Executive Training · Flagship programme
Finance for Business Leaders
Decisions that move the P&L — finance for non-financial managers
A two-day, hands-on programme for managers who own a budget, a P&L or a team's results. Participants learn through business simulations, then apply what they learn to a real decision from their own unit.
- 2 days
- In-house
- English or Arabic delivery
- Business simulations
Why this programme
Most managers are promoted for being good at sales, operations or engineering, not finance. They are then held accountable for numbers they were never taught to read. The result is familiar:
- Budgets built by adding a percentage to last year
- Volume celebrated while margin and cash quietly erode
- Investment requests that state a cost but not a return
- Monthly reviews where operations and finance talk past each other
What makes it different
Learn by deciding
Participants work through hands-on financial simulations: analysing a company's statements, managing its working capital month by month, and valuing future cash flows against the clock. Results are compared on a group leaderboard, with nicknames so nobody is exposed.
Built on how your business makes money
Trading, contracting and service businesses earn and use cash differently, and the programme teaches the economics of each.
Your decision, not a textbook case
Each participant brings one real decision from their unit and leaves with it analysed.
Taught by advisors
Designed and delivered by Viva's strategy and financial advisory team.
Who it's for
Business unit heads and general managers; sales, commercial and business development managers; operations, supply chain and logistics managers; project and contract managers; and high-potential managers being prepared for P&L responsibility. No finance background is needed.
Programme outline
Day 1 — How your business makes money
- The three statements as one story: how profit, the balance sheet and cash connect
- Simulation: Financial statement analysis. Read a company's results across five reporting periods and judge its performance.
- Profit is not cash: receivables, inventory and payables in your industry's terms
- Simulation: Working capital. Run a company's credit, stock and supplier terms for 12 months, then decide whether it can afford to expand.
Day 2 — Decisions that move the numbers
- Business models compared: trading, contracting and service economics
- Cost behaviour, contribution margin and breakeven
- The time value of money: why a dirham today is worth more than one next year, and how it changes investment decisions
- Simulation: Time value of money. Solve timed, real-life problems on present value, future value and annuities, scored on a live leaderboard.
- Budgets, KPIs and building a business case for spend
- Capstone: each participant presents the financial case for their own decision
Outcomes
Participants leave able to read their unit's statements, spot where margin and cash are lost, price and budget with the financial effect in view, and build a business case that leadership will take seriously.
Format
In-house, 2 days, at your premises or a venue in the UAE or wider GCC. Taught in English or Arabic. The simulations run in English. Each participant needs a laptop.
Questions
Do participants need a finance background?
No. The programme starts from first principles.
Can it be tailored to our industry?
Yes. Examples and the capstone are adapted to your sector before delivery.
Is it delivered in Arabic?
Yes, teaching and debriefs can be in Arabic. The simulation screens are in English.
What do participants need?
A laptop with a web browser. Nothing needs installing.
How do you track the results?
Through a short test before and after the programme, participant feedback, and a follow-up about two months later. We share a short summary with HR.
Turn your managers into business leaders who understand the numbers.
Tell us about your team, and we'll send a tailored proposal within two working days.
Related reading
Strategy & business advisoryGrowing revenue, shrinking cash: five usual causes
Sales are up, yet every month-end is a scramble for cash. Growth turns into receivables and stock before it turns into cash. These five causes explain most of the gap.
Management trainingWhat managers really need to know about finance
Managers make decisions every day that move the numbers, yet most were never taught how. They do not need to become accountants. They need four things.