After attending the course, delegates will have gained a basic understanding on the competencies mentioned below, and must be able to apply the concepts and techniques in simple, uncomplicated situations or environments. According to the SAIPA Trainee Logbook Regulations, this competency skill is an elective skill. The delegate therefore needs to obtain successful sign off on this skill as Competent. This involves pre-course work, in-class discussions and exercises as well as evaluation and feedback. After attending the course, delegates will have gained a basic understanding of the competencies mentioned below. SAIPA Logbook task number to be performed and signed off: Management Accounting Task 3: Analysis and Interpretation (Elective skills) F: Capital investments and financing Task 4: Budgeting and Forecasting (Elective skills) B: Capex needs analysis C: Capital expenditure (Capex) D: Financing After completing this course trainees should be able to: o analyse and interpret the different decisions a company makes in terms of operating, financing and investing activities o make reasonable assumptions in a forecast o review managements assumptions in a forecast o assess the impact of inflation and changes in exchange rates and interest rates on cash forecasts o analyse and perform stress test analysis of assumptions (sensitivity analysis) o make the link between long term and short term financing decisions o consider the impact of growth on the entity's cash position o identify potential risks of any changes to the working capital policy o calculate and benchmark working capital ratios o apply methods to manage working capital levels o prepare capital budgeting models in order to compare the viability of mutually exclusive projects o analyse the entity's financial situation o monitor cash flow o analyse the entity's working capital and o appraise capital investment decisions. Other course benefits include: o professional skills development (writing and reporting skills) o drafting recommendations which are reasonable and relevant o time management; critical and strategic thinking and o individual feedback by an accredited SAICA Assessor.

The overall assessment is based on the following approach which includes the submission of a PoE file (Proof of Evidence file) within two working days after the course day: On the day of the course: o This involves several case studies performed during the course (in-class) to practise the basic principles of calculating relevant ratios using MS Excel, group discussions on the evaluation of a companys performance, discussing the impact of changes in assumptions on a project and analysing and interpreting working capital management and appraisal of investments. o Case studies include the following: Case study 1: Delegates are required to comment on the financial position of a given company as compared to that of the rest of the industry. Case study 2: Delegates are to study the financial ratios for a given set of unknown companies and match these to specific companies in the industrial and manufacturing, clothing, retail and insurance industries. Case study 3: Delegates are required to comment on the liquidity of the company using MS Excel. Case study 4: Delegates are required to analyse the internal rate of return of a project and provide the board with recommendations, identifying risks involved and giving an indication of the impact of the risk on the outcome of the project. Case study 5: Delegates are to estimate the working capital requirements of a company and calculate the additional finance that the company will need to finance the increased working capital. Case study 6: Delegates are required to advise management whether it would be feasible to reduce the credit period from 90 days to 60 days. Case study 7: Delegates are required to perform the following calculations using MS Excel: payback period, discounted payback period, net present value, internal rate of return. Post course evaluation The post course simulation is designed to allow delegates the opportunity to demonstrate their competencies in the defined areas, based on the examples and case studies completed on the day of the course. Delegates will need to submit their post course evaluation within two working days after the course to the Assessor or the agreed upon date. After the course After submission of the PoE file an accredited Assessor will evaluate the contents of the submission against the SAIPA trainee Logbook regulations. Feedback will be given on an individual basis, also involving response by the overall evaluator and delegate and recommendations where necessary.

SAIPA Trainees (delegates) who have a basic understanding of the elements of financial statements and financial analysis and who need to understand the application of the theory to analyse the financial strength of a business.

Delegates must bring laptops with Excel loaded and calculators to the course. All other material and stationery will be provided.

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