Details
About the workshop
The Higher Education sector is a unique environment that is increasingly dealing with uncertainty around funding and demand. Increased global competition and a need to drive down costs mean universities are looking for more engaged finance functions, that are flexible and able to adapt to the changing environment. Financial modelling sits at a vital and valuable crossroad, engaging strategy development and implementation in real terms. Financial modelling also engages investment evaluation and strategic business analysis, unlocking insights that inform major strategic decisions.
More than ever, it is crucial for Higher Education finance professionals to create more forward looking accurate models based on relevant data to provide leaders with the metrics to drive organisational direction. To access funding and data for a successful financial model, finance professionals must learn to actively engage with internal stakeholders throughout the modelling process.
This intensive two-day workshop will rapidly enhance the hard and soft skill sets of participants. These skill sets create a precise and informed financial model, even in the midst of an increasingly uncertain and commercial environment. Attendees will be equipped with the practical tools and skills to create a clear and comprehensive model that can be easily interpreted and manipulated. Participants will know how to adapt to budget changes and proactively manage restructures.
Agenda
- The role of financial modelling in a Higher Education context
- Understand your stakeholders, services, people, resources and outcome needs
- Determine resource and service delivery consumable costs
- Explore financial impacts of new frameworks, digital transformation and shared service trends
Design your model to meet organisational expectations and deliver value
- Establish model dimensions, define fixed and variable assumptions and logic
- Case-by-case benchmarking to ensure best practice outcomes
- Ensure the right assumptions are made - Are they realistic? Do they reflect what is really happening?
- Set clear standards for models to maintain modelling quality and consistency
Data sourcing, analysis and dealing with large datasets
- Overview of challenges with accessing robust and consistent data from a range of sources
- Incorporate innovative types of qualitative and quantitative data to broaden analysis
- Extract relevant information, identify cost drivers and conduct unit cost analysis
- The value of developing a model based on structured data
Financial modelling with uncertain and emerging variables
- The cornerstones of a flexible model, managing variable uncertainty
- Incorporate sensitivity analysis to mitigate risk and increase accuracy
- Apply controls to ensure models are achievable and produce robust financials
- Common pitfalls of complex financial models and tools to overcome them
Technical skills think-tank: Advanced financial modelling tools, functions and methodologies
- Shortcuts to increase efficiency when building a robust, thorough financial model
- Review aggregate functions to simplify complicated and conditional formatting calculations
- Speed up variable calculations with relative, absolute and mixed referencing
- Techniques and tools to measure model effectiveness and potential errors through evaluative methods
- Methods to conduct thorough pilot testing to scrutinise a financial model
- Ensure financial models integrate properly
- Understand the importance of best practice model documentation and specification to benefit multiple users
Translate modelling into effective management action plans
- Help your organisation to identify savings targets, add value and develop savings or revenue plans
- Clarity on how to use models to plan for long-term viability and understand systems/processes to facilitate change
- Ensure action plans in place to achieve savings or increased revenue targets
- Effective articulation and presentation of complex ideas that achieve stakeholder expectations in a simple manner
Create a clear model for finance and non-finance employees
- Explore information presentation tools
- Assist operational management to understand the financial ramifications of their service
- Ensure model can be understood, maintained and updated without reliance on subject matter expertise
- Ensure technical changes can be made to model without rebuilding
Soft skills think-tank: Essential soft skills to support best practice financial modelling
- Routinely consult with management to embed senior level engagement and awareness
- Liaise with business and faculty teams to understand needs and inform decision making
Tailor Your Training Experience
To make sure you get the learning solution that’s right for you, we offer different levels of tailoring to suit your needs. Choose from three levels of customisation:
1.Off the Shelf
Love what you see? Great! Choose this option to take one of our most popular courses and bring it in-house for your team. Includes a pre-course consult session with our facilitator to make sure we hit the mark, and deliver the right learning experience for you.
2.Customised
Make sure you get the most from the course you choose, by tailoring the content to get the right fit for you. Speak to our team, who will work with you to pick and mix from a curated bank of training modules to help customise your learning experience.
3.Premium
Not on the list? Let us know what you’re looking for and we will find the right solution. Our team of learning specialists will work with you to develop a unique training course for your business. Through an in-depth consultation process, we will work with you to profile your learning needs and build a bespoke program from the ground up.
Speak with one of our team today to find which option is right for you.