Budget Preparation & Cashflow Management

Budget Preparation & Cashflow Management

Introduction

Planning, Budgeting, Forecasting, and Cash Flow Management are fundamental to effective financial performance management and sustainable business success. This programme equips participants with practical techniques to develop realistic financial plans, budgets, and forecasts while using Microsoft Excel and interactive dashboards to analyse data, visualise key performance indicators, and support informed decision-making. Participants will also gain a better understanding of cash flow drivers, enabling them to anticipate funding requirements, optimise working capital, and maintain business liquidity.

The programme provides proven, practical approaches to improving budgeting, forecasting, and cash flow management by transforming these activities from annual exercises into continuous strategic processes. Participants will learn how to strengthen cash flow forecasting, respond proactively to changing business conditions, align financial and operational strategies, improve collaboration across departments, and make better financial decisions that support profitability, business resilience, and long-term organisational growth.

Duration | 2-days | HRD Corp Claimable | Customisable

Outcome

At the end of this program, participants will be able to:

- Learn & understand the principles of budgeting, cash flow management, forecasting, and working capital, including their importance in achieving organisational financial objectives.
- Apply practical budgeting, cash flow forecasting, and Microsoft Excel techniques to prepare budgets.
- Analyse financial data, budget variances, cash flow trends, and key performance indicators to identify potential risks, opportunities, and areas for operational improvement.
- Demonstrate the ability to prepare an integrated budget and cash flow forecast using Excel tools and dashboards & communicate financial insights effectively.

Select to design your own content and request for a customized quotation

No	Topic	Topic Description
1	Overview & Objectives of Budgetting	Welcome and ice-breaker Programme objectives and learning outcomes Introduction to Budget & Cashflow Management
2	Different Approaches in Budgeting	Zero based budgeting Incremental Budgeting Flexible Budgeting Activity Based Budgeting
3	Budgeting Timeline & Other Considerations	Budgeting Time Line Head Count Exchange Rate Departmental Budgets
4	Financial Modelling in Excel	Introduction & types of financial models Variance Analysis Capital Budgeting using NPV & IRR Budgeting with the 3 statement model
5	Budget Components - Integrated Budget	Building a Revenue Budget Understanding the sales drivers- sales unite, selling prices & sales growth OPEX Budget Building a 4 quarter rolling forecast Building Forecast templates from Historical data Payroll & HR related expenses Facilities expenses- rental, electricity, water, security Other expenses CAPEX Budget Capital expenditure & timing Depreciation CASH Budget & Components Accounts Receivable Accounts Payable Inventory Building Sensitivity Analysis into the Templates Budgeted Balance Sheets
6	Preparing the Financial Dashboard	Key data presentation Variance Analysis Charts
7	Cashflow Management	Objective of Cashflow management Common causes of Cashflow problems Components of Cashflow management Preparing a Cash Flow forecast Top strategies for cashflow management

Expert

Sonia Ram CA(M), FCMA, CGMA, AAIA

Sonia Ram, is a Fellow Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (since 2004) and a member of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (since 2005). She is a seasoned finance professional with extensive industry and training experience. She began her career in finance as an auditor, building a strong foundation in financial controls and compliance. From 1996 to 2002, she served as a lecturer at a local college, delivering courses in Accounting and Statistics to diploma and undergraduate students across multiple disciplines. Sonia has held managerial roles for more than a decade, within several multinational corporations in the electronics manufacturing sector. Her responsibilities spanned Corporate Reporting, Costing, Budgeting and Forecasting, as well as Performance Improvement initiatives. She also played a key role in leading MRP system migration projects and establishing W-Desk frameworks for SOX compliance, including conducting in-house training programmes to support implementation. She is a Certified Microsoft Office Specialist in Excel, with strong hands-on expertise in the MS Office suite. She remains committed to continuous professional development, keeping abreast of evolving industry standards and practices. Currently, she provides training and consultancy services to multinational clients across manufacturing, trading, retail, and logistics sectors, specialising in Finance, Accounting, Accounting Standards, and Microsoft Excel. She is also an HRDF Accredited Trainer, having obtained her certification in February 2024.