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Financial Management

Certificate ID: HAMEC02
As a non-financial manager, learn how to communicate with Finance personnel to interpret financial information, recognize risk and return issues inherent in capital budgeting decisions, interpret capital structuring decisions, assess the costs and benefits of business decisions, and effectively communicate operational and financial strategies to maximize economic value for your organization.

Description

Today, a good idea is not good enough — leaders must demonstrate that their idea will deliver measurable results to the bottom line. To drive innovation and organizational success, leaders need to make effective business decisions that provide the most economic value to their organizations. They must have at their disposal the conceptual frameworks necessary to effectively articulate project and investment proposals to decision-makers, as well as review and discuss proposals with the organization’s finance managers.

This series of six two-week courses in financial management is designed to help you, as a non-financial manager, make and contribute to cogent business decisions. This financial management certificate uses easily understood, relevant case examples and engaging, interactive explanations to demystify financial terminology, assumptions, and concepts. The series includes a combination of finance and accounting topics and enables you to:

interpret financial information
assess the costs and benefits of business decisions
apply risk and return considerations in capital budgeting
analyze the debt-equity decision
communicate operational and financial strategies

Who Should Take This Certificate?

This series is essential for all levels of managers, directors, and company officers who are responsible for making financial or capital budgeting decisions within their organization or must be able to interpret and use financial data.

Requirements

Participants in these courses need one of the following financial calculators:

Hewlett-Packard 12C
Texas Instruments BA II Plus

Both are available for purchase directly from Amazon.com

Enrollment

$3750 - Buy now and pay only $2900.00 (Save $850!)
(This price is good as of 09/02/2010.)

Enroll Now

To register, click 'Enroll Now' at right, or contact an Enrollment Counselor at info@ecornell.com or 1-866-326-7635 (+1-607-330-3200 from outside the United States).

Certificate programs are eligible for eCornell Payment Plans. Discounts are available for military personnel, veterans, and Cornell University Alumni. eCornell programs are not eligible for financial aid or federal Pell Grants. Contact an enrollment counselor for more information.

Courses in this Certificate

Mastering the Time Value of Money
- In today's competitive business world, managers are charged with making many project-related decisions, often involving costs or revenues that will be encountered some time in the future. Managers need to have a fundamental understanding of the time value of money.
  In this course, participants develop a solid understanding of the time value of money. Using timelines and cash-flow calculations they will learn to project cash flow, calculate payments, establish the value of securities and investments, and determine when it is more cost effective to lease or to buy.
  Course Format
  eCornell takes a problem-based approach to learning, and our courses are built around realistic case studies and scenarios. All courses are self-paced, and are facilitated by an eCornell instructor, who leads the online discussions and is available to answer any questions about the course content.
  This course contains the following modules:
  - Intuition and Conceptual Framework
    - Explaining the importance of the timing of future cash flows
    - Using a cash-flow timeline to conceptualize TVM problems
  - Basic TVM Tools
    - Using a financial calculator to solve TVM problems
    - Calculating the future and present value of a lump-sum payment
  - Advanced TVM Tools
    - Calculating the value of perpetuities and growing perpetuities
    - Calculating the future and present value of annuities
  Benefits to the Learner
  After completing this course, participants will be able to:
  - Make planning decisions in the present, based on the accurate calculation of cash flow projections
  - Use a cash-flow timeline to conceptualize time-value-of-money problems
  - Use a financial calculator to solve time-value-of-money problems
  - Calculate present and future values of payments, perpetuities, and annuities
  - Use these concepts as a foundation for making capital investment decisions
Making Capital Investment Decisions
- One of the most important aspects of a manager's job is to evaluate the feasibility of new initiatives and to make sound investment decisions. This includes conducting a thorough and reliable analysis using the appropriate financial decision-making tools.
  In this course, participants will learn six capital budgeting rules that provide a framework for making sound project investment decisions. Participants will examine how the rules differ from one another, and which rules are most appropriate for different project settings.
  Course Format
  eCornell takes a problem-based approach to learning, and our courses are built around realistic case studies and scenarios. All courses are self-paced, and are facilitated by an eCornell instructor, who leads the online discussions and is available to answer any questions about the course content.
  This course contains the following modules:
  - Conceptual Framework
    - How value is created in a business
    - How capital budgeting rules provide a framework for making project investment decisions
    - Appropriate use of other accounting-based techniques such as return on assets and return on equity
  - Basic Capital Budgeting Decision Rules
    - Calculation and appropriate use of net present value (NPV) as a tool in making project investment decisions
    - Internal rate of return (IRR), its strengths, weaknesses, and appropriate use as a decision rule
    - Payback periods (PP), its strengths, weaknesses, and appropriate use as a decision rule
    - Discounted payback periods (DPP), its strengths, weaknesses, and appropriate use as a decision rule
  - Special Cases
    - Calculation and appropriate use of profitability index (PI) as a decision rule
    - Calculation and appropriate use of equivalent annual cost (EAC) as a decision rule
  Benefits to the Learner
  After completing this course, participants will be able to:
  - Apply capital budgeting decision rules to make sound financial choices
  - Accurately analyze decisions and projects for financial soundness
Risk and Return: How to Identify, Measure, and Incorporate Into Capital Budgeting Decisions
- Managers in today’s firms must have the right tools to identify relevant project risks and weigh those risks against expected returns in a competitive market. They must understand how the risk-return relationship is incorporated into capital-budgeting decisions.
  
  This two-week course provides non-financial managers with an understanding of the key factors that enter into capital budgeting decisions so they are better able to engage in meaningful dialogue with the firm’s finance team.
  
  Discover how the risk-return relationship is measured and incorporated into capital-budgeting decisions. Explain why risk is a critical component of the capital-budgeting decision and what its impact is on the ultimate value of the investment under consideration.
  Course Format
  eCornell takes a problem-based approach to learning, and our courses are built around realistic case studies and scenarios. All courses are self-paced, and are facilitated by an eCornell instructor, who leads the online discussions and is available to answer any questions about the course content.
  
  This course contains the following modules:
  - Considering Investment Risk
  - How Firms Factor Risk into Capital Budgeting Decisions
  Benefits to the Learner
  After completing this course, participants will be able to:
  - Explain how risk enters into the capital budgeting decision and the impact it will have on the ultimate value of the investment under consideration
  - Interpret what you read in the Wall Street Journal
Raising Capital: The Process, the Players, and Strategic Considerations
- Firms routinely require access to external capital markets in order to fund capital and operating investments. Making complete, well-informed financing decisions at the corporate level requires a thorough understanding of capital markets. This course provides an introduction to the issues surrounding the debt-equity decision. It explains how decisions at the department or division level are influenced by capital structuring decisions at the company level and why changes in the industry and in the economy are important to investment and financing decisions in your organization.
  
  This course goes beyond a standard theoretical treatment of capital structure to explain fully how characteristics of capital markets impact the process and prospects of raising capital.
  
  Through an exploration of the strategic considerations involved in creating an optimal mix of debt and equity, this course addresses questions about the process of raising funds and the appropriate amounts of debt and equity to raise.
  
  Through it, you gain the insight you need to contribute to decisions in your own firm and obtain a more complete understanding of corporate restructuring, mergers, acquisitions, and bankruptcy.
  Course Format
  eCornell takes a problem-based approach to learning, and our courses are built around realistic case studies and scenarios. All courses are self-paced, and are facilitated by an eCornell instructor, who leads the online discussions and is available to answer any questions about the course content.
  
  This course contains the following modules:
  - Capital Structure Foundations
  - Trade-Off Theory of Capital Structure
  - Pecking Order Theory of Capital Structure
  Benefits to the Learner
  After completing this course, participants will be able to:
  - View the process of raising capital in a broad context of capital-related decisions regarding the mix of capital and the process of entering into capital markets
  - Explain how decisions in your department or division are influenced by capital structuring decisions
  - Explain why changes in the industry and in the economy are important to capital budgeting decisions in your organization
  - Contribute to decisions in your own firm more meaningfully with a good understanding of corporate restructuring, mergers, acquisitions, and bankruptcy
Understanding Financial Statements
- In order for organizations to succeed, leaders and managers must be able to accurately interpret and utilize financial reports. They must also be able to assess the overall financial performance of the organization, a particular department, or the competition, and then convey the organization's financial condition to its constituents.
  In this course, participants will learn how to read and interpret income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. By understanding the information contained in each of these key reports, participants will have a solid foundation upon which to base more advanced analysis of their firm's financial performance.
  Course Format
  eCornell takes a problem-based approach to learning, and builds each course around realistic case studies and scenarios. All courses are self-paced, and are facilitated by an eCornell instructor, who leads the online discussions and is available to answer any questions about the course content.
  This course contains the following modules:
  - Reading the Income Statement
    - Understanding the purpose of the income statement and its overall structure
    - Interpreting the income statement line by line
    - Using the income statement
  - Reading the Balance Sheet
    - Understanding the purpose of the balance sheet and its overall structure
    - Interpreting the balance sheet line by line
    - Using the balance sheet
  - Reading the Cash Flow Statement
    - Understanding the purpose of the cash flow statement and its overall structure
    - Interpreting the cash flow statement at a detailed level
    - Using the cash flow statement
  - Other Elements of Financial Reporting
    - The purpose of an annual report
    - Online sources of financial information
    - GAAP and FASB, and their influence on the structure and use of these financial statements
  Benefits to the Learner
  After completing this course, participants will be able to:
  - Understand and interpret the information found in the three principle financial statements
  - Understand how the three reports relate to one another and how they are combined (with additional information) to serve as an annual report
  - Work with online sources of financial information to conduct research on other publicly-traded firms and industries
Using Ratio Analysis to Evaluate Financial Performance
- The ability of an organization to analyze its financial position is essential for improving its competitive position in the marketplace. Through a careful analysis of its financial performance, the organization can identify opportunities to improve performance at the department, unit, or organizational level.
  In this course, participants will learn to use several ratio analysis instruments to achieve a comprehensive understanding of a firm's financial performance. The course then addresses how this financial health information can be used as a foundation upon which to design and implement initiatives for increased productivity and profitability.
  Course Format
  eCornell takes a problem-based approach to learning, and builds each course around realistic case studies and scenarios. All courses are self-paced, and are facilitated by an eCornell instructor, who leads the online discussions and is available to answer any questions about the course content.
  This course contains the following modules:
  - Asset Management Ratios
    - Introduction to Ratio Analysis
    - Working Capital Ratios
    - Turnover Ratios
  - Solvency and Capital Structure Ratios
    - Liquidity Ratios
    - Coverage Ratios
    - Leverage Ratios
  - Profitability Ratios and DuPont Analysis
    - Margin Ratios
    - Return on Assets and Equity Ratios and the DuPont System
  Benefits to the Learner
  After completing this course, participants will be able to:
  - Use ratio analysis to identify areas of strong financial performance and those that need improvement
  - Accurately assess the financial performance of a department, unit, or organization relative to its competitors or to its own past performance

Accreditation

Participants who successfully complete all six courses in the series receive a Certificate in Financial Management from Cornell University.

HRCI Recertification

The courses in this certificate series have each been approved for six (6) Strategic Management recertification credit hours toward SPHR and GPHR recertification and six (6) recertification credit hours toward PHR, SPHR, and GPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute. Please contact the Human Resource Certificate Institute (HRCI) for further information about certification or recertification.

Technical Requirements

With all eCornell courses, access is easy. Participants only need a computer and an Internet connection. To view specific technology requirements, visit our Technology Requirements page.