FutureLearn

Starting a Business 5: Managing Finances (FutureLearn)

Offered by University of Leeds,

Find out how forecasting and managing your finances can lead to a profitable and sustainable business. The management of finances is crucial to a successful business; financial information provides the evidence to support your decisions about a business and helps to justify those decisions when you present them to other people.

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Whether you have an idea for a future venture or you already have a side-line business whilst studying, this course will introduce you to key financial information and gives you a chance to discuss your ideas with others.
This course is the fifth in a series of six about ‘starting a business’.

What topics will you cover?

The importance of financial information
An introduction to key financial information: sales revenue forecast; profit and loss forecast; and cash flow forecast
Analysing and interpreting financial performance
How to increase profitability
Marketing a product in terms of price and number of sales
Key financial forecasts: determining the viability of a business opportunity
The business plan: business finances

Learning on this course
You can take this self-guided course and learn at your own pace. On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you'll be able to...

Discuss why forecasting and planning are key skills within any successful business.
Discuss sales revenue forecast, net profit and the purpose of a cash flow forecast.
Evaluate the entrepreneur’s business challenge: How can Hannah make her business more profitable?
Identify business finances in a business plan.
Assess costs, prices, gross profit and cash flow forecasts.

Who is the course for?
This course is part of the Going to University collection which has been specifically designed for students at schools and colleges. They provide a taster of undergraduate study at the University of Leeds and help students to decide which subject to study at university.
Completion of the courses will also enhance students’ university applications.
The courses can also be used as a teachers’ classroom enrichment resource.
Courses in this collection are also great for people that want an introduction in the specific subjects discussed in each course.

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