Introduction

This training course on Budgeting, Forecasting, and the Planning Process equips participants with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to develop top-tier strategic planning, forecasting, and budgeting processes. A strategy serves as a long-term roadmap for an organization’s objectives. This course will help delegates create a framework that aligns strategies with annual budgets and targets, aiming for excellence in management and organizational performance.

A budget is essentially a short-term plan that quantifies the operational activities necessary to achieve long-term strategic goals. Participants will learn forecasting techniques to formulate effective budgets, and how to use control budgets and variance analysis to identify opportunities for improving financial performance.

This GLOMACS training course will cover:

– The connections between strategic financial planning, forecasting, and budgeting
– Effective Excel and other forecasting techniques to support financial planning and budgeting
– The impact of different financing methods and associated business and financial risks on financial plans
– Traditional and modern costing systems used in the budgeting process
– Best practices in operating budgeting, budgetary control, capital investment budgeting, and cash forecasting

Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

– Enhance their strategic thinking and integrate organizational strategic management with budgeting processes
– Apply the most suitable forecasting techniques for their organization’s strategic planning and budgeting
– Implement key financial management principles, including shareholder wealth maximization, cash flow management, time value of money, and risk assessment
– Understand cost behavior and identify the most appropriate costing methods for financial planning, budgeting, and control
– Utilize best practices to create operating budgets, capital expenditure budgets, and cash flow forecasts aligned with organizational objectives

 Training Methodology

This course will blend analytical techniques with practical examples and case studies. Relevant worked examples will illustrate key learning points and the application of tools in real-world scenarios. Group discussions will facilitate the sharing of experiences and ideas.

Interactive team exercises and case studies will reinforce the topics covered, supported by the instructor’s extensive practical experience in strategic planning, forecasting, and budgeting. Complex mathematical concepts will be simplified and presented visually for better understanding, ensuring an enjoyable learning experience.

 Organizational Impact

Participants will bring enhanced knowledge and skills back to their organizations, benefiting through:

– Improved strategic thinking and understanding of the relationship between budgets and strategic financial plans
– Effective application of forecasting techniques
– Enhanced risk analysis and management capabilities
– Identification of optimal financing methods and capital structures
– Adoption of modern approaches to costing, planning, budgeting, and budgetary control
– Proficiency in capital investment project budgeting and cash forecasting

 Personal Impact

Delegates will gain a strategic perspective and significantly enhance their skills in planning and budgeting, including:

– Conducting strategic analysis and financial planning using tools like the Balanced Scorecard
– Utilizing qualitative and quantitative forecasting tools and evaluating business and financial risks
– Mastering absorption costing, marginal costing, cost-volume-profit (CVP) analysis, activity-based costing (ABC), and activity-based management (ABM)
– Preparing operating and cash budgets, using activity-based budgeting (ABB), flexed budgets, and variance analysis for effective budgetary control
– Evaluating alternative financing options and optimizing capital structure, including calculating cost of equity, cost of debt, and weighted average cost of capital (WACC)
– Applying discounted cash flow (DCF) techniques, including net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), modified internal rate of return (MIRR), equivalent annual cost (EAC), and profitability index (PI) for capital project investment appraisal

Who Should Attend?

This GLOMACS training course is suitable for anyone involved in budgeting and planning within companies, corporations, and governmental, educational, and healthcare organizations. It is particularly beneficial for those in finance, accounting, costing, and treasury departments, as well as non-financial professionals with budget responsibilities, including:

– Line Managers
– Project Managers
– Professional advisors and consultants seeking to enhance their strategic thinking and decision-making skills related to planning, forecasting, and budgeting

Course Outline

Day 1: Strategic Management and Financing
– Overview of strategic analysis, choices, evaluation, and implementation
– Exploring links between strategy, forecasting, planning, budgeting, and performance measurement
– Understanding strategic capability and avoiding common pitfalls
– Shareholder wealth maximization and value creation
– Financial strategy considerations, including dividend policy and corporate governance
– Long-term financing options and their costs

Day 2: Financial Planning, Forecasting, and Risk Analysis
– The financial planning process and modeling techniques using Excel
– Statistical forecasting tools and techniques, including time series and regression analysis
– Revenue forecasting and pricing strategies
– Assessing financial risk and uncertainty

Day 3: Cost Analysis Technique
– Understanding cost behavior and types of costs
– Cost allocation methods and pricing strategies
– Utilizing cost-volume-profit analysis and activity-based costing

Day 4: Budgeting, Budgetary Control, and Performance Improvement
– The purpose of budgets and stages of the budgeting process
– Developing the master budget and activity-based budgets
– Variance analysis and performance measurement techniques
– Behavioral aspects of budgeting and continuous improvement

Day 5: Project Appraisal and Capital Budgeting
– Understanding the time value of money and its application in capital budgeting
– Various methods for project appraisal, including NPV, IRR, and payback periods
– Risk assessment techniques for capital projects and capital rationing considerations

This comprehensive course will empower you with the tools and techniques necessary for effective budgeting, forecasting, and planning within your organization.