Numbers alone do not drive good decisions — the way they are reported does. A well-structured financial report can flag risk before it turns into a crisis, while a poorly designed one can bury the insight a business urgently needs. This gap is exactly what this programme addresses.

Across a set of practical modules, participants learn how accounting and financial standards shape the numbers behind a report, how to read and interpret balance sheets, income statements and cash flow statements together, and how to turn financial data into graphics, dashboards and integrated reports that genuinely support business decisions — all backed by hands-on Excel skills. The course is delivered by a team of internationally experienced finance professionals.

Who Should Attend?

• Finance professionals and CFOs responsible for producing financial reports
• Accountants, budget analysts, and project professionals who rely on financial data
• Vice presidents of finance, controllers and treasurers
• Anyone with a general interest in how financial reporting works

Knowledge and Benefits

By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:

• See how financial reporting drives business performance and decision-making
• Prepare financial statements in line with IASB standards
• Critically analyse and interpret financial statements and reports
• Contribute to building consolidated reports for their organisation
• Apply hands-on Excel skills to strengthen reports and forecasts

• Foundations of Financial Accounting and Governance

  • Purpose of financial accounting and reporting
  • Basic principles of corporate governance and building a successful business model
  • Key terms and the construction of the financial accounting system

• Reporting Risk: Standards, Creative Accounting and Fraud

  • Fundamentals of financial reporting and the IASB’s conceptual framework
  • Creative accounting, scandals and fraud

• Reading the Balance Sheet and Income Statement

  • Statement of financial position: purpose, structure and presentation
  • Property, plant and equipment, intangible assets, financial assets and liabilities, and inventories
  • Statement of changes in equity, the profit and loss statement, and revenue recognition principles

• Cash Flow, Group Accounts and Working Capital

  • Cash flow statement: purpose, structure, presentation, and understanding a company’s cash flow drivers
  • Equity, debt, leases and optimising working capital
  • Cash flow forecasting techniques and group account purpose, structure and presentation

• Analysing Financial Performance

  • Fundamentals of financial reporting analysis and the concept of shareholder value
  • Profitability and liquidity measurement and management
  • Impact of gearing on risk and shareholder value, anticipating corporate crises and failures, and earnings forecasting

• Designing and Presenting Reports That Get Used

  • Limitations of financial reports and designing effective internal business reports
  • Integrating Excel graphics and business dashboards into reports
  • Creating effective financial presentations and understanding developments in Integrated Reporting (IR)