Corporate accountants around the world have been making the same mistakes, year-in year-out. Why is it that we spend months on an annual planning process that we know is flawed? Why is it we spend many days preparing a monthly report that is informing management well and truly “after the horse has bolted”? Why do we produce a 30+ page finance report for the senior management team? Why do we budget at account code level?
With the economic downturn corporate accountants need to find more time to help their businesses in a more proactive way. This workshop will enlighten and encourage controllers, CFOs, management and financial accountants to avoid these major mistakes. This course is based on David Parmenter’s ground breaking book “Pareto’s 80/20 rule for corporate accountants” which covers the better practices from ‘winning’ finance teams around the world.
The course will cover how to avoid the mistakes which include:
1. Having over 80 account codes for the P/L
2. Only forecasting to year-end
3. Breaking down the annual plan into twelve before the year starts
4. Giving budget holders an annual entitlement
5. Budgeting at account code level
6. Taking months doing an annual plan –instead of 10 working days!
7. Producing numbing monthly financial reports
8. Reporting on the wrong performance measures
9. Not producing daily/ weekly decision based reports
10. Selling change by logic
11. Allowing month-end reporting to go past three working days
12. Using Julius Caesar’s calendar as a reporting tool
13. Spending months on the annual accounts
14. Investing in a complex G/L and upgrading unnecessarily
15. Letting Excel dominate the finance system
16. Working hard but not smart
17. Not investing enough in Accounts Payable
18. Not adopting the purchase card – a free AP system
19. Not investing effort and time into leadership
20. Not celebrating enough
Target audience:
Finance Director, CFO or Financial Controllers and all corporate accountants in all sectors. Consultants and practitioners who offer services to corporate accountants.
Benefits of attending:
Upon attending you will have a sound understanding of these mistakes and the the better practices that circumnavigate around them.
An in-depth look at how to create and use key performance indicators (KPIs), from the King of KPIs – now updated and expanded!
Performance measurement is failing organizations worldwide, whether they are multi-nationals, government departments, or non profit agencies. This book is packed with features to assist implementation of Winning KPIs.
Winning CFOs equips CFOs, controllers, and corporate accountants to radically transform their contribution to their organizations, migrate into a leader and business partner, maximize their job satisfaction and profile, and leave a legacy of efficiency and effectiveness.
Moving into a new position of leadership is one of the toughest challenges a businessperson can face. Yet, many drift into it without adequate preparation, hoping a great career will just happen. In The Leading-Edge Manager’s Guide to Success, performance management thought leader David Parmenter presents proven solutions and cutting-edge techniques in your journey toward becoming an extraordinary manager and leader. This practical guide will help you manage your leadership transition so you can take charge, build your team, and deliver results.