Executive Finance Program

As a leader in your organization, you make decisions that can have a significant impact on the financial health of your company. This program will help you assess the value of your strategic decisions by giving you a broader understanding of finance and the interaction between business strategy and financial strategy.

By attending this program, you will:

• Obtain a deeper understanding of how your organization鈥檚 economic outcomes are reflected in its financial statements, and how those statements are used inside and outside the organization.
• Gain a sophisticated understanding of how to use financial statements to better understand the economics of other entities, including competitors.
• Communicate more effectively with financial executives within the organization and with important external stakeholders such as analysts and investors.
• Better understand how to use modern valuation techniques to evaluate investment opportunities, both projects and other businesses, including M&A and leveraged buyouts.
• Learn why optimizing management of capital, including liquidity and leverage, can affect firm value and how to value other businesses.
• Understand entrepreneurial finance, including private equity and venture capital.
• Develop a strong strategic intuition to make smart investment decisions: scan for patterns, analyze what makes your organization great, and assess what the competition is doing.
• Learn how to manage external communications and capital to avoid unwanted attention from activist investors, short-sellers, and other corporate predators.

Networking opportunities include:

• Fireside Chat with Guest Speakers: Learn firsthand from renowned guest speakers who share how they have managed strategic challenges in their organizations. Past speakers have included senior leaders such as Ray Young, 鈥�86, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Archer Daniels Midland Company.
• Class Dinner: Participants will join faculty for a closing dinner at a local restaurant to enjoy good food and great conversation.

The program is for executives in finance-related roles, or those who have strategic financial oversight of their unit or organization, and have at least a basic understanding of accounting and finance. This program is also an excellent fit for executives who expect to have more financial responsibility in the future.

Titles include: C-suite, president, general manager, managing director, VP, director, financial advisor, controller, treasurer, and general counsel.

To ensure you are confident in tackling the program’s financial concepts — and to make the most of your time in the classroom — we offer access to online course material via a proprietary platform. 

Led by professor Haresh Sapra, this self-paced tool helps participants build their financial acumen and refresh important concepts prior to the program. Each module features faculty video lectures, exercises, cases, and self-tests, allowing participants to tailor their learning and focus their time on modules and topics most important to them.

In-Person Curriculum:

Financial Statement Analysis and Cash Flow Forecasting

• Learn key terminology
• Review of financial statements and cash flows
• Use DuPont analysis to understand drivers of profitability
• Evaluate quality of earnings analysis
• Understand free cash flow versus earnings

Investment Decisions and Valuation

• Evaluate projects using net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR)
• Calculate cost of capital: weighted average cost of capital (WACC)
• Understand valuation methods: DCF, APV, multiples
• Apply valuation to M&A deals

Financing Decisions

• Explore financing sources
• Understand how capital structure decisions affect value
• Assess financing instruments to implement a desired capital structure
• Examine distressed debt

Entrepreneurial Finance

• Understand entrepreneurial finance, private equity, venture capital, and leveraged buyouts
• Explore new venture strategy

Creating Shareholder Value

• Gain different perspectives on corporate governance and the role of boards

Formulating Strategy

• Understand the difference between goals, strategy, and management
• Identify the role of senior management in setting strategy
• Explore the frameworks great strategists use
• Analyze competitors and predict their actions
• Evaluate which data is useful to build your strategy

What past participants say about our finance programs:

The program is excellent for anyone that wishes to gain a better insight into why companies make strategic decisions from a financial analysis point of view. I learned not only the how but also the why behind key financial decisions.

- Dr. Douglas Hutchens, VP, Global Development and Chief Veterinary Officer, Bayer Animal Health, Bayer HealthCare

Great course. World-class faculty and am now considerably more prepared to understand finance discussions at work than before.

- David Anderson, Director, Strategic Business Development, Omnova Solutions Inc.

I can see why Booth is rated so high among other Executive Programs. The content was delivered in an understandable fashion by teaching faculty who can balance theory with practicality. Booth is a great investment!

- Chris Stanton, President, Pratt Industries

As a scientist transitioning to financing of companies via venture capital, the concepts and more important business thought process and analysis taught during the course will be invaluable.

- Juan Harrison, Vice President, Takeda Ventures Inc.

Excellent program. It puts you in the driver's seat to assess opportunities and identify problems with your company, business, or project.

- Isaac Moussan, Kemira, Director of Market Development

I personally learned a great deal from this course. The case studies were nothing short of fascinating. The real advantage is the ability to learn from brilliant professors. The educational experience is nothing short of phenomenal. Return on investment by taking this course is extremely high for any executive who wants to broaden their understanding of financial terms, strategies and applications. Simply can鈥檛 find a better educational experience than what I've enjoyed this week!

- Kenneth Johnson, Chief Engineer 鈥� Northern Region, Union Pacific Railroad

In my job I am responsible for financial decisions and now I have new knowledge and skills that will facilitate them and my working relationship with my CFO.

- Juan Carlos Gil, Executive VP Venezuela Business Unit, Inelectra

Outstanding course content with excellent instructors. Very logical and understandable explanations in assessing value equity and debt in companies. Would recommend this course to all senior managers in operations of business.

- Todd Harrold, Vice President Operations, BAE Systems