Business Acumen

Through our Business Acumen workshop your participants will improve their judgment and decisiveness skills. Business Acumen is all about seeing the big picture and recognizing that all decisions no matter how small can have an effect on the bottom line. Your participants will increase their financial literacy and improve their business sense.

Business Acumen will give your participants an advantage everyone wishes they had. The workshop will help your participants recognize learning events, manage risk better, and increase their critical thinking.

Business Acumen has the ability to influence your whole organization, and provide that additional edge that will lead to success.

At the end of this workshop, participants should be able to:

  • Know how to see the big picture
  • Develop a risk management strategy
  • Know how to practice financial literacy
  • Develop critical thinking
  • Practice management acumen
  • Find key financial levers

Course Outline:

Module One: Getting Started

Housekeeping Items

The Parking Lot

Workshop Objectives

Pre-Assignment

Action Plans and Evaluations

Module Two: Seeing the Big Picture

Short and Long Term Interactions

Recognize Growth Opportunities

Mindfulness of Decisions

Everything is Related

Case Study

Module Two: Review Questions

Module Three: KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators)

Decisiveness

Flexible

Strong Initiative

Intuitive

Case Study

Module Three: Review Questions

Module Four: Risk Management Strategies

Continuous Assessment

Internal and External Factors

Making Adjustments and Corrections

Knowing When to Pull the Trigger or Plug

Case Study

Module Four: Review Questions

Module Five: Recognizing Learning Events

Develop a Sense of Always Learning

Evaluate Past Decisions

Problems are Learning Opportunities

Recognize Your Blind Spots

Module Five: Review Questions

Module Six: You Need to Know These Answers and More

What Makes Money My Company Money?

What Were Sales Last Year?

What is our Profit Margin?

What Were Our Costs?

Case Study

Module Six: Review Questions

Module Seven: Financial Literacy (I)

Assets

Financial Ratios

Liabilities

Equity

Case Study

Module Seven: Review Questions

Module Eight: Financial Literacy (II)

Income Statement

Balance Sheet

Cash Flow Statement

Read, Read, and Read

Case Study

Module Eight: Review Questions

Module Nine: Business Acumen in Management

Talent Management

Change Management

Asset Management

Organizational Management

Case Study

Module Nine: Review Questions

Module Ten: Critical Thinking in Business

Ask the Right Questions

Organize the Data

Evaluate the Information

Make the Decision

Case Study

Module Ten: Review Questions

Module Eleven: Key Financial Levers

Investing in People

Effective Communication

Process Improvement

Goal Alignment

Case Study

Module Eleven: Review Questions

Module Twelve: Wrapping Up

Words from the Wise

Review of Parking Lot

Lessons Learned

Completion of Action Plans and Evaluations