Course Catalog > Business (CBI) > Finance

Finance

Business Budgeting for Beginners
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 6/14/2023 - 8/5/2023
Delivery Method: Online

This course is offered through our partners at ed2go. These courses are fun, fast, convenient, easy to use, and led by an expert instructor. Courses run for six weeks and you have 24/7 access to two lessons each week. Each lesson is accompanied by a short, multiple-choice quiz, and some lessons include hands-on assignments.

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Business Budgeting for Beginners
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 7/12/2023 - 9/2/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Business Budgeting for Beginners (Self-Paced Tutorial)
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 5/1/2023 - 7/31/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Business Finance for Non-Finance Personnel
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 6/14/2023 - 8/5/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Business Finance for Non-Finance Personnel
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 7/12/2023 - 9/2/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Business Finance for Non-Finance Personnel (Self-Paced Tutorial)
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 5/1/2023 - 7/31/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Keys to Successful Money Management
Fee: $100.00
Dates: 6/14/2023 - 8/5/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Keys to Successful Money Management
Fee: $100.00
Dates: 7/12/2023 - 9/2/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Keys to Successful Money Management (Self-Paced Tutorial)
Fee: $100.00
Dates: 5/1/2023 - 7/31/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Personal Finance
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 6/14/2023 - 8/5/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Personal Finance
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 7/12/2023 - 9/2/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Personal Finance (Self-Paced Tutorial)
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 5/1/2023 - 7/31/2023
Delivery Method: Online

You will receive an e-mail with course access information upon completion of your enrollment.

Important: All online courses through the Center for Business & Industry are non-credit courses. For college credit programs and courses please visit www.DaytonaState.edu.

Business Budgeting for Beginners
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 5/17/2023 - 7/8/2023
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
This course will introduce different strategies employed during the budgeting process, the techniques and tools commonly used to make budgeting forecasts, the components of a basic operating budget, and how businesses make certain decisions that may impact their budgeted amounts.

If the idea of creating a budget for your business, department, or project seems overwhelming, this course will alleviate all of those fears. Taught in an approachable and relatable format, this course walks you through the budgeting process so you can go from numbers averse to budgeting super-hero. The downloadable templates included in the course allow you to easily and quickly take what you learn and apply it to your job. The storytelling used throughout the course makes the topic more approachable and engaging so you can obtain the soft skills that will help you be successful implementing and tracking a budget in the real world. Finally, the course challenge is something that will pique your curiosity at the beginning of the course and provide motivation to complete the course and continue learning the material.

A company's budgeting process involves a lot more than just rows and columns of numbers on a spreadsheet. The reality is that budgeting is a sometimes organic and sometimes organized process. Most often, it's an equal mix of both in an attempt to add some level of certainty to an uncertain future. These processes are what we are going to explore in this course. You will be introduced to different strategies employed during the budgeting process, the techniques and tools that are commonly used to make budgeting forecasts, the components of a basic operating budget, and how businesses make certain decisions that may impact their budgeted amounts.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:
- This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.
Software Requirements:
- PC: Windows 8 or later.
- Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
- Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader.
- Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
Other:
- Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.
Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

In this comprehensive, beginner-friendly course, you will learn the elementary skills needed to be successful in the budgeting process and work gradually work your way up to creating a budget. You will also discover how to best evaluate the results of your budget and make decisions to help your business maximize its profits.

Predicting the Future
In our first lesson, you'll explore how budgeting at its core is a process of looking forward. It's about making informed predictions about the future. Next, you'll see how a company's vision can lead to setting goals for the company. These visions are often aspirational and state the path for where the company plans to go in the future. Then, we'll also start the conversation about the human side of budgeting.
Budget Strategies
In this lesson, you'll begin to look at various budgeting strategies, including strategic, capital, and operations budgeting techniques. The lesson will include some real-life examples of planning activities, and to further bring these concepts to life, you'll work with a fictional company, Curly's Pool Service and Supplies, by helping Curly formulate some plans and budgets!
It's All About Sales!
This lesson will focus all on sales, specifically the role that sales play in the budgeting process. We'll examine the best practices for compiling a sales forecast and how to increase the chances that the sales forecast will actually mimic real life. We'll also discover how to create an inventory that needs a budget to determine just how much inventory to purchase based on a sales forecast. Finally, we'll discuss how to formulate a labor requirements budget to accurately project just how much labor you may need to employ to meet the needs of the company, again based on the sales forecast.
Cost Behavior – Part 1
In this lesson, we are going to detour a bit from the actual preparation of a budget and dive into how certain types of costs behave. Understanding how costs increase or decrease relative to an activity is an essential part of learning how to accurately budget for costs in a business. So, in the upcoming chapters, you're going to discover how to distinguish between variable, fixed, and mixed costs. We will use these cost types to calculate the contribution margin for the business. Then, we will show you how to use contribution margin to make certain predictions and decisions in a business. Most notably, you'll see how to use contribution margin to calculate the all-important break-even point and margin of safety for a business.
Cost Behavior – Part 2
This lesson will be a continuation of the discussion about cost behavior. In the lesson, you'll explore how to evaluate a company's sales mix and how to calculate operating leverage using tools given throughout the course. Operating leverage is just another key component of cost analysis that will allow you to, once again, easily make projections about the future. We'll end the lesson with a discussion about how companies set prices for the products and services they offer. You can probably guess that this process is a bit more involved than just selecting a price out of thin air. It's actually an essential part of a company's overall budgeting process and should not be taken lightly.
Expense and Manufacturing Production Budgets
In this lesson, we'll examine the steps needed to build both a direct materials budget and a direct labor budget. We'll also examine how a manufacturing company budgets for manufacturing overhead. All of these components are key to developing an overall production budget for a business that manufactures a product. Finally, we will end this lesson by describing the components of a production budget.
Cash Is King!
In this lesson, we'll discuss how to prepare a complete cash budget for a business. You'll get the chance to take an even closer look at how a company might forecast cash collections from credit sales and cash payments on credit purchases for big-ticket items like inventory or other expensive capital projects. We'll even take a look at how some companies mitigate the risk of running out of cash by utilizing lines of credit and other sources of cash instead of just relying on cash generated from sales.
Capital Budgeting
In this lesson, you'll learn some of the basic methodologies that can be applied in many different capital budgeting scenarios. The lesson will begin with an explanation of a technique that does not include an evaluation of how time impacts the valuation of money. Then, you'll learn how the passage of time and its impact on the value of a dollar is incorporated into capital budgeting decisions. Since capital projects often span years, or even decades in some cases, the time value of money is key to improving accuracy in budgeting for capital projects. The lesson will finish up with a thorough review of, perhaps, the most common technique that is used in capital budgeting decisions: net present value.
Business Decision-Making – Part 1
In this lesson and the one that follows, we're going to explore how businesses use budgeted data in combination with a formalized decision-making process to improve their chances of making better decisions. For a business, a better decision is one that maximizes profit and aligns with the company's goals and values. We'll start with an examination of what types of budgeted information are relevant to making a decision and what types of information you can ignore. You'll see the differences between quantitative and qualitative information and how each can be used to improve decision-making. Then we'll finish up with an example including some specific steps you can use as a model for making better decisions.
Business Decision-Making – Part 2
In this lesson, you'll continue to practice with these same techniques by applying them to a few other common business decisions. You'll start by examining how a business uses budgeted information to make the choice to replace an existing asset with a new asset, such as replacing an old piece of manufacturing equipment with a brand-new one. Next, you'll explore how a business might use budgeted information when deciding whether to eliminate a product or service that it offers. We'll finish up the lesson by examining one of the most critical business decisions you'll ever need to make: how to allocate your most scarce resource to maximize profit in your business.
Bringing It All Together
In this lesson and the one that follows, we will focus on how best to evaluate the financial stability and performance of the business using budgeted information. We'll start by taking a close look at using the components of a company's operating budget to compile the pro forma balance sheet. Next, we'll examine the steps needed to prepare the pro forma income statement, again by using the information found in many of the other operating budget components. To finish up the lesson, we'll dive into some straightforward techniques that are useful to evaluate the balances found on the pro forma balance sheet and income statements.
Evaluation, Control, and Methods
In our last lesson, we'll spend more time on the budget evaluation process by examining how companies use variance analysis to evaluate differences between actual results and the budget. To keep things manageable, we'll stick to the basics here so that you're equipped with some tools to take with you when applying these techniques in a real company. As part of this process, we'll take a look at how budget variances are defined and interpreted. Then, we'll discuss some techniques like flexible budgeting to evaluate and isolate certain budget fluctuations in a way that provides clarity to a business owner or manager. We'll finish up the lesson with a brief discussion of the budgetary control process and the soft skills needed for this process.

What you will learn
- Learn about planning strategies and how they are used to keep a budget aligned with its vision
- Obtain knowledge of cost behavior and how forecasts are used to ensure accuracy in future planning and budgeting
- Develop various approaches to plan for general and administrative expenses
- Gain tools and techniques used for a formal decision-making process
- Master how best to evaluate the financial stability and performance of a business using budgeted information
How you will benefit
- Learning how businesses think about budgeting will help you to make informed predictions about the future with strategic planning
- Become more valuable to your employer or business by accurately budgeting costs
- Make better business decisions with the knowledge about how businesses use budgeted data in combination with a formalized decision-making process
- Increase success in your career with the skills, techniques, and tool kit provided by this course
Scott Paxton

Scott Paxton is a Certified Public Accountant and holds master's degrees in business administration and accounting. His background includes experience as a public accountant, a manager in the banking industry, an entrepreneur and a college business instructor. Paxton has also spent much of his career helping small business owners successfully optimize their business operations, budgets and strategic plans.
Show Description

Business Finance for Non-Finance Personnel
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 5/17/2023 - 7/8/2023
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
This course will help you understand business environments, financial statements, and strategy so you can make more profitable business and personal financial decisions.

Are you interested in making better business decisions to increase your company's profits, move you up the corporate ladder, and help you reach a better, personal financial position? If so, this course is for you.

Using practical explanations and real-life examples, this course will show you how money flows through a typical business. You will learn the basics of how a business operates, including how to develop successful business strategies and how to use financial statements to make better business decisions.

Whether you're an employee, sales executive, supervisor, or manager, this course will help you understand basic financial information and use that information to make decisions that will positively affect your company's financial situation.

This is a business finance course for non-financial employees and managers. By taking it, you will obtain significantly improved business acumen skills and financial understanding. Position yourself to be more confident in your business and financial decisions.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:
- This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.
Software Requirements:
- PC: Windows 8 or later.
- Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
- Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader.
- Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
Other:
- Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.
Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Position yourself to be more confident in your business and financial decisions. This course will provide you with a better understanding of financial information and basic operations so you can make better decisions that will positively impact your company's bottom line.

Business Finance Basics
In this first lesson, you will learn the difference between financial knowledge and business acumen in a way that's easy to understand. You will also be introduced to a few basic financial strategies and explore what business finance can do for you, your company, and your personal finances.
The Business Model and Financial Flow
To gain a strong foundation in business finance, you'll need to understand the basic business model, its components, and how they fit into the larger organization. In this lesson, you will see how finances flow through the business and begin to master basic financial terminology. Afterwards, you will be able to apply what you've learned to your personal household and finances.
Financial Terminology and Concepts
Do you know what ROI refers to? What's a Sales Forecast, and why is it so important? In this lesson, you will learn these terms and many more. You will also gain an understanding of financial forces, which provide a foundation for developing financial strategies and driving profit.
Financial Statements
Financial statements can be one of the most mysterious parts of business finance. As you will see, however, all you need is to make sense of the three basic financial statements. With this lesson under your belt, you will be ready to take on the next crucial step: recording and tracking the annual finances on these statements.
The Income Statement
In this lesson, you will gain a broader understanding of the first of the financial statements you will be considering: the Income Statement. You will visit the hypothetical company Bouncy Balls Incorporated (BBI) and examine its annual statement to comprehend what all these numbers mean.
The Balance Sheet
Still working with the fictitious company BBI, you will explore what information is included in the Balance Sheet. You will continue your work to determine BBI's financial position and see where changes in business strategy may be needed.
The Statement of Cash Flows
You will finish your introduction to the basic financial statements as you review the Statement of Cash Flows. You will see how financial personnel use this statement as you continue your tour of BBI. As you work through the Statement of Cash Flows, you will start to put all the information together to improve your understanding of BBI's financial position.
Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A)
In this lesson, you will listen in at a roundtable meeting of executives at BBI as they discuss the company's financial statements. The meeting offers a great opportunity for you to get an insider's look into how executives develop the Management's Discussion & Analysis (MD&A).
Business and Financial Strategy—The Process
Now you are going to put all of the financial knowledge you've gained during this course to work as you consider some strategies for improving BBI's financial condition. You will explore how executives bring their financial knowledge in line with business needs to make solid business decisions that will have a positive impact on the company financials.
Cutting Expenses to Boost the Bottom Line
In this lesson, you will tackle a key issue in business: cost cutting. Expenses are such a huge part of business. Here, you will see how to use your new knowledge of financial reporting and your business acumen skills to develop strategies that have a positive impact on a company's bottom line.
Inventory and Cash Strategies
Continuing your exploration of financial strategy, you will use the decision-making process to examine the inventory situation at BBI and develop strategies to increase supply and production efficiencies. You will also see how to develop strategies to improve the BBI cash position so that more things can be done to increase the bottom line.
SWOT Analysis and Strategy Implementation
Now that you've gone through various strategies to increase sales, decrease expenses, and better manage company assets, it's time to see how to complete an overall strategic analysis of an organization. This lesson focuses on using an analytical process called SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) to develop strategies to move your business and your personal financial life in a positive direction.

What you will learn
- Learn the difference between financial knowledge and business acumen
- Learn how finances flow through the business and begin to master basic financial terminology
- Gain an understanding of financial forces, which provide a foundation for developing financial strategies and driving profit
- Learn to make sense of three financial statements: Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Statement of Cash Flows
- Discover how executives bring their financial knowledge in line with business needs to make solid business decisions
- Learn how to cost cut with your new knowledge of financial reporting and your business acumen skills
- Discover how to develop strategies to increase supply and production efficiencies
- Learn to move your business and your personal financial life in a positive direction by focusing on an analytical process called SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats)
How you will benefit
- Gain a strong foundation in business finance
- You will increase your ability to think "big picture" and see how to take advantage of opportunities in your workplace and personal life
- Be able to apply what you have learned to your personal household finances
Matt Crabtree

Matt Crabtree, CFP ®, earned his Bachelor of Science in Business, Information Systems Management, in 1999, a mini MBA certificate from The School of Management at Yale University in 2004, a certificate in Financial Planning from Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business in 2012 and has received the financial industry's most rigorous and prestigious professional designation of Certified Financial Planner ™. After many years in project management, office management, and business sales, Matt began training individuals and organizations in areas of business finance, leadership development, successful negotiations, sales management, and customer service excellence. Matt has trained individuals and various units within the U.S. Department of Defense, as well as corporate organizations including IBM (technology), Accuray (healthcare-technology), and Gen-Probe (molecular diagnostics). Matt's natural aptitude for explaining his material in an easy-to-understand and enjoyable manner allows each student to gain insights into areas that are often considered challenging.
Show Description

Keys to Successful Money Management
Fee: $100.00
Dates: 5/17/2023 - 7/8/2023
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
Certified financial planner shows you how most wealthy people build their fortunes.

If you're interested in discovering how most wealthy people amassed their fortunes, this is the course for you. All it takes is organization, discipline, and a firm knowledge of how to proceed. If you're serious about accumulating a sizable nest egg and living the life of your dreams, you will have to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for success.

In this course, a certified financial planner will walk you through the steps you need to take in order to achieve true financial success. You'll become comfortable with the broad array of investment choices available to you right now, and you'll discover the best ways to acquire and accumulate both cash and real property. You'll also learn about the tax implications of your investment decisions, along with steps you can take to protect any wealth you acquire.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:
- This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.
Software Requirements:
- PC: Windows 8 or later.
- Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
- Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader.
- Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
Other:
- Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.
Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Let a certified financial planner show you how most wealthy people build their fortunes. This course will introduce you to a broad array of investment choices, help you discover the best ways to accumulate cash and property, and demonstrate how to best protect your investments.

Introduction to the Financial Planning Process
In this course, you'll discover the keys to achieving financial freedom steadily and successfully. You'll learn how to make financial discipline and wise financial choices a natural part of your life. Your journey begins here with an overview of the five steps of financial planning.
Organize Your Finances
How much money do you actually have and where is it all going? You have to be able to answer these questions before you can create a financial plan. So, in this lesson, you'll work on organizing your financial life. You'll create an organized filing system, get a handle on your spending, and learn how valuable cash flow statements, budgets, and balance sheets are to financial success. Don't worry; it's not as hard as it sounds!
Short-Term Investments: Building Cash Assets
There are three types of investment money: short-term, intermediate, and long-term. You'll start this lesson with a look at short-term money and the purpose it serves. This is money you would set aside for something specific in the near future like buying a car, making a down payment on a house, or paying off interest-free debt. You'll learn the trade-off between investment risk and investment reward and see why it takes more than putting your money in a savings account to get rich.
Bonds, Stocks, and Mutual Funds
In this lesson, you'll learn how a combination of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds will help you build wealth. You'll also see how investment risk correlates with investment return. Then you'll discover how time mitigates higher-risk investments, making them an excellent choice if you've got enough time and want to see double-digit returns.
Education Accounts
Saving money to fund a college education is a common financial goal. This lesson will talk about the pros and cons of the different education savings plans that are out there. By the end of the lesson, you'll be the neighborhood expert on saving for college!
Retirement Savings
Most people's number-one financial goal is saving for retirement. Social Security alone won't cover the bills. Some people have employer pension plans, but many people have to figure out how they'll make up the shortage once they stop working. This lesson is about taking care of yourself in retirement. You'll examine retirement savings plans and discover why they're a great place for your cash investments.
Real Property Assets
Up to now, this course has been about accumulating cash assets. In this lesson, you'll learn how real property assets complement your wealth. Real property assets are things you can feel, see, and touch (such as land or precious metals). When you complete this lesson, you'll know the challenges and benefits of owning real property.
Understanding Mortgages
Since most people don't have enough to buy a house with cash, they need someone to lend them money. Going to the bank for a loan isn't as simple as walking in and filling out an application. Completing an extensive questionnaire about your income, debts, and job history is part of the loan process, but there's more. You need to decide which kind of mortgage to apply for. Just like there are a number of ways to order coffee from your favorite barista, there are a number of ways to finance a house. In this lesson, you'll learn about the different loan types, understand why some cost more (or less) than others, and figure out which loan program is best for you.
Other Financing
Almost everyone has a credit card in their wallet, and many people are plagued by consumer debt. Credit cards, car loans, car leases, and in-store financing are where consumer debt builds up. In this lesson, you'll learn how to use these forms of financing to instead maximize your wealth.
Risk Management
As you accumulate wealth, it's important to protect it against loss. People buy car insurance in case of car crashes, homeowners insurance in case of damage or destruction to their houses, and health insurance to help with the rising cost of medical care. These are obvious assets to protect, but what about their most valuable asset: their ability to earn an income? If you have people depending on your paycheck to put food on the table and a roof over their heads, then you need to protect your income. For those reasons, this lesson will talk about life and disability insurance and when you should get them.
Build Your Team of Professionals
This lesson will talk about the professionals who can help you on your journey toward wealth. You'll learn the areas of expertise for an attorney, CPA, financial advisor, and insurance agent. You'll also get a sense of when is the right time to call on each of these professionals.
Put Your Plan into Action
The final lesson will talk about the most challenging part of the financial planning process: implementation. It will teach you a technique that's very helpful in getting you and keeping you moving on your journey toward wealth. You'll leave this course knowing what you need to do to reach your goals and how to do it. You'll have everything it takes to achieve financial freedom!

What you will learn
- Learn how to choose the right stocks, bonds, and other important investments
- Discover the proven way to gain wealth and learn the secret of financial freedom
- Learn how to become a more discerning consumer, saver, and investor
- Learn how to track the flow of your resources and use budgets to take ownership of your financial future
How you will benefit
- Learn how to gain and maintain wealth and live the life you've always wanted
- Discover the secrets to achieving financial independence
- Gain peace of mind about the future by learning what investments you should make now
- Become confident about selecting the right path for your financial planning and surrounding yourself with the right financial advisors
Kirsten Iseminger

Kirsten Iseminger has been a Financial Advisor since 1990 and worked for years in one of the world's largest financial institutions. Her clients have included small business owners, high-level executives, and individuals who wanted their wealth to grow. To further her expertise in the financial planning industry and to achieve the highest recognition available for financial planners, Kirsten successfully completed the education and examination process necessary to become a Certified Financial Planner.
Show Description

Personal Finance
Fee: $115.00
Dates: 5/17/2023 - 7/8/2023
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
Protect your assets and discover how best to achieve all your financial goals.

Do you have clear financial goals? Are you confident you will be able to retire someday? How can be sure you are making the right investments? Do you know how to change your credit report to reduce your expenses and increase your financial security? Do you know how to keep good financial records?

This course will prepare you for a lifetime of worthwhile personal financial planning. The tools you will learn are useful, realistic, and easy to work into your regular routine. They will help you gain control over the financial impact of the choices you make. You will learn to create and use a budget, borrow and invest wisely, make intelligent decisions about insurance, and plan for your financial future. You will develop a retirement savings plan, and you will be better prepared to make large purchases and plan for taxes. You will learn the essentials of household bookkeeping, recordkeeping requirements, and much, much more.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:
- This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.
Software Requirements:
- PC: Windows 8 or later.
- Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
- Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader.
- Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
Other:
- Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.
Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Set clear financial goals, make the right investments, increase financial security, and be prepared to retire someday. This course will help you gain control over the financial impact of your choices with tools that are useful, realistic, and easy to work into your regular routine.

Your Financial Situation
Throughout this course, you'll learn how to use basic financial planning tools that you can work into your everyday routine. In this first lesson, you'll examine your personal finances, set some basic financial goals, learn how to keep track of your finances, and gain some knowledge of recordkeeping requirements. You'll then learn how to assess your current financial position. The information that you compile during this lesson, and the methods you use to retain and store that information, can set the tone of your financial recordkeeping for the rest of your life.
The Daily Grind: Earnings, Bills, and Taxes
If you think about your cash flow in terms of how to best control the money that comes in and goes out of your life, you may discover that you have many opportunities to improve your financial situation. This lesson focuses controlling certain aspects of your income collection and disbursement through daily financial events. You will learn about methods for increasing the amount of money at your disposal, saving money when paying your bills, and reducing your tax burden.
Your Credit
Don't be discouraged if your credit history is marred. Despite what you might think, you can establish good credit, control your credit rating so it remains positive, and repair a bad credit rating. This lesson teaches you how to read your credit history, correct errors in your credit reports, and improve your credit so that you're a good risk to potential lenders. Find out what creditors look at when they judge your credit, and how you can check your own credit rating for free.
The Art of Borrowing
Whether you intend to borrow money for a long term (as you might with a mortgage on a house), a medium term (such as a loan for a car or a college education), or a short term (such as using a credit card to pay for a dinner at a restaurant or your weekly groceries), there are factors about borrowing that you should consider. In this lesson, you will get the tools to make informed decisions about borrowing. You will learn about the concept of points or loan origination fees. Finally, you will find out how borrowing money can actually benefit you when tax time comes.
Creating and Living With a Budget
In the most popular lesson of the course, you will learn how you can create a workable budget and, more importantly, how you can make it stick. A budget is not difficult to make, and it's not difficult to follow. In fact, people who use budgets find they can talk about their finances and their financial goals more comfortably because they have a thorough knowledge of what they can actually achieve. A budget is like a playbook for the future.
Investing in Mutual Funds
In this lesson, you will learn about the different types of mutual funds, criteria for choosing a fund, how much to invest, the importance of timing your investments, when to sell, and the tax effects of your investment. You will find out the advantages to investing in mutual funds, including diversification, the opportunity to take advantage of a fund manager and a research team's expertise, the small minimum investment required to enter a fund, and the ease with which you can make regular investments.
Investing in Stocks
This lesson introduces financial advisors. You will find out why it's so important to follow the performance of your investments. You will also discover how to manage your portfolio, the tax effects of buying and selling investments, and how you can manage the amount of tax you pay. You will also learn how to compare companies that you want to invest in.
Other Types of Investing
If you want to invest, there are several different types of opportunities available to you. In this lesson, you will explore some of the places beyond stocks and mutual funds where you can invest your money, including interest-bearing accounts, bonds, commodities, precious metals, and collectibles. You will discover that you can begin investing with a very small amount of money, and you will find out how to familiarize yourself with different types of investments before putting your money at risk.
Insurance Considerations
In this lesson, you will get acquainted with the many types of insurance and how the purchase of insurance should fit into your overall financial plan. Your needs for insurance change throughout your life, so you will learn how and when to reassess your insurance coverage. You will also learn some tips on dealing with insurance agents and shopping around for the best value and the best coverage.
Planning for Your Retirement
Retirement might seem like it's a long way off, but it's never too early to start thinking about it. In this lesson, you will get familiar with the various types of retirement funds available to employees, business owners, and individuals; and you will learn about putting money into retirement funds, overseeing the investments in those funds, and when and how to take money out of your funds. You will also find out how the Social Security system works and the tax effects of retirement contributions and distributions.
Life's Big Expenses
There are certain occasions in life that require a major cash outlay. Events like weddings, purchasing a house or a car, or going to college require planning and saving. In this lesson, you will discover tips for estimating the costs of major purchases, as well as techniques for saving and borrowing to finance these expenses. You will also see what tax benefits are available when you incur these large expenses. You will learn about some of the different options for parents and students who are planning on, or are already attending, college.
Estate Planning
In the final lesson of the course, you will learn about estate planning and some of the basic rules that will guide you in making important decisions. In addition, you will get an introduction to inheritance and estate taxes, trusts, and other means of protecting your assets, as well as information about the duties of an executor for your estate.

What you will learn
- Develop clear financial goals and a household budget
- Learn to make wise investments and plan for your own future
- Discover the secrets to buying and selling the right stocks and mutual funds
- Gain an understanding of how personal credit works and how to enhance your credit score
- Acquire the skills and knowledge used to keep good financial records
How you will benefit
- Gain confidence in your financial future and control your own destiny
- Learn essential skills that will assure your monetary independence and well-being
- Achieve peace of mind by developing an attainable plan for your retirement
Matt Crabtree

Matt Crabtree, CFP ®, earned his Bachelor of Science in Business, Information Systems Management, in 1999, a mini MBA certificate from The School of Management at Yale University in 2004, a certificate in Financial Planning from Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business in 2012 and has received the financial industry's most rigorous and prestigious professional designation of Certified Financial Planner ™. After many years in project management, office management, and business sales, Matt began training individuals and organizations in areas of business finance, leadership development, successful negotiations, sales management, and customer service excellence. Matt has trained individuals and various units within the U.S. Department of Defense, as well as corporate organizations including IBM (technology), Accuray (healthcare-technology), and Gen-Probe (molecular diagnostics). Matt's natural aptitude for explaining his material in an easy-to-understand and enjoyable manner allows each student to gain insights into areas that are often considered challenging.
Show Description

Some Title

Predicting the Future

Budget Strategies

It's All About Sales!

Cost Behavior – Part 1

Cost Behavior – Part 2

Expense and Manufacturing Production Budgets

Cash Is King!

Capital Budgeting

Business Decision-Making – Part 1

Business Decision-Making – Part 2

Bringing It All Together

Evaluation, Control, and Methods

Business Finance Basics

The Business Model and Financial Flow

Financial Terminology and Concepts

Financial Statements

The Income Statement

The Balance Sheet

The Statement of Cash Flows

Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A)

Business and Financial Strategy—The Process

Cutting Expenses to Boost the Bottom Line

Inventory and Cash Strategies

SWOT Analysis and Strategy Implementation

Introduction to the Financial Planning Process

Organize Your Finances

Short-Term Investments: Building Cash Assets

Bonds, Stocks, and Mutual Funds

Education Accounts

Retirement Savings

Real Property Assets

Understanding Mortgages

Other Financing

Risk Management

Build Your Team of Professionals

Put Your Plan into Action

Your Financial Situation

The Daily Grind: Earnings, Bills, and Taxes

Your Credit

The Art of Borrowing

Creating and Living With a Budget

Investing in Mutual Funds

Investing in Stocks

Other Types of Investing

Insurance Considerations

Planning for Your Retirement

Life's Big Expenses

Estate Planning