Modern Approaches to Management Accounting (FA23)
Duration: 5 days
This course is designed to equip senior financial professionals and high-level decision-makers with the tools and insights required to align accounting practices with strategic business objectives. Delegates will explore contemporary methods such as strategic management accounting, value-based decision-making, and performance management systems that reflect organisational complexity. Through case studies and interactive discussions, participants will examine emerging issues including sustainability reporting, environmental management accounting (EMA), and the implications of big data and digitalisation. This course bridges the gap between financial theory and operational reality, ensuring that finance teams actively contribute to long-term success, innovation, and stakeholder trust.
This course is ideal for senior financial managers, non-financial managers, and other high-level professionals who aim to deepen their understanding of management accounting in a rapidly evolving business landscape. It is especially beneficial for those who oversee finance teams and are involved in strategic planning and decision-making within their organisations. Participants will learn to adapt traditional accounting practices to contemporary challenges and opportunities, ensuring their teams contribute effectively to organisational goals.
Strategic Management Accounting
- Reframing the role of management accounting in strategic planning
- Analysing value drivers and cost behaviour for long-term advantage
- Integrating non-financial data into decision-making processes
- Applying competitor analysis and benchmarking tools
- Evaluating capital investment using modern appraisal techniques
Maximising Performance Management
- Linking KPIs to strategic objectives and outcomes
- Designing adaptive and responsive performance measurement systems
- Understanding the limitations of traditional variance analysis
- Connecting financial and operational performance
Challenges in Modern Management Accounting
- Embedding ESG, CSR, and governance into accounting systems
- Leveraging environmental management accounting (EMA) and sustainability reporting
- Addressing ethical dilemmas and transparency expectations
- Preparing finance functions for future organisational demands
Beyond Traditional Budgeting
- Understanding the limitations of fixed annual budgets
- Exploring alternatives: rolling forecasts, zero-based budgeting, and beyond budgeting
- Encouraging agility through decentralised financial planning
- Aligning budgeting with strategy and risk
- Implementing scenario planning and sensitivity analysis
Delivering Organisational Value
- Identifying value-adding versus non-value-adding activities
- Strengthening decision-making through cost-to-serve and customer profitability analysis
- Enhancing stakeholder communication and reporting
At the end of this course, delegates will be able to:
- Apply strategic management accounting tools to enhance business decision-making
- Design and evaluate modern performance management systems aligned with strategic goals
- Implement flexible budgeting techniques suited to uncertain and dynamic environments
- Differentiate between traditional and value-based management approaches
- Integrate non-financial and ESG metrics into reporting and decision frameworks
- Utilise big data, dashboards, and emerging technologies for financial insight
- Support cross-functional collaboration through cost transparency and business partnering
- Drive ethical, sustainable, and governance-compliant financial practices across their organisation