Finance Foundations (Lightning Skills Bundle) Certificate

Budgeting Basics Course

If you are like most people, you probably have things that you want to do in life. These things might include travelling, buying a house or getting a new car. What is the one thing these goals have in common? They all cost money. So, in order to meet your goals, you must take some time to budget your finances and save.

This course gives you a full overview of budgeting basics. We start with a module about what a budget is and we give you a step by step guide on how to create a budget that you can stick to. The second module goes even further into the basics of having a budget and it gives you information on how to create a budget that is powerful and foolproof.

You Will Learn:

• Why it is important to have a budget
• All of the necessary steps that you need to take to create the perfect budget based on your income
• How to apply all of your various expenses to your budget, making sure you don’t forget anything
• How to make sure all of the information that you place into your budget is accurate and true
• How to make realistic financial goals

Benefits of Taking This Course:

• Learn about why you should make a budget and how it can benefit you now and in years to come
• Understand how to set up a budget based on your personal income and expenses with no other information needed
• Learn how to save money for things that you have always wanted, such as a new car or home
• Ensure that you add everything necessary to your budget, including things that most people forget to add
• Understand how to get into the right mindset to put yourself on a path to financial freedom

Cash Flow Statements and Logistics

Cash flow statements are important to business operation and performance. They influence business operation, financing and investment. Supply chain and logistics are also important aspects of cash flow management in any business. Solving logistics issues can improve cash flow. Reduction of inventory is the main way businesses can easily improve their cash flow. Although business drivers are independent, they also focus on increasing cash flow. Proper understanding of the logistics cycle, measurement of progress and logistics management are all key to reaching business potential. This course has been designed to help you understand cash flow statements and their role in business operations. The course first defines cash flow statements and their various functions. Next, it lists various components or categories of cash flow statements and goes on to discuss each in detail. The course gives a brief description of how to read cash flow statements. It then explains the relationship between logistics and cash flow. It discusses how businesses can leverage logistical practices to improve their cash flow. The course is for you if you are interested in finance, accounting or considering starting your own company.

You Will Learn:

• The definition of cash flow statements
• The components of cash flow statements
• How to read a cash flow statement
• The relationship between cash flow and logistics
• Cash flow drivers
• How logistics drive cash flow

Benefits of the Course

Taking This Course Will Help You:
• Understand cash flow statements
• Understand the essence of cash flow in business operation
• Recognise cash flow drivers
• Learn how to improve cash flow through logistics
• Gain motivation to learn more about business accounting
• Determine if you would like to study accounting further and take up a career along those lines

Costs, Volumes and Profits Course

The difference between business revenue and costs of operation make up business profits. Sales volumes and the cost of products or services can impact the potential of a business to generate profits. This relationship is explained through cost-volume-profit analysis.

The difference between sales and variable costs or the cost of goods and/or services sold makes up profits. After deducting fixed costs from the gross profit, you are left with income or the net profit. Fixed costs range from rent and interest to insurance and labour costs. They are indirectly related to production of goods and services. Higher costs lead to lower profits and vice versa. Increasing revenue or lowering costs can increase profits. Improving the efficiency of business operations, reducing the cost of material and cutting on labour can reduce costs. The cuts on costs should not cause a drop in business revenue to increase profits. If the sales volumes are higher than variable costs, more profits can be generated. Constant sales volume and revenue with reduced costs can increase profits.

This course explains the relationship between costs, volumes and profits through cost-volume-profit analysis. We show how changes in prices, margins and unit volumes of products or services can affect a company’s ability to generate profits. Cost-volume-profit or CVP analysis is a critical tool for financial analysis that helps businesses determine their ability to become profitable.

You Will Learn:

• The definition of the terms: costs, volumes and profits
• The relationship between costs, volumes and profits
• How to calculate cost-volume-profit or CVP analysis
• The assumptions made during CVP analysis
• How to calculate contribution margin and contribution margin ratio
• Pound and unit break-even points
• How to create a contribution margin income statement
• The benefits of CVP analysis

Benefits of the Course:

Taking this course will help you:
• Know the relationship between cost, volume and profits
• Know how to calculate CVP analysis
• Know how to use analysis results to increase business profits
• Know the importance of the relationship of cost, volume and profits in business operations
• Know the various benefits of CVP analysis in business
• Learn how to increase profits in your current or future business

Data Analysis Certificate Course

Data is everywhere, and it is becoming an increasingly important part of working life, regardless of industry or position. Making sense of this information and using it to your benefit involves data analysis. Everyone from the CEO to members of the marketing department depend on this type of analysis, as it can provide direction to your company, helping you to better meet your business goals. Data analysis is a very complex field, requiring a broad range of knowledge, including computer modelling and statistics. Learning the basics behind data analysis is the best place to start, making the field seem less overwhelming and helping you benefit from data analysis sooner.

This course gives you a broad introduction to the field of data analysis, helping you put it into practice as soon as possible. We begin by providing definitions of key terms, ensuring that you understand them in the context of information gathering and processing. Next, we discuss the recommended data analysis model, giving you step-by-step instructions. Best practices are reviewed next, giving you general tips on how to process the best data. Finally, we review the use of software, to assist you in this process.

You will Learn:

• The definitions of data and analysis within a business context
• The seven steps that are involved in the data collection/analysis process
• The importance of hiring a highly skilled and qualified team
• The top three tips for working with business data
• How to effectively use Microsoft Excel for analysis purposes

Benefits of Taking this Course

• Learning why data analysis is crucial to a company’s success
• Learning when to outline your goals and metrics
• Understanding how much data you should obtain and from what type of sources
• Finding out how to handle raw data and what steps you need to take, to ensure accuracy
• Learning how to activate the Analysis ToolPak contained in Microsoft Excel

Financial Documents 101 Course

Financial documents play a critical role in running small and large companies. The documents help businesses of all kinds in different industries to communicate their financial information to external parties or entities such as investors and banks. The financial reports summarise a business’s accounting procedures and features cash and account title tabulations. The financial reports also showcase the financial status or position and performance of a company or individual, including changes in finances over a specified period. Businesses aim at using the statements to share financial decisions with internal and external parties to help with economic decisions. Data sourced from business financial systems are used to aggregate, condense and simplify the development of financial documents. The statements simply display results from a company’s accounting system. The financial documents are usually developed and released on an annual basis every financial year. This course has been designed to introduce you to the basics of financial documents.

Firstly, we define financial documents and explain what they are. The course also briefly explains what goes into creating financial statements. Next, we cover the four main types of financial statements that you should know about. The course introduces each statement and explains what they do and feature. It also explains the role of each statement in the operation of a business and in the life of individuals. Finally, we state several benefits of financial documents to the business, including external entities, such as lenders and investors.

You Will Learn:

• What financial documents are
• The purpose of financial documents
• The four main types of financial documents
• The features of different types of financial documents
• The benefits of financial documents to business entities

Benefits of Taking This Course:

Taking this course will help you:
• Know the different types of financial documents
• Learn the function of each type of financial document
• Know the different features of each financial document
• Understand the role of financial documents in business
• Gain basic knowledge of financial documents
• Learn about the benefits of financial documents to businesses
• Determine if you want to learn more about financial documents

Investing in Gold and Silver Course

Precious metals occur naturally, making them rare and difficult to find in comparison to other metals. The high economic value of precious metals has been attributed to their rarity in history. They are still valued in the modern age and this sees them find use as jewellery, art, commodities and investments. Unlike base metals, precious metals are not reactive and have higher lustre, as well as being more ductile. What makes precious metals distinct are their lustre, rarity and ductility. As a result, they fetch higher prices on the market in comparison to their counterparts.

This course looks into popular precious metals that investors often trade. Firstly, it introduces gold and silver as investment commodities. Next, it discusses gold and silver as precious metals and what makes them lucrative in the eyes of investors. The course goes on to give reasons as to why you should invest in precious metals. It then gives specific reasons as to why you should invest in gold and silver.

The course states five popular ways of investing in gold and silver. It also states 10 drivers of the prices of gold and silver. This is a basic introduction to investing in gold and silver. It covers the basics that every beginner investor or precious metal enthusiast should know about the commodities.

You Will Learn

• The properties of gold and silver as precious metals
• Why investors choose gold and silver over other investment commodities
• Why you should invest in precious metals
• Why you should invest in gold and silver
• 5 popular ways of investing in precious metals
• The major drivers of the prices of gold and silver

Benefits of This Course

Taking this course will:
• Teach you about precious metals
• Teach you about the properties of gold and silver as precious metals
• Teach you about gold and silver as investment commodities
• Teach you about the properties of gold and silver that make them appealing
• Teach you why it is wise to invest in gold and silver
• Teach you ways of investing in the investment commodities
• Teach you about the drivers of gold and silver commodity prices
• Help you decide if you are interested in learning more about gold and silver investment
• Help you decide if you would like to be a gold and silver investor

The course is broken down into 0 individual modules. Each module takes between 20 and 90 minutes on average to study. Although you are free to spend as much or as little time as you feel necessary on each module, simply log in and out of the course at your convenience.

You can study the course any time you like. Simply log in and out of the web based course as often as you require. The course is compatible with all computers, tablet devices and smart phones so you can even study while on the move!

Once you have completed all 0 modules there is a multiple choice test. The questions will be on a range of topics found within the 0 modules. The test, like the course, is online and can be taken a time and location of your choosing.

The pass mark for the test is 70%.

If you don’t pass the test first time you will get further opportunities to take the test again after extra study. There are no limits to the number of times you can take the test. All test retakes are included within the price of the course.

Once you have completed your test you can log in to your account and download/print your certificate any time you need it. If you would prefer us to post you a certificate to a UK address, there will be an admin charge of £10 (certificates sent internationally may cost more).

You can either use your Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Solo cards or PayPal account to pay for the online course. Our site uses the latest SSL encryption to ensure your safety. All payments are handled securely by PayPal.

You can begin the course immediately after your payment has been received. You will create your login details during the checkout process. We will also send you an email confirming your login details.

We estimate that the course will take about 4 hours to complete in total, plus an additional 30 minutes for the end of course test.

Once you have been awarded your certificate it is valid for life. The certificate does not expire or need renewing.