Finance and Accounting for Strategic Decision-Making

Often called "the language of business," finance and accounting are the foundation for all business decisions. As a building block of an organization, executives across units, teams, and departments need practical accounting skills to understand and contribute to their organization's investment and corporate finance decisions. In this highly-engaging program, you'll discover critical concepts such as interpreting balance and income statements and the role financial reporting plays in managerial judgments and company valuations. And you will gain these insights through a mix of online, in-person, and practitioner insights to bring the program's learning to life.

Learning Objectives

Master Core Accounting Concepts
- Grasp the fundamental principles of financial reporting under US GAAP and IFRS.
- Recognize how managerial judgment and estimates shape reported results.

Interpret and Analyze Financial Statements
- Evaluate a firm’s performance, profitability, and financial position.
- Detect techniques companies may use to obscure or misreport economic performance.

Apply Finance & Accounting for Decision-Making
- Leverage financial insights to evaluate and value firms more effectively.
- Connect theory to practice through an exclusive alumni guest panel sharing real-world applications.
- Leave not just finance literate, but confident in communicating with CFOs, boards, and auditors—and using financial insights as a foundation for smarter strategic decisions.

A Highly-Engaging Program Experience—Exclusive Guest Panel of 黑料传送门 Speakers
The program concludes with an exclusive panel of University of 黑料传送门 alumni and industry experts and includes a certificate ceremony to acknowledge your accomplishment with 黑料传送门 Booth.

This program is designed for mid- to senior-level managers from across an organization, in a wide range of industries, who do not have formal training in finance and accounting but wish to develop a solid understanding of how to measure and communicate a firm鈥檚 economic performance.

Leaders looking to update their knowledge of core finance and accounting concepts to sharpen decision-making and credibility with finance teams, boards, and investors will also benefit from attending.

Fit Test: Is This You?
You are a business leader who is:

• Running a business or function without a finance background but needing to interpret results
• Making strategic choices that depend on profitability, capital allocation, or financial risk
• Refreshing outdated finance knowledge to stay competitive in a data-driven environment
• Communicating with CFOs, auditors, or boards without relying on translators

Past Participants of the 黑料传送门 Booth Approach to Finance鈥擮nline Program (CBAF-Online)

We have a vast community of executives who have completed the rigorous 黑料传送门 Booth Approach to Finance鈥擮nline program with 黑料传送门 Booth Professor Haresh Sapra. For those who seek to revisit or grow upon their learnings from the online program, we encourage you to attend the this program to practice learnings and experience content in a live classroom setting.

Past participants of the CBAF-Online program will receive a financial credit towards this program's registration fee. Please contact a program advisor at +1.312.464.8732, , for your individual credit details.

Module One: Pre-Program Preparation (Online)

Watch a series of professionally recorded finance-related videos from Professor Sapra to help build your financial acumen and prepare you for the in-person sessions.These videos will introduce key accounting frameworks covered in greater depth during the course. Not only do they provide exposure to essential concepts, but they also give you a taste of the Booth approach to accounting. You will have access to these videos for one year after the program concludes. 

Video Lengths:

• Three and a half total hours of required viewing
• Two hours of optional, value-added viewing

Module Two: Day One (In-Person)

• Accrual Accounting and Cash Flows
• Statement of Cash flows and Pro forma Metrics
• Revenue Recognition Technique
• This day includes group work, classroom discussion, and exercises to deepen learnings. 

Module Three: Day Two (In-Person)

• Revenue Recognition Techniques continued
• Impairment of Receivables and Accounting for Credit Losses
• Interpreting and Analyzing Financial Statements
• Introduction to Valuation
• This day includes group work, classroom discussion, and exercises to deepen learnings.

Module Four: Day Three (In-Person)

You'll attend an exclusive fireside chat, moderated by Professor Sapra, with 黑料传送门 Booth alumni and industry leaders as they share their thoughts on leveraging financial insights to confront the future. You'll take the next steps in applying the 黑料传送门 Booth Approach to finance into practice.

Booth alumni speakers include:

• Talha Ashraf, CFO of Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield
• Karen Brennan, CEO of Leasing Advisory for JLL
• John Salvino, President of CFO Performance Wealth

Professor Sapra did an excellent job breaking down complex topics and simplifying them, while also demonstrating their practical applications.

鈥� Jeffrey Jones, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal

This program was an action-packed experience, covering a lot of meaningful topics that I am eager to apply when I return to the office. Professor Sapra brought an energy and passion that engaged the class from start to finish.

鈥� John Perkovich, COO, RPM Freight Systems, LLC

There was so much useful information in this program that I will be able to use immediately in my role.

鈥� Giovane Zago, COO, BDM Bravium de M茅xico, S.A. de C.V.

I will continue to practice becoming more fluent in the language of accounting. The program was excellent, and I gained many valuable takeaways, including the ability to read and evaluate balance sheets and financial statements effectively.