BCS Commercial Awareness Training | BCS Training

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Introduction
Course Details
Course Content
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A Quick Glance

Accredited by BCS
Learn the Budgeting Process and its intricacies
Evaluate financial cases using the Three Techniques
Access to the Commercial Awareness course-ware and certified tutors
Low Cost of Certification
Certification Recognized by Global Leading Brands

The era of monopolistic organizations is coming to an end while competition is growing. In order to be successful, an organisation needs to collaborate with suppliers, competitors and outsourcing partners. For the businesses to operate successfully new approaches are required to operate through using methods such as restructuring, changing the organisational behaviour, modifying the internal and external boundaries, and deploying performance measuring techniques.

To deal with such problems, business analysts must master their commercial skills to deal with their partners and customers successfully. This course deals with the commercial and organisational knowledge which is expected from professionals undergoing business analysis. Commercial Awareness can be classified into Business Finance and Organisational Behaviour. We at Pentagon Training provide the delegates with a unique opportunity to learn and better their communication skills. This BCS training is covered in a time frame of just 3 days.

Who should take this course

At Pentagon Training, we impart this course to delegates who wish to understand the structure, operation and behaviour of organizations. It is also targeted at those professionals who want to acquire skills to bring about a business change and are involved with the organization as one of the following:

Business Analysts
Program Manager
Project Manager
Solution Architects
Service managers

Prerequisites

The course comes with no prerequisites.

Evaluating A Financial Case Through Three Techniques
Understand what is Costing and Pricing
Cash Flow Forecasting and Budgeting
Financial Accounting Documents and Their Contents
Understand Financial Accounts
Discuss Required Business Performance Ratios
Define Porters Five Forces Framework and Value Chain
Describe Boston Consulting Group’s Matrix

Key Learning Points

Tutor Support

Certificate

Courseware

Course Overview

The course (as shown in the figure) is made up of two parts - Business Finance and Organisational Behaviour. During the schedule of the course – the first part covers Finance for IT Decision Makers and the second covers Business Analysis Techniques and Organisational Behaviour. The Trainers hold a certificate in this course , a two-year training experience or 1 year recognised qualification. The trainer also has to possess a three-year practical experience in the same stream.

Examination:

The candidates are required to sit for the exam after the course. The exam lasts for one hour and is a closed book exam with multiple choice questions. The exam recommends an accredited training from BCS but it is not a requirement. To get certified the candidate must score 65% marks. BCS allows the use of calculators during the exam. No mobile technology will be allowed.

Candidates sitting for an exam must carry identification of some means such as Passport, Driving License, or Student Card. Following the exam, the candidate will be sent an email from BCS asking you to register for your exam. Once registered the candidate can log in and view the exam result from their accounts.

Additional time of 15 minutes is allowed for differently abled candidates or those who have a different native language than the language of the examination.

Course Content

Part 1 – Business Finance

1.Evaluating a Financial Case

Purpose of Building a Financial Case
Techniques used for evaluating a Financial Case
- Payback
  - Calculation
  - Payback and Risk
  - Limitations of Payback
- Discounted Cash Flow /Net Present Value
  - Purpose
  - Calculation
  - The NPV Decision Rule
- Internal Rate of Return
  - How to derive IRR
  - How IRR is used
  - The IRR Decision Rule

2.Budgeting, Costing and Pricing

Budgets and Departmentalised Businesses
- The purpose of budgets
- Reasons for departmentalization
- Cost centres and profit centres
Cash Flow and Cash Management
- Cash flow forecasting
- Use of cash flow in decision making
- Cash flow and profit
Costing and Pricing
- Fixed and Variable costs
- Direct and indirect costs
- Break even and Contribution Analysis

3.Financial Reporting and Analysis

Statement of Financial Position (Balance Sheet)
- Purpose and Structure
- The nature, purpose and types of Capital
- Current and non-current liabilities
- Current and non-current assets
Income and Expenditure (Income Statement, Profit and Loss Account)
- The importance of Operating Profit
- Revenue (turnover)
- Cost of Sales
- Administrative Expenses
- Profit after Tax
Statement of Cash Flows (Cash Flow Statement)
Ratios (formulae and interpretation)
- Profitability Ratios: Operating Margin and Return on Capital Employed ratios
- Liquidity (Cash Management) Ratios: Current and “Acid Test” ratios
- Gearing (Leverage) Ratio: Debt/Equity Ratio

Part 2 – Organisational Behaviour

1.Market analysis and competitive advantage

Analysing the business domain - Porter’s Five Forces Analysis
Analysing the portfolio - Boston Box
Delivering value - Porter’s Value Chain

2.Organisational behaviour and culture

What is organisational behaviour?
Organisational effectiveness and the Balanced Scorecard
Understanding and analysing culture
- Organisational Cultural Types (Deal and Kennedy; Handy)
- International Cultures (Hofstede)
- The Cultural Web

3.Group formation

Groups and group dynamics
Formal and informal groups
- Groups and group tasks
- Characteristics of formal groups
- Homan’s theory of group formation
- Tuckman and Jensen’s theory of group development
- Characteristics of informal groups
- Social networks

4.Principles of organisational structure

Organisation structuring
- Elements of organisation structure
- The six Structure Levels
- The Leavitt Diamond
Types of jobs
- Work specialisation
- Flat and tall hierarchies
- Span of control
Line, staff and functional relationships
Formalisation of rules and procedures
Centralisation v decentralisation
- Advantages
- Disadvantages

5.Operating models

Organisation structures and their characteristics
- Functional
- Divisional – product or service/ geography/ customer
- Matrix
- Team-based – cross functional/ project
Organisational boundaries
- Boundaryless organisations
- Outsourcing
- Offshoring
- Hollow organisation structures
- Modular organisation structures
- Virtual organisations
- Collaborations and strategic alliances

BCS Certificate in Commercial Awareness Enquiry

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Reach us at +44 1344 961530 or info@pentagonit.co.uk for more information.

About Watford

Watford is a town located in Hertfordshire, England, located 17 miles to the northwest of central London .

The town developed on the River Colne on land that belonged until the 16th century to St Albans Abbey . During the 12th century a charter was granted allowing a market and building St Mary's Church began. The town grew modestly. It was assisted by travellers passing through to Berkhamsted Castle and the royal palace at Kings Langley. A big house was built at Cassiobury in the 16th century. This was partly rebuilt in the 17th century and another substantial house was built nearby at The Grove. Connections with the Grand Junction Canal and the London and Birmingham Railway allowed the town to grow more rapidly. The paper-making mills, such as John Dickinson and Co. at Croxley, influencing the development of printing in the town which continues today. Two brewers Benskins and Sedgwicks flourished in the suburb until their closure in the late 20th century. Both the 2006 World Golf Championship and the 2013 Bilderberg Conference took place at The Grove.

Watford is first cited in an Anglo-Saxon charter of 1007 as one of the places marking the boundary of "Oxanhaege".

The Industrial revolution

For many centuries, Watford relied on agriculture. The Industrial Revolution brought the Grand Junction in 1798 and the London and Birmingham Railway in 1837. The land-owning interests permitted the canal to follow closely by the river Gade. Although the road and canal follow the easier valley route, the railway company was forced to build an expensive tunnel.

Parks

There are 43 public parks, gardens, recreation grounds and allotments in Watford. Of these, eight have been awarded a Green Flag, in recognition of their quality.

· Cassiobury Park

· Cheslyn House and Gardens

· Woodside Park

Theatres

· Watford Colosseum

· Watford Palace Theatre

· The Pump House

Sports

Watford is home to professional football team Watford F.C., who reached the 1984 FA Cup Final. They won the Nationwide Division Two championship in 1998. In the following season (1998–99) they reached the Premier League. The club was relegated the next season. After five years of uncertainty, Watford won the Football League Championship Play-Off Final. This helped them achieve promotion to the Premier League in 2006, this time beating Leeds United A.F.C. by three goals to nil. The club was relegated to the Football League Championship after a single season (2006–2007) in the Premier League. They were promoted to the Premier League in 2015, after finishing 2nd in the Championship. Singer-songwriter Sir Elton John is a keen, long-term supporter of Watford F.C. and a former club chairman. He still maintains his links with Watford as Honorary Life President. Between 1997 and 2013 the club shared its ground, Vicarage Road, with Saracens Rugby Football Club.

Watford has a Non-League football team Sun Sports F.C. who play at The Sun Postal Sports & Social Club. Watford were home to the Watford Cheetahs American Football team. The team played their home games at Fullerians R.F.C. between 2008 and 2012. Glen Rovers, are another team who play both Hurling and Gaelic Football in Watford. The town also has a cricket team, Watford Town, and several Sunday League football clubs.