Financial Analysis for Business Decisions
Learn Path Description
Explore how to use financial analysis tools to drive better business decisions
Do you want to boost your financial planning and analysis skills? Collectively, we produce 2.5 quintillion bytes of data daily.Modern organisations must continually leverage this data in decision-making processes to gain a competitive advantage. Data-driven businesses are three times more likely to be confident in their business decision making, according to one PwC survey. Finance has always been data-driven. There is a growing expectation, however, that finance professionals will possess advanced data analysis skills. In 2018, 86% of financial services firms were planning to increase their usage of big data analytics.
Get empowered to lead data-driven decision making
This ExpertTrack is designed to equip finance professionals with the digital analysis skills to prosper in this context. The featured financial management courses contain valuable introductions to key data analysis tools and techniques. Gaining financial data analysis skills could boost your career. Analytical reasoning was LinkedIn’s third most in-demand skill with employers in both 2019 and 2020. Job postings calling for data visualisation have grown by 540% over the last five years. Those calling for Tableau skills have risen by over 1,000%
Develop a broad base of financial analysis skills
The financial management courses in this ExpertTrack cover a wide range of financial analysis skills. You will learn:
how to use common financial data analysis tools, such as regression and sensitivity analyses
capital project management
how to calculate working capital, cash conversion cycles, and bond and stock valuations
best practice accounting policy
how to raise short-term financing
how to raise capital with stocks and bonds vs. investment
how to use financial modelling and financial assumptions
how to use Tableau for data visualisation
how to do a SWOT analysis Equipped with these financial analysis skills, you’ll be ready to lead data-driven business decision making.
Content for this ExpertTrack has been adapted from the Financial Analysis and Decision Making Microcredential - if you want to find out more, take a look at the Microcredential which offers smaller cohorts with tutor interactions and academic credit.
During the ExpertTrack we’ll be using Tableau Public and Excel. If you don’t have Excel, you might find this online version useful.
We recommend you use a computer to access the courses in this ExpertTrack
Skills You Will Gain
Courses In This Learning Path
Total Duration
4 weeks
Level
Beginner
Learn Type
Certifications
Financial Analysis for Business Decisions: Introduction to Data Analysis Tools and Capital Projects
Are you looking to improve your financial analysis skills in order to make data-driven decisions? This financial management course will teach you how to use financial analysis tools to make data-driven decisions. Finance has been based on data since its inception. However, in recent years we have witnessed a greater push towards data-driven decision making across all sectors.
This is where financial analysis comes in. It helps organisations understand the risks and benefits of various methods. It is becoming more common for finance managers or financial professionals to have basic data analysis skills. This course in financial management will teach you how to use key data analysis tools to help you make data-driven decisions. Also, you will learn about capital projects and the role financial analysis plays in them.
This introduction to financial data analytics will teach you about the fundamental tools of data analysis such as regression and sensitive analysis. These data analysis tools will be discussed and you'll learn how to determine which ones are most effective for different situations. These business basics will benefit both finance professionals as well as general managers who want to improve their financial skills. For these large and expensive projects, financial analysis is crucial for making sound business decisions. This course will also cover capital projects and the relevance of these to organizations. This course will help you improve your financial skills and make it easier to work with capital projects in your organization.
Total Duration
4 weeks
Level
Intermediate
Learn Type
Certifications
Financial Analysis for Business Decisions: Cash Flow Management
Are you looking to improve your cash flow management? In today's analytics-oriented age, financial analysis is a key component of data-driven decision-making.
This financial management course will teach you how to apply financial analysis to different aspects of cash flow management.
What you will learn is:
This course will teach you how to use finance and accounting skills to manage cash flow. You will be able to make data-driven decisions about incomings or outgoings within your company or that of your clients.
This course will cover key aspects of cash flow management. These include how to calculate working capital and cash conversion cycles as well as stock and bond valuations.
Accounting policy will be discussed, including best practices in AP, AR and inventory management.
You will be able to use financial analysis to make sound and data-driven business decisions in these areas. These aspects of cash flow management will be easier for you to manage.
This course in financial management will also address the issue of capital raising. Learn how to raise short-term funding to meet immediate organisational needs. These needs can arise unexpectedly, or in connection to external events. It is therefore crucial to be able to raise short term financing.
Total Duration
4 weeks
Level
Intermediate
Learn Type
Certifications
Financial Analysis for Business Decisions: How to Use Tableau and Financial Modelling
Modern business decision-making processes are increasingly dependent on data analytics. This is truer than in finance, which is already highly data-driven.
Financial analysis is a key component of businesses looking to gain a competitive edge.
What you will learn is:
Financial analysis can use data visualisation to make it easier to visualize data. This allows finance professionals to gain new insights from their data. These professionals can also communicate their insights to a wider audience in an easy-to-understand manner.
Visualising data is a crucial financial skill.
In order to make it easier for you to understand the different financial models and how they work, we will also discuss their respective functions. These models are essential in financial analysis and data-driven decisions making. They allow you to predict future outcomes of your decisions.
You will also learn how to do a SWOT analysis. This analyzes the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of an organization.
