Finance for Non-Financial Professionals
Elevate your decision-making with essential knowledge of business finance. Designed to benefit a wide variety of professionals and enhance overall organizational performance.
Price Range
$5,990 - $6,490 CAD
Winter Session
Purpose and Impact
If you feel lost in financial discussions, left out of critical decisions, or hesitant to ask questions due to a lack of financial understanding, our Finance for Non-Financial Professionals course is for you. Our approach begins with the basics, helping you establish a solid foundation so you never feel left behind by your peers. Before you know it, you’ll be confidently engaging, asking questions, and actively participating in discussions.
This program transforms the intricate world of finance into a user-friendly toolkit for strategic and operational decision-making across all professional arenas, from construction sites to manufacturing floors and all the offices in between. Beginning with the fundamentals of finance and accounting in a nurturing environment, it swiftly moves you from feeling daunted by financial jargon to confidently navigating discussions, making informed decisions, and grasping the broader implications of your actions.
Would You Benefit from Financial Fluency?
Financial literacy is a cornerstone of success in today’s fast-paced economic environment, empowering individuals in various roles to make informed decisions that boost both personal and organizational performance. This skill set is invaluable for anyone looking to enhance their strategic and operational effectiveness at work.
Financial literacy equips professionals with the knowledge to:
- Make informed decisions that enhance company success.
- Boost budget management and cost efficiency across various roles.
- Navigate diverse financial contexts with confidence.
- Apply financial insights to a wide range of business scenarios.
Participants will emerge with a solid grasp of fundamental financial principles, ready to apply their knowledge to analyze financial statements, manage budgets effectively, and leverage financial insights for strategic decision-making. This comprehensive skill set enhances job performance and positions individuals and their organizations for enduring success in a dynamic economic landscape.
Participant Profile
Finance for Non-Financial Professionals is designed for a diverse group of participants with a common goal: to enhance their careers by deepening their understanding of finance and accounting.
Typical participants include:
- Individual contributors at all organizational levels, from front-line supervisors to senior executives, who want to enhance their financial decision-making capabilities
- Professionals in specialized or non-traditional roles, including but not limited to supply chain analysts, fleet managers, engineers, quality supervisors, and more, who are keen on integrating financial considerations into their strategic planning and operational management
- Leaders and managers aspiring to senior-level strategic roles in their organizations where understanding the "language" of business finance is essential
Learning Outcomes
Financial Statement Analysis and Interpretation
- Apply financial statement basics to interpret income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements effectively.
- Gain insight into the relevance and limitations of financial statements in annual reports.
- Familiarize yourself with financial ratios and key performance measures for strategic decision-making.
Efficient Cash Flow and Working Capital Management
- Understand cost measurement and behaviour to manage day-to-day cash flows efficiently.
- Make effective capital budgeting decisions by considering relevant cash flows, cost of capital, sensitivity analysis, and qualitative factors.
- Employ budgeting skills to optimize your department or organization’s financial performance and resource allocation.
Utilizing Financial Information for Strategic Decision-Making
- Identify key economic and industry factors, risks, opportunities, and financial implications.
- Understand the concepts of the time value of money and hurdle rates to evaluate investments.
- Use financial insights to make data-driven decisions aligning with long-term organizational objectives while collaborating effectively with financial and accounting teams for comprehensive planning and analysis.
How You Learn
Finance for Non-Financial Professionals offers an immersive learning experience, blending case research and expert guidance from Ivey Business School faculty. Participants collaborate in peer teams, applying real metrics to decision-making. Dynamic collaboration with peers facilitates solutions to financial challenges, supported by personalized insights from Ivey’s faculty. By program's end, they emerge with new financial skills and the ability to tackle complex challenges.
Learn more about the Ivey ExperienceReturn on Investment
- Earn a credential from Ivey Business School. Your Finance for Non-Financial Professionals digital badge is linked to a unique URL, allowing you to showcase your advanced proficiency in online profiles.
- Forge lifelong connections with peers through learning and social events, tapping into the extensive Ivey Academy alum network for ongoing business opportunities and career advice.
- Develop new skills while prioritizing mindfulness, reflection, and practical application away from daily demands, returning to work with increased confidence and effectiveness in your role.
- Access exclusive benefits, including discounts on select programs, invitations to special events, and curated collections of thought leadership and research from Ivey Business School.
- Enhance your leadership development and bring a fresh financial perspective to your role, fostering long-term contributions to organizational success.
- Gain insights from diverse sectors, industries, and organizations, leveraging best practices and new perspectives to drive innovation within your organization.
- Collaborate more closely and efficiently with your finance team, ensuring decisions prioritize the organization’s fiscal health and strategic objectives.
- Strengthen organizational resilience by equipping your team with enhanced financial literacy, empowering them to navigate departmental challenges and seize opportunities for sustainable growth.
Participant Testimonials
Being in a leadership position, you don’t do the number crunching anymore. You can lose touch with some of that analytical thinking around financials. I found that this program really spoke to my need at this time in my career to learn more about financial fundamentals and reset my perspective on how to look at numbers.
Kanchan Rakhra, Director of Commercial Management, MetrolinxI would 100% recommend it; it’s a great experience. My role is about using technology to drive value. To help a business, you need to understand how the business funds itself, where it places value, and how it gets capital to realize that value. This program gives you that perspective.
Sanjeevan Srikrishnan, Senior Manager Global Solutions Architecture, Equinix CanadaHaving different examples to look at, to see how other books are put together, and to see those differences across different industries and some of the similarities is super helpful. To see examples and not know that they’re actually Nike and Loblaws until afterwards is a big learning moment.
Mike Pierce, Vice President Sales & Marketing, Black Fly Beverage CompanyFor those who have an interest in Finance and Accounting but no background in the subjects, I can’t think of a better way to introduce the topics at a high but thoroughly understandable level. The program left one looking forward to further courses.
Jason Green, Director, Industrial Relations, J.D. Irving LimitedThe program has considerably broadened my knowledge in accounting and finance in a way that I could not have done on my own or over such a short period of time.
Nicole Blanchette, Executive Director, La RibambelleNo matter when you take this class during your career, it is a great investment.
Susan Wilson, Director, Human Resources, J.D. Irving LimitedFees
$5,990 - $6,490 CAD
The program fee covers program materials, meals, and hotel accommodations for programs held at our Ivey Spencer Leadership Centre. Program sessions offered in Toronto and Calgary include program materials, breakfast, and lunch; participants are responsible for accommodations and meals outside of program hours. Program fees are tax-exempt.
FAQs
Organizations and participants in Canada may benefit from the Canada Job Grant or the Canada Training Credit to offset a portion of program fees. Visit our Funding Resources page to learn more.
On the program page, select 'Apply Now' and choose your preferred start date. Submit the program application form and select a payment method. Once your application is approved, you will be billed directly or receive an invoice. Payment of program fees is due within 30 days of receipt of invoice and no less than 15 days before the program start date.
Our unique blend of real-world case studies, interactive learning, and practical application, supported by faculty with deep industry experience, distinguishes our program from others. You’ll not only learn theoretical concepts but also how to apply them in real-life scenarios, providing you with a tangible set of skills that can be immediately put to use
Our Program Managers will contact all registered participants prior to the program start date with instructions to join our online Learning Management System. Once logged in, you will be able to create a class profile, view other participants' profiles, and access a list of assigned pre-reading, cases, and activities. Plan to review and complete preparation work in advance of each class session.