Class Details
Financial Modelling in Excel Course
Course summary
Financial modelling skills in Excel are highly beneficial in the modern, data-rich work environment, and are not limited to finance professionals only. These skills are crucial for any analytical role that requires quantifying the dynamics of a business situation to support informed decision-making. Application areas include, but are not limited to, feasibility studies, budgeting and forecasting, scenario-based strategy development, operational models and techno-commercial bid comparisons.
This is a compressed one-day financial modelling course designed to provide you with a broad overview of the best practices in financial modelling. Through hands-on exercises, you will engage with common financial modelling scenarios using pre-existing financial models. For individuals seeking a more comprehensive course that includes building three financial statements, you may consider enrolling in Financial Modelling Course Online: The Complete Guide.
Aims
This course aims to equip you with the most relevant tools in Excel used in financial modelling and recommended best practice for model structure and design. You will leave the course feeling empowered to understand, manage and create financial models independently.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this course, you should be able to:
- apply best practice guidelines onto existing financial models to make them more robust while keeping them user friendly
- lay strong foundations when building financial models from scratch so that it is more efficient to use and maintain
- use consistent formatting across the sheets so that users can easily identify the required information
- validate data entry cells to catch errors early on and avoid GIGO (garbage in garbage out)
- fortify the model by applying appropriate protections and passwords as needed.
Content
Excel toolkit
The course will begin with a coverage of essential Excel functions and features which are beneficial for financial modelling. This includes:
- Named ranges
- Data validation
- Mixed referencing
- Lookup functions
- Financial functions
- Logical functions
- Data protection
- Scenario Manager
- Goal Seek for single variable target matching
- Solver for multi variable optimisation
- Live data integration, e.g. FX rates
Best practice
Discover the best practices recommended for financial modelling. By following these best practices, you can avoid the common pitfalls encountered in financial modelling. Correcting errors later in the model’s lifecycle can be more costly in terms of time and effort. Employing these best practices from the start ensures you save considerable time and. Topics include:
- Model structure
- Ownership and maintenance
- Formatting consistency
- Effective demonstration of model outcomes
- Error tracing
- Documentation and version control
Practical examples
We will work on pre-existing models from various industries so that you get a broad overview of common issues faced in financial modelling and how best to resolve such issues. Models include:
- Real estate development project
- Fleet management: Electric Vehicle vs. Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles
- Budgeting scenarios
Group discussion
During the last session, we will discuss the type of financial models relevant to your industry, and the common challenges you encounter in managing these financial models. We’ll discuss how the tools we learnt today can be applied to your work context, so that you can immediately benefit from the insights gained in course.
Who this course is for
Professionals working in data-rich environments who need to analyse data for informed decision-making. Examples of such roles include:
- Financial analysts
- Accountants
- Budget controllers
- Project managers
- Business owners/consultants
Prerequisites
An intermediate level skill in Excel e.g. prior experience with functions such as VLOOKUP, IF, etc.
Delivery style
This course is interactive and hands-on. We will start with a brief introduction to a topic, followed immediately by practical exercise to get first-hand exposure to that topic.
Delivery modes
- Face-to-face, presenter-taught workshop using your own device
- Online workshop via the platform Zoom
Materials
You will gain access to teaching material covered in the course. All course materials are shared electronically using Dropbox.
What you need to do before the course
To participate in this course, you will need Microsoft Excel installed on your device and a Microsoft account.
- Recommended operating system: Windows or MacOS
- Required software: MS Excel 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024 or 365
Face-to-face classes
Please bring your own laptop with all required software pre-installed.
Online classes
For the best experience, we recommend using a computer with a large monitor or dual screens/devices. Small laptop screens can make it difficult to follow the facilitator’s display while working in the software.
Sessions
Location
Face-to-face (CCE Building, Sydney)
Public transport
As bus and train timetables regularly change, we suggest you visit the Transport for NSW trip planner before you set out.
The nearest train stations are Newtown Station and Macdonaldtown Station. Macdonaldtown Station is closer by distance than Newtown Station, however trains do not stop as frequently as at Newtown Station.
Other information
Parking
Nearby parking is available at Wilson Parking - RPA Medical Centre Car Park (entry via Elizabeth Street off Carillon Avenue).
A Flexi Saver Rate is available but must be booked in advance online and includes the booking fee. Bookings can be made via the Wilson website or by downloading the Wilson Parking App. Otherwise, hourly parking rates will apply, as advertised on the Wilson Parking website.
Meet the facilitators
Danish Malik
Danish is an experienced professional with 20 years of experience in training, consulting, finance, project management and engineering. He has worked in organisations including Siemens, Shell, Nexacu etc. in Australia, Germany and the Middle East. He started teaching in 2012 and has trained professionals from various industries and organisations on Microsoft applications. They include the Department of Education, Australian Border Force, Sydney Water, Wesfarmers, Allianz, Rabobank, Diageo, Clorox, ABC, SBS, Seven, BBC, Hilton and Uniting.
Danish specialises in custom course development based on specific client needs. His decades of diverse experience across various industries help him incorporate relatable practical examples in his course development and delivery. He is passionate about equipping professionals with modern tools to do their work more efficiently and effortlessly. His qualifications include a Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering, Master of Business Administration, Microsoft Certification and Project Management Professional (PMP®) Certification.
