Account & Finance Course

Lesson 1 • The Accounting Equation and Double Entry

Introduces assets, liabilities, and equity and the mechanics of double-entry bookkeeping. Learners record basic transactions using debits and credits.

Lesson 2 • The Accounting and Finance Landscape

Defines accounting and finance as disciplines and maps their relationship. Provides the conceptual anchor for all subsequent technical content.

Lesson 3 • Time Value of Money Basics

Explains why a rand today is worth more than a rand tomorrow. Learners calculate present and future values using standard formulas.

Lesson 4 • Financial Goals and Business Objectives

Links financial decision-making to organisational strategy and stakeholder value. Learners align financial metrics with stated business goals.

Lesson 1 • Linking the Three Statements

Demonstrates how income, balance sheet, and cash flow statements interconnect. Learners trace a single transaction through all three statements simultaneously.

Lesson 2 • Notes and Disclosures

Explains the role of footnotes in providing context beyond the numbers. Learners identify disclosures that materially affect interpretation of statements.

Lesson 3 • The Balance Sheet

Explains the classification of assets, liabilities, and equity on a balance sheet. Learners verify that the accounting equation holds after adjustments.

Lesson 4 • The Cash Flow Statement

Distinguishes operating, investing, and financing cash flows and their significance. Learners reconcile net income to operating cash flow using the indirect method.

Lesson 1 • Trend, Common-Size, and Peer Analysis

Applies horizontal, vertical, and benchmarking techniques to contextualise ratios. Learners compare a firm's performance against industry peers over multiple periods.

Lesson 2 • Ratio Analysis Framework

Introduces the four ratio categories and their diagnostic purpose. Learners select appropriate ratios based on the analytical question being asked.

Lesson 3 • Profitability and Return Metrics

Evaluates how efficiently a firm generates profit from revenue and assets. Learners decompose return on equity using the DuPont framework.

Lesson 4 • Leverage and Solvency Assessment

Quantifies financial risk from debt usage and long-term repayment capacity. Learners assess whether a firm's capital structure is sustainable.

Lesson 1 • Cost Classification and Behaviour

Distinguishes fixed, variable, and mixed costs and their behaviour with volume changes. Learners classify a firm's cost structure and predict total cost at different output levels.

Lesson 2 • Activity-Based Costing

Refines overhead allocation by tracing costs to activities and then to products. Learners redesign a traditional cost system using activity-based costing logic.

Lesson 3 • Job Order and Process Costing

Covers two primary costing systems and when each applies. Learners calculate unit costs under both methods using realistic production data.

Lesson 4 • Management Reporting and Variance Analysis

Designs internal reports that highlight performance gaps against budgets. Learners calculate and interpret material, labour, and overhead variances.

Lesson 1 • Cash Budget and Liquidity Planning

Projects cash inflows and outflows to ensure adequate liquidity. Learners identify periods of cash shortfall and propose financing solutions.

Lesson 2 • Budgeting Fundamentals and Process

Explains the purpose, types, and organisational process of budgeting. Learners map the budget cycle and identify key inputs for each budget component.

Lesson 3 • Operating and Capital Budgets

Constructs production, purchasing, labour, and overhead budgets from the sales plan. Learners extend the operating budget to include a capital expenditure schedule.

Lesson 4 • Sales and Revenue Forecasting

Develops revenue projections using quantitative and qualitative methods. Learners build a sales budget that drives all downstream operational budgets.

Lesson 1 • Dividend Policy and Share Repurchases

Analyses how firms distribute profits and the signalling effect of payout decisions. Learners compare dividend and buyback strategies under different market conditions.

Lesson 2 • Cost of Capital

Calculates the cost of each financing component and the weighted average cost of capital. Learners use WACC as the discount rate in investment evaluation.

Lesson 3 • Sources of Business Financing

Surveys debt, equity, and hybrid financing instruments available to firms. Learners match financing instruments to business stage and risk profile.

Lesson 4 • Leverage and Financial Risk

Quantifies operating and financial leverage and their combined effect on earnings volatility. Learners calculate degree of combined leverage and assess bankruptcy risk.

Lesson 1 • Capital Rationing and Project Selection

Optimises project selection when investment funds are constrained. Learners rank projects using profitability index and construct an optimal capital budget.

Lesson 2 • Investment Appraisal Fundamentals

Establishes the framework for evaluating capital projects using discounted cash flow logic. Learners identify relevant cash flows and distinguish them from sunk and financing costs.

Lesson 3 • Risk Analysis in Capital Projects

Incorporates uncertainty into project evaluation through sensitivity and scenario techniques. Learners adjust discount rates for project-specific risk and interpret Monte Carlo outputs.

Lesson 4 • Payback Period and Accounting Rate of Return

Covers simpler appraisal methods and their limitations relative to DCF techniques. Learners apply payback and ARR as supplementary screening tools.

Lesson 1 • Receivables and Credit Management

Designs credit policies that balance sales growth with collection risk. Learners evaluate the financial impact of changing credit terms or collection procedures.

Lesson 2 • Inventory Management

Applies quantitative models to minimise total inventory holding and ordering costs. Learners calculate economic order quantity and reorder points for a given product.

Lesson 3 • Working Capital Cycle and Policy

Maps the operating cycle from cash to inventory to receivables and back to cash. Learners calculate the cash conversion cycle and identify improvement opportunities.

Lesson 4 • Cash and Treasury Operations

Covers cash pooling, short-term investment, and bank relationship management. Learners design a treasury policy that minimises idle cash while maintaining liquidity buffers.