Financial Management for Program Staff Course

Introduction

This course aims to build the confidence and skills of program staff to use financial management tools to implement project activities in a cost effective, controlled and accountable way.

Duration

5 Days

Who Should Attend?

This course is designed for non-finance program managers and project officers of international NGOs who manage or directly implement projects. It is not suitable for finance staff.  A background in finance is not required for this course.

Course Objectives

At the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Create a fully-costed budget using the activity-based budgeting technique
• Build a phased project budget from a project activity plan
• Use a funding grid to manage multiple-donor funded projects
• Use budget monitoring reports to review and manage project progress
• Apply key policies and procedures needed to safeguard project cash and equipment
• Describe the four Building Blocks of Financial Management and the role they play in achieving good practice in financial management in program implementation
• Describe the key organizing tools of a financial system, including the Chart of Accounts and Cost Centers.

Course Content

Introductions, expectations and program overview

Getting Organized

• Four Building Blocks of Financial Management
• Who does what in financial management?
• Coding structures

Financial Planning

• The financial planning process
• Practical budgeting
• The challenge of multiple donor-funded projects

Financial Reporting and Monitoring

• Accounting essentials – where do the figures come from?
• Which reports do we need in program management?
• Overview of the annual financial statements
• Using budget comparison reports for program management

Internal Control

• Internal control in the field – what goes wrong?
• Key internal control policies and procedures
• The role of audit

Training Approach

This course will be delivered by our skilled trainers who have vast knowledge and experience as expert professionals in the fields. The course is taught in English and through a mix of theory, practical activities, group discussion and case studies. Course manuals and additional training materials will be provided to the participants upon completion of the training.

Tailor-Made Course

This course can also be tailor-made to meet organization requirement. 

Training Venue 

The training will be held at our Upskill Training Centre. We also offer training for a group at requested location all over the world. The course fee covers the course tuition, training materials, two break refreshments, and buffet lunch.

Visa application, travel expenses, airport transfers, dinners, accommodation, insurance, and other personal expenses are catered by the participant

Certification

Participants will be issued with Upskill certificate upon completion of this course.