Financial acumen – a crucial element to successful Business Management
Our most recent assignment in this area was to consult on behalf of the UK’s largest provider of care, where we were asked to design and deliver finance courses for non-financial managers, with the theme ‘Managing Your Business’. This process included consultation with executive and senior management, the assessment of unit managers’ capabilities and needs, and the design, delivery and monitoring of some 55, two day, courses eventually attended by circa 500 managers across the UK.
The above course specialised in financial and business management skills development for remote unit managers, and was received with such great acclaim (as below) that we were then asked to provide support in relation to sales skills for a select population of unit managers. To date, some 200 managers have attended this latter programme.
Metrics on our ‘Managing Your Business, Finance for Non-Financial Managers’ course:
- Consultation, design and sign off process = 2 months
- Course roll-out = 5 months
- Delivered throughout the UK
- Over 500 managers trained
- Delegates reported a shift in personal confidence in business management of +48% post course
- Delegate rating of how the course made a difference to their business and financial management = 5.47 (from a maximum of 6.00)
- Delegate rating of trainer effectiveness = 5.87 (maximum rating of 6.00)
- 100% of delegates who expressed a view would recommend the course for their own Line managers, Unit managers and Deputies
Delegate comments under the ‘general feedback’ section :
- The ‘Carlsberg’ of finance training courses….. probably the best in the whole world !!!
- A fantastic couple of days – THANK YOU!
- Best finance training I have had in six years working for (the client) !
- I was dreading 2 days of ‘Financial Training’. In the past it has been boring and uninspirational . In fact I believe the people who delivered that training would benefit from this training. I have learned and understood more about our company’s internal initiatives from the external trainer than at any other time and it was much more positive. I feel more comfortable now managing my unit as a commercial enterprise ….
- A very positive experience which has re-energised the ‘manager’ in me!
- I have really enjoyed this and loved the delivery style of our course leader
- Excellent training experience!
- Really enjoyed the course. Much needed and would like more please. Thank You
- Great training course, best I have ever been on.
- Excellent delivery, very professional, interesting and good involvement for us
Delegate comments under the heading ‘what did you learn from the programme’
- More aware of implications of poor cost control on whole company
- P&L – how to fully understand. How to increase Site Contribution. Cost of Business.
- My role as a Business Manager. Better understanding of P&L and realising the Cost of Business model. Importance of contracts and Direct Debit.
- Loads of ideas for improving financial management.
- More than I have learned from any other financial training I have received.
- Process around P&L, Aged Debt, impact of client mix
- To ‘read’ the P&L in a more logical way and to understand ‘the bigger picture’
- A vast amount on how to manage a business
- To think and look before jumping straight in!
- To be an effective commercial manager. To delegate effectively. To manage my time better
- How to effectively manage income and costs
- Stop doing every-one else’s job and start delegating more
- Looking at bigger picture – focus on targets. Plan – improve my planning. Cost control
