The Oxford Advanced Finance Programme

This day introduces strategic decision-making frameworks and links them with financial planning and budgeting principles. Participants explore how value creation and shareholder wealth maximisation outcomes are influenced by financial decisions. The topics covered will include:  

• Strategy and Strategic Management
• Vision, Mission, and Objectives
• Key Features of Strategic Decision-making
• Rolling-out and Implementing Strategies
• Value Creation and Maximisation of Shareholder Wealth
• Corporate Objectives, Accountability, and Corporate Governance
• Management Accounting and the links between Strategic Planning and Budgeting

This day focuses on explaining the purpose and interpretation of essential financial statements and how they support planning and decision-making. The topics covered will include:  

• The Three Key Financial Statements
• Balance Sheet
• Income Statement
• Statement of Cash Flows
• Sources of Internal and External Financing
• Cost of Equity, Cost of Debt, and the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC)
• Capital Structure Models to minimise WACC
• Preparing a long-term Financial Plan to Determine Financing Requirements

This day explores costing behaviours and management systems that improve planning and performance. The topics covered will include:  

• Costs and Activities
• Cost Behaviour
• Fixed Costs and Variable Costs
• Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) Relationships, Break-even and Sensitivity Analysis
• Direct and Indirect Costs
• Activity Based Costing (ABC) and Management (ABM)
• Refining the Costing System for Improved Decision-making

This day covers investment appraisal techniques that influence strategic financial choices. The topics covered will include:  

• Future Values, Present Values and Discounted Cash Flow (DCF)
• Capital Budgeting Principles
• Evaluating Capital Investment Projects using Accounting Rate of Return (ARR) and Payback
• DCF Evaluation Methods of Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Modified Internal Rate of Return (MIRR), Equivalent Annual Cost (EAC)
• Deciding on which Investment Appraisal Methods to use
• Capital Budgeting, Capital Rationing and the Profitability Index (PI)
• Further Factors to Consider in Investment Appraisal

This day focuses on performance measurement linkage and financial risk analysis as part of strategic choice. The topics covered will include:  

• Linking Strategic Objectives to Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in a Balanced Scorecard
• Obstacles to Achieving Strategic Objectives created by the Accounting and Costing System
• Uncertainty and Risk Analysis
• Types of Business Risk and Financial Risk
• Risk Management Principles
• Development of Risk Management Tools to Mitigate and Minimise Risk
• Insurance and Hedging
• Interest Rate Risk and Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk

This day introduces the fundamental principles of financial and economic analysis, value creation, and the role of governance and data in business decision-making. The topics covered will include:   

• The Practice of Financial / Economic Analysis
• The Value-creating Company
• Corporate Value and Shareholder Value
• A Dynamic Perspective of Business
• The Agency Problem and Corporate Governance
• What information and data to use?
• The Nature of Financial Statements
• The Context of Financial Analysis and Decision-making

This day develops analytical capability through financial ratios and performance interpretation from different stakeholder viewpoints. The topics covered will include:

• Ratio Analysis and Business Performance
• Management’s Point of View
• Owners’ Point of View
• Lenders’ Point of View
• Ratios as a System – Pyramids of Ratios
• Integration of Financial Performance Analysis
• Economic Value Added (EVA)
• Predicting Financial Distress and Z-score Model

This day focuses on investment decision frameworks, time-adjusted measures, and risk-based financial evaluation techniques. The topics covered will include:   

• Applying Time-adjusted Measures
• Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR)
• Modified Internal Rate of Return (MIRR)
• Strategic Perspective
•  EVA and NPV
• Refinements of Investment Analysis
• Equivalent Annual Cost (EAC)
• Sensitivity Analysis, Scenario Analysis, Simulation, and NPV Break-even
• Dealing with Risk and Changing Circumstances

This day develops skills in financial forecasting, budgeting, variance analysis, and modelling to support planning and control. The topics covered will include:

• Interrelationship of Financial Projections
• Operating Budgets
• Standard Costing and Variance Analysis
• Cash Forecasts and Cash Budgets
• Sensitivity Analysis
• Dynamics and Growth of the Business System
• Operating Leverage
• Financial Growth Plans
• Financial Modelling

This day explores valuation, value-based methodologies, business restructuring, and the strategic role of finance in organisational transformation. The topics covered will include:  

• Managing for Shareholder Value
• Shareholder Value Creation in Perspective
• Evolution of Value-based Methodologies
• Creating Value in Restructuring and Combinations
• Financial Strategy in Acquisitions
• Business Valuation
• Business Restructuring and Reorganisations
• Management Buy Outs (MBOs) and Management Buy Ins (MBIs)