What do engineers and project managers need to know of finance? 'Nothing - leave it to the accountants!' No, no, no! Engineers must be conversant with the terminology and statements that accountants use. Technical expertise in projects, service delivery, production or other areas can only really be harnessed if the managers understand the accounting and reporting that drives businesses. This course gives the necessary understanding to project, production and technical managers. It develops their skills in understanding financial and management accounting. Accountants may not always like it but a major part of their work is to be the 'servants of business' and to gather, compile and present your figures. So you must understand the figures - they belong to you, your processes or projects. There are many reasons for maintaining accurate accounts. This course focuses on the strategic issues (those over-used words) - what figures reveal about the drivers of business and what they reveal about the day-to-day issues that accountants bother you with. The course will enhance your understanding of finance and of the accounting issues which affect your projects, production and technical areas of business. This course will help you: Understand the business world in figures - make sense of what the accountants are telling you Appreciate what drives business - and how this affects your role in your part of the business Relate your activities to the success of the business - through figures Gain the skills to advance in management - financial awareness is a 'must have' if you are to progress in your career 1 What do accountants do? The finance function, types of accountant, financial v management accounting and the treasury function Understanding the role of the finance function and how the information you provide may be used 2 The basic financial statements Balance sheets and income statements (P&L accounts) What they are, what they contain and above all what they can reveal - how to read them The accounting process - from transactions to financial statements What underpins the statements - accounting systems and internal controls 3 Why be in business - from a financial perspective The driving forces behind financial information Performance measures - profitability, asset utilisation, sales and throughput, managing capital expenditure 4 Accounting rules - accounting standards Accounting concepts and the accounting rules: accruals, 'going concern' - substance over form and other 'desirable qualities' Accruals - why the timing of a transaction is so important to the finance function Depreciation and amortisation - the concepts and practice Accounting standards - the role of International Financial Reporting Standards 5 Cash The importance of cash flow - working capital management Cash flow statements - monitoring overall cash flows Raising cash - levels of borrowing, gearing Spending cash - an outline of capital expenditure appraisal 6 Budgeting Why budget? - good and bad practice Determining why budgets play a key role and should not be simply an annual ritual Justifying your budgets - the link between the strategic plan and day-to-day budgeting - alignment of company culture Budgets as motivators - the importance of the right culture Techniques to improve budgeting - whether day-to-day or capital budgeting 7 Costing The type and detail of costing very much depends on your business - eg, manufacturing piston rings is quite different from the construction of a power plant Issues with overhead allocation Accounting for R&D 8 Reading financial statements Annual financial statements - why they are produced, what's in them and what you should look for Learning what a set of accounts reveals about a company's current situation, profitability and future prospects 9 Performance measurement - analytical reviews and ratio analysis ROI/ROCE Profitability, margins and cost control Sales - asset turnover Efficiency (asset / stock turnover, debtor / creditor days) 'City' measures Investment (interest / dividend cover, earnings per share, dividend yield)
How do you manage yourself under pressure? Are there times you get hijacked by your emotions and find it hard to deal with setbacks? How good are you at dealing with change? Resilience is all about having the ability to adapt, deal with change constructively and bounce back from adversity. While some people are naturally more resilient that others it is something that can be learnt. This session focuses on helping you respond positively to the pressures and demands of work and take specific steps in building your personal resilience. Take away: Action planner for i-resilience profile. You will have the opportunity to: Gain insight into the relationship between work pressure, performance, wellbeing and resilience Explore your natural strengths and how to manage what pushes you into a less resourceful state Understand the skills and techniques that underpin the behaviours and attitudes of highly resilient people
This one-day workshop is intended for participants who have a basic understanding of Outlook but who want to know how to use its advanced features to manage their email communications, calendar events, contact information and other communication tasks. This course will help participants: Gain confidence using Outlook and its advanced features Organise and prioritise email messages Archive messages for safe-keeping Use rules to process received or sent messages automatically Manage scheduled meetings with others Give others permission to view and manage their folders and items Use contacts and commands to find out more about a person or company Prioritise work-flow using tasks and assigning tasks to others 1 Email messages Combining multiple clicks with quick steps Following up flag options Saving multiple attachments Attaching a folder of files Recalling and replacing a message Categorising messages with conditional formatting 2 Message options Adding options to messages Marking a message as private Receiving quick responses with voting buttons Directing replies to specific users Delaying sent messages Inserting links in messages 3 Stay organised with rules Using rules to automate message flow Moving messages with rules Using the rules wizard Setting up rules with conditions Using rules that work whilst you are away 4 Message clean-up Using conversation clean-up Using mailbox clean-up Moving messages to the archive folder Archiving folder properties Auto-archiving properties 5 Managing calendars Creating calendar groups Sharing calendars with permissions Setting up working days and times Managing time zones Categorise appointments with conditional formatting Publishing a calendar 6 Schedule meetings Scheduling a meeting Managing meeting responses Proposing new meeting times Adding attendees to a meeting Viewing multiple appointments 7 Using contacts Merging contacts to letters Merging contacts to labels Mail merging contacts in Word Exporting contacts to Excel 8 Managing tasks Organising your workload with tasks Categorising tasks Assigning tasks to others Sending a task status report Allocating time for tasks Regenerating a new task Viewing your tasks in the calendar 9 Adding message items Adding calendars to messages Adding business cards to messages 10 Email accounts Adding multiple user accounts Adding account permissions
This course is very much a discussion, so be prepared to present and critically analyse your own and class mates work. You will also need to bring a few examples of work you have done in the past. Learning and applying best practice visualisation principles will improve effective discussions amongst decision makers throughout your organisation. As a result more end-users of your dashboards will be able to make better decisions, more quickly. This 2 Day training course is aimed at analysts with good working knowledge of BI tools (we use Tableau to present, but attendees can use their own software such as Power BI or Qlik Sense). It is a great preparation for taking advanced certifications, such as Tableau Certified Professional. Contact us to discuss the Visual Analytics Best Practice course Email us if you are interested in an on-site course, or would be interested in different dates and locations This Tableau Desktop training intermediate course is designed for the professional who has a solid foundation with Tableau and is looking to take it to the next level. Attendees should have a good understanding of the fundamental concepts of building Tableau worksheets and dashboards typically achieved from having attended our Tableau Desktop Foundation Course. At the end of this course you will be able to communicate insights more effectively, enabling your organisation to make better decisions, quickly. The Tableau Desktop Analyst training course is aimed at people who are used to working with MS Excel or other Business Intelligence tools and who have preferably been using Tableau already for basic reporting. The course includes the following topics: WHAT IS VISUAL ANALYSIS? Visual Analytics Visual Analytics Process Advantages of Visual Analysis Exercise: Interpreting Visualisations HOW DO WE PROCESS VISUAL INFORMATION? Memory and Processing Types Exercise: Identifying Types of Processing Cognitive Load Exercise: Analysing Cognitive Load Focus and Guide the Viewer Remove Visual Distractions Organise Information into Chunks Design for Proximity Exercise: Reducing Cognitive Load SENSORY MEMORY Pre-attentive Attributes Quantitatively-Perceived Attributes Categorically-Perceived Attributes Exercise: Analysing Pre-attentive Attributes Form & Attributes Exercise: Using Form Effectively Colour & Attributes Exercise: Using Colour Effectively Position & Attributes Exercise: Using Position Effectively ENSURING VISUAL INTEGRITY Informing without Misleading Gestalt Principles Visual Area Axis & Scale Colour Detail Exercise: Informing without Misleading CHOOSING THE RIGHT VISUALISATION Comparing and Ranking Categories Comparing Measures Comparing Parts to Whole Viewing Data Over Time Charts Types for Mapping Viewing Correlation Viewing Distributions Viewing Specific Values DASHBOARDS AND STORIES Exercise: Picking the Chart Type Exercise: Brainstorming Visual Best Practice Development Process for Dashboards and Stories Plan the Visualisation Create the Visualisation Test the Visualisation Exercise: Designing Dashboards and Stories This training course includes over 20 hands-on exercises to help participants “learn by doing” and to assist group discussions around real-life use cases. Each attendee receives an extensive training manual which covers the theory, practical applications and use cases, exercises and solutions together with a USB with all the materials required for the training. The course starts at 09:30 on the first day and ends at 17:00. On the second day the course starts at 09:00 and ends at 17:00. Students must bring their own laptop with an active version of Tableau Desktop 10.5 (or later) pre-installed. What People Are Saying About This Course "Steve was willing to address questions arising from his content in a full and understandable way"Lisa L. "Really enjoyed the course and feel the subject and the way it was taught was very close to my needs"James G. "The course tutor Steve was incredibly helpful and taught the information very well while making the two days very enjoyable."Bradd P. "The host and his courses will give you the tools and confidence that you need to be comfortable with Tableau."Jack S. "Steve was fantastic with his knowledge and knowhow about the product. Where possible he made sure you could put demonstrations in to working practice, to give the audience a clear understanding."Tim H. "This was a very interesting and helpful course, which will definitely help me produce smarter, cleaner visualisations that will deliver more data-driven insights within our business."Richard A. "Steve is very open to questions and will go out of his way to answer any query. Thank you"Wasif N. "Steve was willing to address questions arising from his content in a full and understandable way"Lisa L. "Really enjoyed the course and feel the subject and the way it was taught was very close to my needs"James G.
The need for key staff to have commercial skills is paramount, as the public sector is increasingly opened up as a commercial market, in which organisations compete against each other and the private sector for contracts. Generating additional income and being commercially aware is vital for this to be a success, and is what many public sector organisations are looking to do. This programme will help you: See commercial awareness as not just another skill-set, but as a different mind-set Use a variety of tried-and-tested commercial, analytical decision-making techniques and tools Define your commercial objectives Develop a strategic focus Start looking at service clients as market segments Analyse, in a competitive context, your service offering Plan a commercial strategy, prepare for its implementation and see it through to execution 1 What is commercial thinking? Understand what it means to be a commercial thinker Identifying commercial opportunities often involves not only a different skill set but also a different mindset; looking at the services that you provide 2 Defining strategic commercial objectives Defining your key commercial objectives Prioritising your strategic objectives Two key strategic planning tools:Resource and Competency MatrixPESTLE How to apply these tools to your particular situation 3 Developing a strategic focus Decision-making on how to compete in the markets identified by your strategic objectives requires a strategic focus Developing strategic focus A tool for helping you to make those decisions: using the Ansoff Matrix 4 Defining customer targets How to think more commercially by understanding who all your customers are and how they differ from each other how to apply the principles to your areas to identify the type of customers you have and their key characteristics - Customer segmentation Who are your customers? How do their needs vary? - Scenarios 5 The competitive market place Understanding the competitive forces at play Different types of competition Analysing your competitive environment using Porter's 5 Forces model 6 Meeting stakeholder expectations Two simple models to help you identify the key stakeholders who could influence your commercial environment How to use your stakeholders to help you achieve your commercial objectives 7 Implementation - systems, structures and processes Effective commercial activity involves working with others to implement ideas and strategies What do you need to have in place before you implement your commercial strategy? How to health-check your organisation prior to implementation using the McKinsey 7S framework 8 Implementation - people and culture A good commercial strategy only works if the people involved buy in to the ideas and if the culture of the organisation is conducive to the effective implementation How the latest thinking in behavioural economics can help you develop your culture and people to work commercially 9 Tools and checklists Be more commercial within your sphere of influence using a commercial checklist to help you Using the checklist as a benchmark against the most commercially aware organisations Using the checklist as a health check - both corporately and individually
This Tableau Desktop Training intermediate course is designed for the professional who has a solid foundation with Tableau and is looking to take it to the next level. For Private options, online or in-person, please send us details of your requirements: This Tableau Desktop training intermediate course is designed for the professional who has a solid foundation with Tableau and is looking to take it to the next level. Attendees should have a good understanding of the fundamental concepts of building Tableau worksheets and dashboards typically achieved from having attended our Tableau Desktop Foundation Course. At the end of this course you will be able to communicate insights more effectively, enabling your organisation to make better decisions, quickly. The Tableau Desktop Analyst training course is aimed at people who are used to working with MS Excel or other Business Intelligence tools and who have preferably been using Tableau already for basic reporting. The course is split into 3 phases and 9 modules: Phase 1: AMPLIFY MODULE 1: CHECK ABILITIES Revision – What I Should Know What is possibleHow does Tableau deal with dataKnow your way aroundHow do we format chartsHow Tableau deals with datesCharts that compare multiple measuresCreating Tables MODULE 2: COMBINE DATA Relationships Joining Tables – Join Types, Joining tables within the same database, cross database joins, join calculations Blending – How to create a blend with common fields, Custom defined Field relationships and mismatched element names, Calculated fields in blended data sources Unions – Manual Unions and mismatched columns, Wildcard unions Data Extracts – Creating & Editing Data extracts MODULE 3: ADVANCED CALCULATIONS Row Level v Aggregations Aggregating dimensions in calculations Changing the Level of Detail (LOD) of calculations – What, Why, How Adding Table Calculations Phase 2: ANALYSE MODULE 4: EXPAND APPLICATION Making things dynamic with parameters Sets Trend Lines How do we format charts Forecasting MODULE 5: ADVANCED MAPPING Using your own images for spatial analysis Mapping with Spatial files MODULE 6: DATA COMPARISONS Advanced Charts Bar in Bar charts Bullet graphs Creating Bins and Histograms Creating a Box & Whisker plot Phase 3: ACT MODULE 7: ADVANCED DASHBOARDS Using the dashboard interface and Device layout Dashboard Actions and Viz In tooltips Horizontal & Vertical containers Navigate between dashboards MODULE 8: PRESENT STORIES Telling data driven stories MODULE 9: ENABLE DECISIONS What is Tableau Server Publishing & Permissions How can your users engage with content This training course includes over 25 hands-on exercises and quizzes to help participants “learn by doing” and to assist group discussions around real-life use cases. Each attendee receives a login to our extensive training portal which covers the theory, practical applications and use cases, exercises, solutions and quizzes in both written and video format. Students must bring their own laptop with an active version of Tableau Desktop 2018.2 (or later) pre-installed. What People Are Saying About This Course “Course was fantastic, and completely relevant to the work I am doing with Tableau. I particularly liked Steve’s method of teaching and how he applied the course material to ‘real-life’ use-cases.”Richard W., Dashboard Consulting Ltd “This course was extremely useful and excellent value. It helped me formalise my learning and I have taken a lot of useful tips away which will help me in everyday work.” Lauren M., Baillie Gifford “I would definitely recommend taking this course if you have a working knowledge of Tableau. Even the little tips Steve explains will make using Tableau a lot easier. Looking forward to putting what I’ve learned into practice.”Aron F., Grove & Dean “Steve is an excellent teacher and has a vast knowledge of Tableau. I learned a huge amount over the two days that I can immediately apply at work.”John B., Mporium “Steve not only provided a comprehensive explanation of the content of the course, but also allowed time for discussing particular business issues that participants may be facing. That was really useful as part of my learning process.”Juan C., Financial Conduct Authority “Course was fantastic, and completely relevant to the work I am doing with Tableau. I particularly liked Steve’s method of teaching and how he applied the course material to ‘real-life’ use-cases.”Richard W., Dashboard Consulting Ltd “This course was extremely useful and excellent value. It helped me formalise my learning and I have taken a lot of useful tips away which will help me in everyday work.” Lauren M., Baillie Gifford “I would definitely recommend taking this course if you have a working knowledge of Tableau. Even the little tips Steve explains will make using Tableau a lot easier. Looking forward to putting what I’ve learned into practice.”Aron F., Grove & Dean “Steve is an excellent teacher and has a vast knowledge of Tableau. I learned a huge amount over the two days that I can immediately apply at work.”John B., Mporium
This programme provides an intensive, two-day overview of the key elements of operations management, including an array of practical tips and tools to help managers be more proactive and effective in the operations management environment - whether that's in an industrial manufacturing context or in operational leadership in the service sectors. At the end of the programme, participants will: Understand the 6Cs approach to operations management Be able to apply a range of practical tools and techniques to improve their personal effectiveness towards being a more effective operations manager Be able to prepare an action plan for the critical first (or next) 100 days in their operational leadership role 1 Introduction What is Operations Management and where does it fit in? What makes a successful Operations Manager? Introducing the 6Cs of Operations Management 2 Context Link to business strategy Making a year plan Performance measurement 3 Controls Governance Reputational controls Costs and budgets Quality Operational 4 Customers Internal External Stakeholder management 5 Communication Planning Meetings Reporting Emails Notices Networking Walking the talk 6 Care People Safety, Health, Environment & Security Assets 7 Continuous improvement Process Product Proactivity Link to KPIs and Year Plan 8 Putting it all together Action planning for the first (or next) 100 days Conclusions
The importance of building services to the success of an organisation has never been greater and continues to grow. Developers and occupiers are becoming more aware of the contribution that building services make to the well being of occupants and hence their perception of the quality of the working environment. Those involved with the design, construction, maintenance and operation will increasingly be required to deliver building services that demonstrable contribution to the occupier's business. Energy efficiency, carbon management and occupant satisfaction depend substantially on the way building services are designed, managed and operated. To optimise these aspects, an informed strategic approach is essential. Tried and tested techniques and processes are available that, when applied holistically, will deliver substantial benefits. This course reviews best practice in the area and inspires participants to ensure that building services perform at their optimal level. To provide a better understanding of how building services can be designed, managed and operated to: Maximise occupant comfort, satisfaction and wellbeing Add value and contribute to the success of the business of the occupier Improve health safety Reduce operating cost, energy use, carbon emissions and environmental impact Optimise cost and value Provide strategies for continuous improvement and sustainable operation 1 Building services fundamentals The function of services in commercial buildings and their importance to the core business 2 Techniques and processes for optimising cost and value Programmed operation evaluation Continuous commissioning Lifetime product management Performance-based service Energy efficiency and the scope for environmental improvement 3 Making the business case and preparing the strategy Motivating decision-makers Empowering those who have to deliver the results Managing business risk 4 Strategy implementation and monitoring results Ensuring that rich and robust feedback is available to support continuous improvement and strategy enhancementWhen to get feedbackWhyHowWhat to do with it 5 Case histories and 'air time' Sharing experience and addressing specific issues of interest to participants Course review Close
M&O of engineering plant and services is becoming more important to the success of the core business. To select the right M&O technique for specific plant and equipment it is necessary to know what options are available, what they deliver and how they should be implemented. This course will help you consider options and techniques that provide best value based on that thorough understanding of the business need. M&O will increasingly be required to demonstrate it is delivering the optimum of cost and value and the main purpose of the course is to show how this can be achieved. Note: this is a purely indicative list of topics that can be covered. The content, duration, objectives and material used would all be adapted to match your specific requirements. This course will help you: Determine what the business needs from the M&O service Determine the cost and value of the various M&O options Prepare and present the business case for the selected M&O strategy Introduce meaningful KPIs based on performance-based service by the M&O provider Undertake a review of current M&O and make recommendations for improvement Introduce energy and carbon management performance criteria in M&O Better deal with project risk and uncertainties Motivate others to deliver a reliable and cost effective M&O service Note: this is a purely indicative list of topics that can be covered. The content, duration, objectives and material used would all be adapted to match your specific requirements. 1 What is maintenance and what is operation? - their relative importance to the business 2 Comparison of the various maintenance options and techniques, including: Planned preventative Run to failure Condition monitoring Business focused Business critical Total productive Reliability centred maintenance 3 Forms of contracts and service, including: Comprehensive Input driven Output driven Limited replacement Performance based M&O 4 Selecting the right options and making the business case 5 Continuous commissioning as a tool for delivering best value 6 Case studies
Maximising the relationship and sales potential of each active account is key to the sustainability of any business relying on repeatable custom. In this workshop we start by looking at key techniques for analysing the profitability and development opportunities for different clients before deciding upon the strategy and skills needed for moving the relationship to that of trusted adviser and partner. By understanding and creating the need we can use our influencing skills to harness any sales development potential. By creating the habit of explaining our ideas in a way that also meets the need of the other party we help everybody make the right decisions for them. This course will help participants: Assess the sales profitability and potential of existing key accounts Prioritise where time and energy is directed for maximum profitability Understand the key players in the decision making unit Create a strategic plan for the development of each client target Develop proactive sales consultancy skills Learn advanced communication and influencing techniques 1 What makes an effective account manager? The difference between order taking and account management How do you define a key account in your business? Why should existing customers remain with your company? How do you compare to the competition? 2 How do I prioritise my account management activity? Use practical tools to help you assess revenue potential Analyse the investment required versus the return on your time Create a SWOT analysis on your clients - Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats Appreciate how this knowledge will improve your sales development 3 Planning strategies for each account Create a list of priority accounts and activities Learn how to develop a long-term and sustainable relationship Discover how they make their purchasing decisions Research the make-up of the Decision Making Unit for each client 4 Learning and utilising the six principles of influence Learn the secrets these principles offer sales people Discover how these principles will work for you Create an influencing strategy for influencers within the client Learn new habits of influence 5 Proactive sales skills Plan proactive sales meetings for key accounts Set primary and secondary objectives for every touch point with the customer Structure sales meetings for maximum effectiveness Help the customer commit and achieve their objectives 6 Putting it into practice Discuss real scenarios to plan for putting these skills into practice Share common issues with fellow sales people Create a personal development plan