Advanced Public Sector Finance and Strategy

This course is for anyone needing a basic understanding of business finance and insights into operational decision-making. It will:

 

• show operrational staff the financial consequences of their activities.
  
• demonstrate the combination of KPIs and regular management information is vital to an organization’s operational success.
  
• explain how the finance function contributes to the effective use of resources.

By attending this course, non-finance staff who need to extend their understanding of finance will learn how this could make a difference to their organization’s financial management. You will understand:

 

•  the role of finance in implementing projects.
  
•  how an organization’s stakeholders affect its financial performance and growth.
  
•  the activities in determining pricing objectives, policies and strategies.

This course will also provide insight and understanding to create and plan the delivery of hugely challenging Public Sector policies successfully. It analyses the many, and often conflicting strategic priorities within the public sector, and how to reach a compromise, so that a cohesive and coherent policy can be created and implemented. We discuss the fundamental requirements of a structured, strategic planning process. However, it is essential to remember that strategic planning takes places in a wider political context, which is often in a constant state of flux, and subject to a plethora of interests and influences, so such strategy creation cannot be carried out in isolation. Understanding, appreciation and consultation of stakeholders is essential to the successful outcome of a policy, so that we consider in depth how to achieve this. However, a policy cannot be implemented without resources which need to be assessed, evaluated and matched to requirements to achieve the outcomes required, which we study in this course.

The course will wrap with a summary of the key learning points, followed by an action planning exercise with a view to apply the acquired knowledge and skills immediately upon your return to work. Post-course support is also available in relation to the implementation of your action plan, up to six (6) months following course completion.

Importance of Financial Management

•  The elements of financial management
  
•  Key accounting terms and terminology
  
•  How cash and profit differ
  
•  The two main financial reporting statements: the income statement and the balance sheet

Measuring Financial Success

•  Measuring management success
  
•  Measuring risk and return
  
•  The importance of cash flow and working capital
  
•  Budgeting and budgetary control

Managing Financial Resources

•  The importance of cost behaviour
  
•  Cost management
  
•  Opex and Capex
  
•  Break-even analysis

Communicating with your Accounting Colleagues

•  Defining your need for financial information
  
•  Making communication and feedback systemic and systematic
  
•  The use of two way coaching to improve mutual understanding

Investment and Financial Management of Long-term Projects

•  Project Appraisal
  
•  Project Estimation
  
•  Budgeting
  
•  Financial management

Financial Management – Stakeholder Expectations

•  Identifying stakeholders
  
•  Accountability to stakeholders
  
•  Triple bottom line
  
•  Levels of investor control

Pricing Decisions

•  Strategic pricing
  
•  Price structure
  
•  Pricing policy
  
•  Analysing costs and profits

Financial Management Decision-Making

•  Defining the decisions that you make
  
•  Deciding on what support you need to define the relevant financial information required to make those   decisions
  
•  Examples and case studies

Strategic Vision and Planning

•  Strategic priorities: setting meaningful objectives
  
•  The strategic planning process
  
•  Incorporating the complex influences and interests in creating strategy
  
•  Internal analysis

Politics and the Public Sector

•  Anticipating and responding to changing governments and politicians
  
•  Civil servants working directly with elected representatives
  
•  Aligning and resolving conflict between political objectives, conflicting demands and incompatible   priorities.
  
•  Maintaining continuity of service standards

Stakeholder Identification, Analysis, Alignment and Engagement

•  Identify all stakeholders and monitor changes within and between them
  
•  Building relationships with stakeholders appropriately
  
•  How to manage competing and conflicting interests and objectives
  
•  Formulate a comprehensive plan to involve, motivate, engage and monitor all stakeholders,   particularly  as they change.

Resource Assessment and Allocation

•  Assessment of the current resources available
  
•  Structured evaluation of the groups of resources required
  
•  Allocation of resources efficiently and effectively
  
•  Getting the most out of each resource

Course Review

•  Summary and recap of key learning objectives
  
•  Action Planning

This course is suitable for a wide range of professionals but will be of real value to experienced or new or aspiring:

• Permanent Secretaries, Cabinet Secretaries and all Civil Servants.
  
• C-Suite Officers and Chairpersons of Non-profit organizations and Charities.
  
• Senior Public Sector Officers who work directly to lead Politicians.
  
• Elected and appointed Policymakers, Managers, and Planners in Governments, Public Agencies, and   Non-profit organizations.
  
• City Council Members, Mayors, City Managers, Administrators, and Planners.
  
• Senior officers who work with Public Services to achieve broader community outcomes, e.g., Public Health and Well-being, Economic Development, and Community Relations.
  
• Police Chiefs, Fire Chiefs, and their staff.
  
• School Board Members, Administrators, and staff.
  
• Board Members and Company Secretaries.
  
• Non-executive Directors
  
• Directors, Deputy Directors, and Senior Managers.
  
• Heads of Departments
  
• Transformation Leaders
  
• Change Managers
  
• CSR and Sustainability Managers and staff.
  
• Risk Managers and professionals.
  
• Community Relations Managers and Executives.
  
• Health, Safety and Environmental Managers and officers.
  
• Legal and Compliance Managers and professionals.
  
• Managers and staff who wish to develop responsible strategic practices.
  
• Managers and staff concerned with influencing or implementing organizational strategies.
  
• Those who wish to capitalise on and grasp all strategic opportunities for their organizations.
  
• Those who wish to promote the strategic success of their organization.
  
• Staff who wish to improve their understanding of how accounting and finance can help in their decision-making and how this impacts on the organization’s financial position.
  
•  Staff who need to extend their understanding of finance to more specific operational activities.

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to understand:

• The relevance of finance to operational decision-making.
• The relationship between operational and financial measures.
• Why a deeper understanding of cost and cost behaviour can help operational staff.
• The role of finance in project delivery.
• The role of stakeholders and their impact on an organization’s financial performance.
• The processes involved in deciding prices.
• How to focus on ensuring that the authority and its services are fit for purpose in the current, medium and long term.
• A strategic overview of service delivery.
• When and how to ‘intervene’ in the authority’s operations.
• How to implement an Action Plan at your workplace using the knowledge and skills acquired through the course.