HKU Executive Certificate in Managerial Decision Making and Business Finance
Programme
HKU Executive Certificate in Managerial Decision Making and Business Finance
Programme Length
8 Days (4 modules, 2 days each)
Programme Fee
HK$48,000
Medium of Instruction
English
Delivery Approach
Face-to-face
PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS
- Make better decisions by incorporating accounting and financial perspectives
- Develop confidence and ability to communicate managerial decisions with complete command of financial language and concepts
- Create value for a project and business decisions based on clear financial analysis
ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
Whether you are managing a business, a division, or a team, it is crucial to have a good understanding of accounting and finance in your business.
Designed to equip you with the necessary tools and knowledge to understand the financial consequences of business decisions, this programme will enable you to communicate effectively with those in senior accounting and finance positions ensuring that all of the organisation’s functions are better integrated, significantly boosting the firm’s overall value.
This programme will provide you with renewed ability to integrate a financial approach into your business decision-making. In doing so, you will be able to contribute to ensuring a sound financial basis for implementing all of your organisation’s strategic plans and decisions.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
- Managers of non-finance background and high-potential mid-level executives ready to assume greater responsibilities;
- Experienced functional or technical specialists currently transitioning towards general management;
- Managers of large/complex projects across teams, functions or borders.
BENEFITS
- Learn how to “speak” and “read” business finance language；
- Develop holistic understanding the impact of operating decisions on financial performance and hence strategically how to make sound business decisions with better bottom line impacts;
- Gain framework and tools to analyse decisions in difficult situations and how to compete for resources and how to persuade senior managements
- Be effective in communication through collection, analysis and organisation of information and ideas and their clear transmission with various stakeholders
- Hone the ability to make investing and financing decisions by assessing external influencers such as capital market information and internal risk and return, cost of capital, capital structures, etc;
- Apprehend characteristics and unique challenges of governance strategy and practices with forward-looking topics.
All programmes are non-credit bearing. A certificate of attendance will be awarded by the HKU Business School to participants upon completion.
PROGRAMME STRUCTURE
Module 1:
Firm Reporting and Financial Statement Analysis
The course is designed to provide an overview of financial accounting so that, upon completion of the module, you will be better able to interpret and analyse corporate financial reports. The goal is to convince you that accounting decisions form a critical part of a company’s overall competitive strategy. In addition, the course will show you that accounting information forms the foundation for nearly every decision made by intelligent investors and creditors.
We will begin with a review of the three primary financial statements. A thorough understanding of these financial statements and how they relate to one another is critical to your success in understanding and analysing the effect that business transactions have on reported results. Once we become comfortable with the primary financial statements, we will then begin a detailed look at how the business activities of a company are reflected in (and sometimes influenced by!) financial accounting reports using financial statement analysis. Finally, we will see how this information can be used in forecasting future performance and valuation. By the end of this module, you should be equipped to use accounting information to make better decisions and more successfully compete for customers, suppliers, employees, and so forth.
Course Objectives and Outcomes
- Develop a comprehensive and well-founded knowledge of financial accounting, including:
- Understand the accounting categories: assets, liabilities, equity, revenues and expenses;
- Understand how an accounting system keeps track of information;
- Read, interpret and analyse a set of financial statements.
- Understand the role of financial accounting in the decision-making process of business organisations and apply financial accounting frameworks to business situations.
- Be able to form critical judgment covering an ability to identify and define accounting and business problems, apply analytical and quantitative techniques, make and justify decisions.
- Be effective in communication through collection, analysis and organisation of information and ideas and their clear transmission.
- Demonstrate teamwork, independence and creativity including working, learning and problem solving as a team and independently.
- Demonstrate ethical and social understanding including a knowledge and respect of ethics and ethical standards in accounting and an understanding of social and civic responsibility.
Module 2:
Corporate Finance
This course develops the basic concepts and tools essential for major corporate financial decisions. We will focus on two decisions financial managers make: investing and financing decisions. We will also highlight the connection of these decisions to the capital markets. Specific topics include valuation of financial instruments, the relation of risk and return, investment criteria and capital budgeting, cost of capital, and capital structure.
Course Objectives and Outcomes
- To introduce basic concepts, tools and theories in finance.
- To train financial decision-making abilities in corporate and personal finance.
- To prepare non-finance students for their managerial responsibility related to corporate finance.
Module 3:
Managerial Decision Making
This course offers an in-depth analysis of management control systems within contemporary organisations and provides a broader strategic perspective of firm’s decision-making, planning and controlling issues from the viewpoints of senior executive team. It builds on the concepts and tools developed in the introductory financial and management accounting literature but promotes critical thinking of the design, implementation and uses of planning & controlling systems linking short- and long-term goals of the business.
The content of this course is less technically-oriented than a typical advanced accounting course offered for a degree in accounting major. Topics include product costing, use of cost information in various decision-making scenarios, transfer pricing, the design of planning and budgeting systems, and performance evaluation & incentive system in decentralised organisations. Corporate ethical issues are incorporated in the discussions.
Course Objectives and Outcomes
- Understand the basic components of management control systems, the cost management concepts and the product costing techniques.
- Apply cost information in operational and strategic decisions.
- Evaluate various techniques for control and performance evaluation in a decentralised environment, and provide recommendations for an effective management control.
Module 4:
Corporate Governance, Social Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting
After the 1997-98 Asia financial crisis and the 2008-09 financial tsunami in Europe and the United States, corporate governance and social responsibility has attracted widespread public attention and debates. This two-days course is designed to provide a multi-faceted overview of the characteristics and unique challenges of governance strategy and practices in Hong Kong. Main topics include the overview of corporate governance and governance issues of family- and state-owned enterprises. Moreover, the topics of corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting will be discussed in-depth to bring this course to a more forward-looking conclusion.
Course Objectives and Outcomes
- To gain a reasonable understanding of theoretical development and practical knowledge in corporate governance and social responsibility.
- To enhance students’ appreciation and articulation of complex issues in corporate governance under local and international, particularly Asian, settings.
- To familiarize students with critical issues of CG for family and state-owned enterprises.
- To gain hands-on experience to analyse, communicate, provide recommendations on business cases with salient sensitivities to various corporate governance settings.
- To arouse interest in corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting and to keep abreast of latest practical issues on CSR.
LEARNING EXPERIENCE
The programme adopts a wide range of pedagogical tools to maximise impact, ranging from carefully selected and curated reading, interactive discussions, case studies and group discussions. Such developmental experience aims to provide you with the opportunity to critically apply the various leadership frameworks and tools to make a difference in your personal and professional life.
FACULTY PROFILES
Prof. Pingyang GAO
Area Head of Acccounting and Law
Professor
- PhD, Yale University
- M.A., Peking University
- B.A., Renmin University of China
Prof. Xin WANG
Accounting and Law
Assistant Dean (Taught Postgraduate)
Professor
- PhD, Duke University
- MS, Tsinghua University
- BA: Tsinghua University
Dr. Sammy FUNG
Accounting And Law
Principal Lecturer
- PhD, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- MBA, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- BA., Washington State University
Dr. Derrald STICE
Accounting and Law
Associate Professor
- PhD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler Business School
- B.S., Brigham Young University, Marriott School of Management
SCHEDULE AND VENUE
Dates
| Module 1 | Firm Reporting and Financial Statement Analysis | Date to be confirmed |
| Module 2 | Corporate Finance | Date to be confirmed |
| Module 3 | Managerial Decision Making | Date to be confirmed |
| Module 4 | Corporate Governance, Social Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting | Date to be confirmed |
Venue
HKU Business School
K.K. Leung Building
The University of Hong Kong
Pokfulam Road
Hong Kong
FEES AND FUNDING
Full programme fee:
Full programme fee: HK$48,000 per participant (Enroll 4 modules)
HK$13,000 per participant (if enroll separately)
Discounts*
| Type | Discount | Eligibility |
| Early Bird | 10% | Registration has to be submitted 45 days or earlier, prior to the start of the programme. |
| Group | 15% | Minimum of three participants from the same organisation registering for the programme. |
| HKU Alumni and Staff | 20% | Please indicate your alumni status in your registration, and we will advise and confirm on your eligibility. |
*Only one type of discount can be applied per enrollment. The discount cannot be used in conjunction with other promotions, discounts or offers. In the event of a dispute, provision of the discount(s) is subject to the sole discretion and final decision of HKU Business School.
CONTACT
Mr. Adrian Chan
Phone: 3962 1230
Email: adcwc@hku.hk
