This session is not a finance lecture for accountants. It is a practical, interactive dialogue on how to think like a business leader and use financial data to make decisions that matter.

Many leaders are told to “understand the business” but receive little guidance on fundamentals. As a result, they struggle to use financial insight to make decisions that contribute to business goals. This session closes that gap.

Financial basics are an essential part of business acumen – knowledge and skills that must start early in a leader’s journey and strengthen over time. Participants will learn how to interpret core financial reports, especially the P&L (Profit & Loss Statement), and apply them to make faster, higher-impact decisions. Through a hands-on exercise, they will step into the role of a business leader, analyzing business performance, evaluating trade-offs, and making decisions under realistic constraints. The session also builds the ability to ask better business questions and connect everyday decisions to outcomes such as growth, profitability, cash flow, ROI, and customer value.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. Interpret financial performance and drivers with a decision-maker mindset, using the P&L to identify what is driving results.

2. Translate operational decisions into financial impact, understanding implications for revenue, cost, margin, cash flow, and enterprise outcomes.
3. Use financial data to ask sharper business questions and evaluate trade-offs, applying context, benchmarks, and sound judgment.

4. Apply a clear, repeatable approach to financially-grounded decision-making, and engage confidently in financial discussions across stakeholders.

LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES: Business Acumen & Business Judgment; Sets Vision & Direction; Effective Communication with All Levels