Financial Governance is easily one of the most complex topics found under the umbrella of corporate governance, and every board member at the table has a different level of understanding.

That’s why Governance Solutions has designed 2 distinct programs, to ensure every board member, governance professional, director, manager, business owner, and investor can obtain the information that will bring them to the next level of financial knowledge.  

These highly interactive programs will familiarize you with practical tools, and then engage you in board simulations to gain experience in using them.

| Basics in Financial Literacy Program |

Your journey starts with our Basics in Financial Literacy Program!
Attain independence in understanding financial reports, and in asking great questions about them.

September 26^th to October 17^th (4-week course)
Noon - 1:30pm (ET), every Thursday

Learn how to keep:

• The Growth Score: gain a deeper understanding of revenue and the statement of income
• The Profit Score: explore various types of expenses, the bottom-line profit, and how to know when enough is enough
• The Cash Score: delve into the concept of assets in their various types and forms and how to recognize them in the statement of financial position
• The Capital Score: recognize the nuances of liabilities and equity and their place in the statement of financial position

Schedule:

September 26^th: Keeping Score Through Growth – Revenue and the Statement of Income
Keep score through growth | What an income statement is | What revenue is | How to increase our income/growth | The difference between volume and price variance

October 3^rd:  Keeping Score Through Profits – Expenses, Profits, and the Statement of Income
Keeping score in profits and productivity | Earning analysis | Productivity analysis | What expenses are | Difference between cost of goods sold and operating expenses | What gross margin is Profits – the Bottom Line | Difference between profit and cash | Increasing income vs reducing expenses

October 10^th: Keeping Score Through Cash – Assets and the Statement of Financial Position
Keeping score with cash | Enough cash vs too much cash | What a balance sheet is | What a fiscal year is | What an asset is | Types of assets | What accounts receivable are | Income statement vs balance sheet

October 17^th: Keeping Score Through Capital – Liabilities, Equity and the Statement of Financial Position
LIABILITIES: Keeping score in shareholder value | What liability is | What debt is | Current and long-term liabilities | Deferred revenue
EQUITY: What capital is | What reserves is | Difference between capital and working capital | Retained earnings and equity/net assets

Are you only interested in the "Basics in Financial Literacy Program" right now? Click here.

| Financial Governance for Non-Financial Leaders Certificate Program |

After learning the basics – or getting a thorough refresher on essential concepts –  it is time to move on to our Financial Governance for Non-Financial Leaders Certificate Program. Let us guide you through the maze of financial accounting; navigating its principles and using case studies of well-known companies’ financial reports, such as WE Charity and Lehman Brothers.  Where did they go wrong?  Where were their red flags?  What can we learn – and therefore hopefully avoid their pain?

November 14^th to December 19^th (6-week course)
Noon - 1:30pm (ET), every Thursday

Learn how to:

• Make the right questions during your board meetings
• Read and understand (interpret) financial reports
• Understand strategic business risks by examining financial reports
• Differentiate between what is material and what is not
• Identify red flags

Schedule:

November 14^th: WE Charity – Affiliates & Related Parties
Financial transactions among affiliates and related parties can quickly make financial reports confusing and difficult to use. Learn how to identify risks in financial transactions between affiliates and related parties.

November 21^st: Laurentian University – Insolvency Causes & Effects
Insolvency quickly leads to major consequences, including huge cuts to stave off catastrophic closure. Learn how to recognize early red flags that signal insolvency risk.

November 28^th: WorldCom – When Assets Pump, Expenses Will Fall
Various drivers conspire to incent year-end adjustments to allocate funds to assets instead of expenses, leading to totally unrealistic profit and capital levels. Learn how to identify material management estimates that can overstate assets and understate expenses (overstating reported profits).

December 5^th: Lehman Brothers – When a High Leverage Balance Sheet Meets Mark-to-Market Accounting
Mark-to-market accounting forces you to book losses even before you sell assets, and if you’re highly levered, it could be “lights out”. Learn about the importance of capital and liquidity cushions to absorb unexpected losses, like from volatile markets.

December 12^th: Air Canada – Let the Bad Times Roll!
Surviving emergency calls for ruthless treatment of every line item you can influence. Learn how companies have to take dramatic steps to survive an emergency, and its accounting effects.

December 19^th: Wirecard – Just Another Fraud (yawn)
From Enron to WorldCom and around the world since, accounting frauds are, unfortunately, the number one cause of corporate scandals in the headlines. Learn how to detect – and mitigate the risks of – accounting fraud.

Are you only interested in the "Financial Governance for Non-Financial Leaders Certificate Program"? Click here.

Good Governance is a Team Effort!

When teams learn together, they operate on the same governance page, and the organization soon feels positive results! Group discount available for 5 or more students from the same organization. Contact Rafael Mazotine – mazotine@governancesolutions.ca – and ask for a code or invoice.

Worried you’ll miss a session?

Replay video, as well as supplemental handouts and presentations, will be available via your materials page for a minimum of one year.

Career Investment!

The Professional Director Institute^® is able to issue students a Tuition and Enrolment Certificate and Summary form for tax purposes.

Cancellation Policy: The registration fee is non-refundable for cancellations made less than 30 days prior to the program’s first live session. In this case, you may either transfer your registration fee, once, to a similarly priced seminar future training course, or arrange for a substitute person to attend. Those who do not cancel and do not attend are responsible for the full registration fee. Governance Solutions reserves the right to cancel or reschedule and will give notice in advance.