Project Financial Management Training Course

Participants can structure project costs for planning, recording and management reporting.

• Work breakdown structure linked to cost breakdown structure
• Control accounts connecting work packages, budgets and actual costs
• Direct, indirect, fixed, variable and semi-variable cost classification
• Capital expenditure and operating expenditure treatment for project decisions
• Chart-of-accounts mapping for project codes and general ledger
• Cost allocation bases for shared services, facilities and management support

Participants can translate defined scope into financially controllable work packages.

• Scope baseline components: statement, WBS and WBS dictionary
• Decomposing deliverables into measurable work packages and planning accounts
• Acceptance criteria used to define budgeted completion points
• Requirements traceability matrix linking scope changes to cost impacts
• Assumption logs distinguishing confirmed facts from estimating judgments
• Exclusions documented to prevent unbudgeted work entering delivery

Participants can select and document appropriate estimating methods for project work.

• Analogous estimating using comparable project outcomes and adjustment factors
• Parametric estimating with unit rates, productivity factors and quantities
• Bottom-up estimates aggregated from work-package resource requirements
• Three-point estimating using optimistic, most-likely and pessimistic cost values
• Vendor quotation analysis using like-for-like scope and commercial assumptions
• Basis of estimate records covering sources, assumptions, exclusions and confidence

Participants can calculate labour and resource budgets using realistic rate assumptions.

• Resource calendars identifying availability, shifts, holidays and utilisation constraints
• Labour hours calculated from effort estimates and planned staffing profiles
• Fully loaded labour rates including salary, benefits and overhead components
• Blended rates applied where named resources remain uncertain
• Equipment ownership, rental and operating costs compared systematically
• Productivity assumptions tested against learning curves and site conditions

Participants can incorporate procurement strategy and contract terms into project budgets.

• Make-or-buy analysis comparing total cost, risk and capability implications
• Fixed-price, reimbursable and time-and-material contract cost treatment
• Procurement lead times reflected in commitment and payment forecasts
• Bid evaluation costs separated from contracted delivery expenditure
• Retention, milestone payments and advance payments planned explicitly
• Purchase order values reconciled with approved budgets and forecast needs

Participants can construct an approved, time-phased cost baseline for project control.

• Cost baseline assembled from work-package estimates and schedule dates
• Time phasing expenditure using activity logic, durations and resource loading
• Management reserve separated from contingency within approved funding
• Funding limit reconciliation against planned cumulative project expenditure
• Baseline version control following approval of budget changes
• S-curve charts displaying planned value and cumulative budget profiles

Participants can quantify cost uncertainty and govern contingency use.

• Risk register cost impacts estimated using probability-impact assessment
• Expected monetary value calculated for discrete cost risk events
• Contingency allowances assigned to identified uncertainty and estimating maturity
• Monte Carlo simulation outputs interpreted for confidence-based budget setting
• Contingency drawdown requests documented with cause, value and approval
• Risk response costs included within mitigation and fallback plans

Participants can explain how project transactions are recorded and adjusted at period end.

• Actual costs captured through invoices, timesheets, journals and payroll feeds
• Accruals recorded for received goods or services awaiting invoices
• Prepayments recognised when cash precedes project cost consumption
• Committed costs tracked from purchase orders and signed contracts
• Period-end cut-off checks prevent costs entering incorrect reporting periods
• Reconciliations compare project records, procurement data and general ledger balances

Participants can manage project revenue, billing milestones and funding conditions.

• Revenue recognition principles applied to performance obligations and delivery evidence
• IFRS 15 contract review identifies billing, revenue and disclosure requirements
• Milestone billing schedules linked to acceptance criteria and contract clauses
• Grant funding conditions tracked through eligible-cost and reporting requirements
• Deferred revenue and unbilled revenue explained through project timing differences
• Funding drawdown forecasts matched with approved expenditure and donor restrictions

Participants can prepare rolling project cash forecasts from operational financial data.

• Cash flow differs from budget, forecast, profit and earned value
• Thirteen-week cash forecast built from invoices, payroll and supplier terms
• Receipt timing estimated from billing schedules, collection patterns and funding dates
• Payment calendars reflect purchase orders, milestones, retention and tax
• Cumulative cash curves identify peak funding needs and liquidity gaps
• Scenario analysis tests delayed receipts, accelerated spending and funding reductions

Participants can update forecasts using actual performance, commitments and remaining work.

• Estimate to complete built from remaining quantities, rates and productivity
• Estimate at completion reconciles actual costs, commitments and uncommitted work
• Rolling forecasts replace expired assumptions with current delivery evidence
• Forecast confidence assessed through data quality, maturity and risk exposure
• Trend logs record recurring cost movements and underlying causal factors
• Forecast changes separated between scope, rates, productivity and timing effects

Participants can investigate financial variances and recommend targeted management actions.

• Budget-versus-actual variance analysed by work package and cost category
• Price, quantity, rate and efficiency variances isolated systematically
• Root cause analysis uses five whys and cause-and-effect diagrams
• Materiality thresholds determine escalation, investigation and reporting requirements
• Corrective actions assigned with owners, dates, costs and expected outcomes
• Variance narratives distinguish factual evidence, assumptions and management judgment

Participants can calculate and interpret core earned value metrics for project performance.

• Planned value, earned value and actual cost defined precisely
• Budget at completion established from the authorised cost baseline
• Cost performance index calculated from earned value and actual cost
• Schedule performance index calculated from earned value and planned value
• Cost variance and schedule variance interpreted with correct signs
• EIA-748 control account principles applied to project performance measurement

Participants can use earned value data to forecast final project cost and schedule outcomes.

• Estimate at completion calculated using CPI-based forecasting formulas
• Independent estimate at completion compared with management forecast assumptions
• Estimate to complete derived from remaining work and performance factors
• Variance at completion communicates expected overrun or underrun against baseline
• To-complete performance index tests feasibility of recovery targets
• Performance measurement baseline maintained through authorised change control

Participants can assess and control the financial consequences of project changes.

• Change requests assessed for scope, schedule, cost, risk and funding
• Impact assessments distinguish one-time costs from recurring operating costs
• Change control board decisions documented with financial approval authority
• Budget transfers controlled between work packages without masking overruns
• Baseline changes separated from forecast updates and management reserve releases
• Delegated authority matrices govern spending approvals and escalation routes

Participants can create decision-focused financial reports for different project stakeholders.

• Monthly cost report combines actuals, commitments, forecast and variance commentary
• Dashboard measures selected for sponsor, finance, delivery and PMO audiences
• S-curves, burn rates and trend charts reveal financial performance patterns
• Traffic-light status criteria tied to quantified thresholds and evidence
• Management narratives explain decisions required, consequences and recommended actions
• Data dictionaries define report fields, calculation rules and ownership

Participants can manage financial issues specific to capital investments and asset delivery.

• Capitalisation criteria distinguish asset creation from operating expenditure
• Capital work-in-progress tracked until assets become available for use
• Asset componentisation supports depreciation, maintenance and replacement planning
• Commissioning costs assessed for capital treatment and operational readiness
• Capital project close-out transfers approved values into fixed asset registers
• Benefits realisation measures compare investment cases with delivered outcomes

Participants can prepare complete financial records and closure actions for audit and handover.

• Audit trail requirements link approvals, contracts, invoices and accounting entries
• Close-out checklist confirms final costs, accrual reversals and commitments closure
• Supplier account reconciliation resolves disputed balances and outstanding credits
• Final forecast compared with approved budget and funding authorisations
• Lessons learned capture estimating accuracy, control failures and recovery actions
• Records retention schedules protect financial evidence and contractual documentation

Participants can build, review and present a complete project financial management pack for governance approval.

• Project scenario translated into scope, cost structure and planning assumptions
• Time-phased budget developed from estimates, resources, procurement and schedule
• Cash forecast prepared using commitments, invoice timing and funding conditions
• Cost report produced with actuals, accruals, forecast and variance analysis
• Earned value metrics calculated with recovery options and management recommendations
• Financial management pack reviewed against governance, audit and reporting requirements