceptions with finance teams
  • Ability to identify coding, approval and supporting-documentation errors before submission
  • Practical spreadsheet methods for producing accurate spending and variance reports
  • Stronger readiness for office manager, executive assistant or project support responsibilities
  • Clear evidence of financial administration capability through a certificate of completion

For your organisation

  • Fewer invoice, expense claim and purchase order errors requiring finance rework
  • Improved budget visibility through timely expenditure tracking and variance commentary
  • Stronger audit evidence for approvals, supplier records, payments and reconciliations
  • Earlier identification of cash pressures, overdue invoices and unplanned commitments
  • More consistent application of delegated authority and segregation-of-duties controls

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can interpret core financial information and identify their responsibilities within finance processes.

  • Financial statements: income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement relationships
  • Accrual accounting distinguishes earned revenue, incurred costs, cash receipts and payments
  • Chart of accounts coding supports consistent transaction classification and reporting
  • Working capital links receivables, payables, inventory and short-term liquidity
  • Read management reports using actual, budget, variance and forecast columns
  • Materiality thresholds determine when errors require correction or escalation
  • Office administrator finance responsibilities, approval limits and segregation-of-duties boundaries

Participants can prepare and monitor a departmental budget using clear assumptions and controls.

  • Annual budget cycle connects strategic priorities, cost centres and accountability
  • Build departmental budgets from staffing, supplier, travel and facility assumptions
  • Fixed, variable and step costs tested against activity drivers
  • Zero-based budgeting challenges prior-year spending before funding requests
  • Rolling forecasts update assumptions, commitments and anticipated timing changes
  • Budget phasing allocates approved expenditure across months and quarters
  • Contingency provisions documented with triggers, owners and approval requirements

Participants can manage purchasing documentation and apply key controls from request to payment.

  • Procure-to-pay process maps requisition, approval, purchase order, receipt and invoice
  • Three-way matching compares purchase orders, goods receipts and supplier invoices
  • Competitive quotation records support value-for-money decisions and audit trails
  • Purchase order amendments controlled through delegated authority and documented justification
  • Supplier master-data changes verified to prevent payment diversion fraud
  • Contract registers track renewal dates, commitments, service levels and owners
  • Urgent purchases handled through approved exceptions and post-purchase documentation

Participants can review and process invoices, claims and payments with appropriate financial checks.

  • Invoice coding assigns correct cost centre, account code, tax treatment
  • Accounts payable ageing identifies overdue invoices, disputes and early-payment opportunities
  • Expense claims checked against policy, receipts, mileage rates and approvals
  • VAT or sales-tax documentation retained according to applicable requirements
  • Payment runs scheduled around due dates, cash availability and authorisation
  • Duplicate-payment checks compare supplier, invoice number, amount and date fields
  • Query logs assign owners, resolution dates and supplier communication records

Participants can monitor cash movements, maintain cash controls and investigate reconciliation differences.

  • Daily cash position combines bank balances, receipts, payments and committed outflows
  • 13-week rolling cash forecast built from receipts, payroll and supplier data
  • Bank reconciliations investigate timing differences, bank charges and unidentified transactions
  • Petty cash imprest systems set float limits, vouchers and replenishment controls
  • Cash-handling procedures separate custody, recording, review and physical counts
  • Payment approval matrices apply thresholds, signatories and evidence requirements
  • Foreign-currency invoices recorded using approved exchange rates and supporting documents

Participants can prepare clear financial reports and explain significant budget movements.

  • Management information packs distinguish operational metrics from financial performance measures
  • Variance analysis separates price, volume, timing and scope causes
  • Waterfall charts explain budget-to-actual movements for non-finance audiences
  • Key performance indicators link service delivery, cost, quality and timeliness
  • Month-end close checklists coordinate accruals, corrections, reconciliations and submissions
  • Exception reports highlight overspends, missing approvals and unusual transactions
  • Write concise financial commentary using cause, impact, action and owner

Participants can use cost information to support spending, sourcing and service decisions.

  • Cost allocation bases distribute shared services using defensible consumption measures
  • Unit-cost calculations connect total cost, activity volumes and service outputs
  • Break-even analysis tests fixed costs, contribution margin and demand assumptions
  • Contribution margin distinguishes revenue available for fixed-cost recovery
  • Make-or-buy comparisons include relevant costs, capacity and quality factors
  • Scenario analysis models best case, base case and downside assumptions
  • Benefits realisation registers track expected savings, owners, dates and evidence

Participants can build controlled spreadsheet reports for expenditure tracking and financial review.

  • Excel tables structure transaction data for sorting, filtering and controlled updates
  • SUMIFS and COUNTIFS aggregate expenditure by cost centre and supplier
  • XLOOKUP matches coding tables while exposing missing or inconsistent records
  • PivotTables summarise spending patterns by month, category and budget holder
  • Data validation lists reduce coding errors during requisition and invoice entry
  • Conditional formatting flags budget exceptions, overdue actions and duplicate values
  • Version-control conventions identify approved files, preparers, reviewers and reporting dates

Participants can identify financial risks and strengthen controls within administrative processes.

  • COSO internal control components frame finance risks and control design
  • Risk registers assess likelihood, impact, existing controls and treatment owners
  • Segregation of duties prevents one person initiating, approving and recording payments
  • Audit trails preserve source documents, approvals, changes and reviewer evidence
  • Fraud red flags include altered bank details, split purchases and duplicate invoices
  • Control self-assessments test evidence quality, frequency and exception follow-up
  • Data confidentiality rules govern payroll, supplier banking and expense records

Participants can communicate financial issues clearly and plan improvements to their work processes.

  • Finance calendar sequences budget deadlines, close activities, payments and reporting
  • RACI matrices clarify preparer, approver, reviewer and informed stakeholder responsibilities
  • Action trackers assign financial issues, due dates, status and escalation paths
  • Stakeholder briefings translate financial results into operational decisions and requests
  • Escalation notes state issue, financial exposure, options and required decision
  • Personal application plans select two workplace controls and implementation milestones
  • Progress reviews measure adoption, exceptions resolved and reporting improvements

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

What you take back to work

  1. Departmental budget monitoring template
  2. 13-week rolling cash forecast model
  3. Invoice and expense claim review checklist
  4. Procure-to-pay control map
  5. Budget variance commentary template
  6. Financial controls action plan

Who should attend

  • Office Administrators — manage purchasing, invoices, records or departmental expenditure
  • Executive Assistants — support senior leaders with budgets, expenses and financial reporting
  • Administrative Assistants — need stronger control over financial documents and approvals
  • Office Managers — oversee office budgets, suppliers, payment processes and cost controls
  • Project Coordinators — track project spending, commitments, forecasts and supporting evidence
  • Secretaries — handle financial correspondence, claims, purchase requests and meeting reports

Skills and tools covered

Budget monitoringCash flow forecastingInvoice controlVariance analysisFinancial reportingInternal controls

Tools and standards

Microsoft Excel, COSO Internal Control Framework, RACI matrix, Three-way matching

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings followed by finance cases drawn from office administration work. Participants review budget extracts, purchase requests, invoices, expense claims, bank records and management reports. Small-group exercises apply three-way matching, variance analysis, cash forecasting, risk assessment and spreadsheet reporting. Simulations focus on resolving payment queries, escalating overspends and explaining results to budget holders. Application planning helps participants select controls, reports and process improvements for immediate use in their own office.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have at least six months of office administration, executive support, project coordination or office management experience. They should be comfortable working with invoices, expense claims, purchase requests, spreadsheets or internal approval processes. Basic arithmetic and confidence using common spreadsheet functions are useful. Participants do not need an accounting qualification, prior responsibility for a budget, advanced Excel skills or experience preparing statutory financial statements. The course explains accounting terms and financial controls before applying them to administrative responsibilities.

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 need basic office administration experience and familiarity with common financial documents such as invoices, claims or purchase requests. No accounting qualification or prior budget ownership is required.

Bring a laptop if possible for spreadsheet activities, along with examples of non-confidential reports or forms you use at work. Course materials are provided, and participants should not bring confidential financial data.

It is designed for office administrators, executive assistants, secretaries, office managers and project coordinators with finance-related responsibilities. It also suits professionals preparing to support budget holders or finance teams more closely.

This course focuses on the financial tasks performed by administrative professionals: budgets, purchasing, invoices, expenses, cash controls and reporting. It does not train participants to prepare statutory accounts or perform specialist accounting duties.

Participants use templates and checklists that can be adapted for their own purchasing, payment, reporting and budget-monitoring processes. The final module identifies two workplace controls or reporting improvements to implement after the course.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. Across five days, the course moves from financial foundations and budgeting through controls, reporting, spreadsheet analysis and workplace application.

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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