Budgeting, Forecasting and Planning

This program covers the essential theoretical foundation and skills required to establish top-tier strategic planning, forecasting, and budgeting procedures. A strategy, defined as a long-term plan outlining an organization's actions to fulfill its overarching policy, forms the basis of this program. Delegates will acquire the ability to construct a framework connecting strategies to yearly budgets and targets, striving for exceptional levels of management and organizational performance.

PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

• Enhance strategic thinking capabilities and actively contribute to the fusion of the organization's strategic management and budgeting procedures
• Utilize forecasting methods that align with their organization's strategic planning and budgeting
• Apply techniques aligned with key financial management principles, including shareholder wealth maximization, cash flow management, time value of money, and risk assessment
• Understand cost behavior and identify optimal costing methods for financial planning, budgeting, and budgetary control
•  Implement best practices to formulate operating budgets, capital expenditure budgets, and cash flow budgets and forecasts that align with organizational strategic objectives

MODULES

Module 1: Strategic Management and Financing

• Strategic Analysis, Strategic choices and evaluation, and Strategic implementation.
• The Links between Strategy, Forecasting, Planning, Budgeting, Performance Measurement.
• Strategic capability and avoiding the Spiral of Death.
• Shareholder Wealth maximization, Corporate and Shareholder value creation.
• Financial Strategy, Dividend Policy, the Agency Problem and Corporate Governance.
• Long-term Financing.
• Debt and Equity; (CAPM); Cost of Debt;  (WACC).
• Capital Structure Optimization Models to minimize WACC.
• Using Strategy Maps to link strategies to Performance Measurement: The Balanced Scorecard.

Module 2: Financial Planning, Forecasting, and Risk Analysis

• The Financial Planning Process and Modelling using Excel.
• Statistical Forecasting Tools and Techniques.
• Time series; moving averages; exponential smoothing; Pareto Analysis; trend progression; linear regression; correlation.
• Forecasting long- and short-term sales revenues, and sales pricing.
• Porter’s generic strategy of cost leadership and differentiation; Bowman’s strategy clock;  life-cycle costing; kaizen costing; value-based pricing.