Introduction

Financial statements are the report card of business. Whether you are an investor, a business owner or an executive, you need to understand how to read, analyze, and sometimes create financial statements so you can get a full and accurate understanding of your finances. Financial statements will tell you how much money there is, how much debt is owed, the income coming in each month, and the expenses going out the door.

Increasingly, executive and managers of non-financial functions need to understand the basic principles of accounting and finance in order to make informed business decisions. They often need to communicate well with their finance colleagues using financial jargon, which sometimes appear intimidating and at times often misunderstood. There is a clear need to understand the "mystery” basis on which financial statements are prepared and demonstrate how the information can be used as a tool for business decision-making and improved performance.

This one-day workshop will focus on the principles and applied understanding of accounting terminology and the use of financial reports to improve business performance, especially for non-financial executives and managers in the organization.

Lim Swee Thiam has over 30 years of work experience in both industry and academia. Upon graduation, he worked as audit senior for Ernst & Young for four years and subsequently left to join the industry as Group Accountant for two listed companies handling group accounts and management reports, review of foreign subsidiaries and associated companies’ accounts, implementation of new accounting procedures in new set-up/joint venture business overseas, and financial management. He was also a local HQ-financial representative travelling widely, undertaking business development, setting up and reviewing agency accounts for Australia, South-East and South Asia.

Swee Thiam was full-time lecturer in Nanyang Polytechnic with teaching responsibilities for lecturing of Published Financial Statements, Consolidated Accounts, Business Finance, and Cost and Management Accounting. He also conducted external finance-based professional development courses to industry, and NYP International’s overseas participants, mainly from China, Philippines and Bangladesh. He was also a Manager in the polytechnic’s technology transfer office handling business development, licensing, and promoting and mentoring students’ start-ups. He also adjunct for Singapore University of Social Sciences (formerly UNISIM) for Financial Accounting Theory and Practice, and Managerial Accounting.

Swee Thiam holds an MBA from Adelaide University and a Bachelor of Accountancy from the National University of Singapore. He is a Fellow of the Institute Chartered Accountants of Singapore since 1985.