7 Topics
5 Days
35 Sessions
Programme Overview
Training Description
- Financial Analysts
- Strategic Planning Professionals
- Performance Management Specialists
- Management Information Systems Professionals
- IT and Digital Transformation Managers
- Department Heads and Budget Holders
- Project and Programme Managers
- Public Sector Finance and Budget Officials
- NGO and Development Finance Professionals
- Professionals responsible for budgeting, forecasting, financial analysis, reporting, performance management, and data-driven decision-making
Session Objectives
- Understand the role of Business Intelligence in modern financial planning. Learn to connect, transform, and model data from various sources. Master the creation of interactive dashboards and reports. Develop dynamic and automated forecasting models. Conduct powerful what-if scenario analysis and simulations.
About the Course
Data-Driven Decisions: Budgeting with Business Intelligence is a practical training course designed to equip finance, budgeting, planning, and management professionals with the skills to use Business Intelligence (BI), data analytics, and visualization tools to improve budgeting and financial decision-making.
The course explores how organizations can move beyond traditional spreadsheet-based budgeting by using data from multiple sources to improve forecasting, resource allocation, variance analysis, performance monitoring, scenario planning, and management reporting. Participants will learn how to transform financial and operational data into actionable insights that support more accurate budgets and timely decisions.
Through practical exercises, participants will explore budget dashboards, financial KPIs, data visualization, trend analysis, predictive insights, automated reporting, and interactive budget monitoring. The course is suitable for organizations seeking to strengthen data-driven financial management and improve the speed, accuracy, and transparency of budgeting decisions.
Curriculum & Topics
7 Topics | 35 Sessions
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Workshop 1.1:
The evolution of budgeting and the need for Business Intelligence.
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Workshop 1.2:
Core concepts of BI: data warehousing, ETL, and data visualization.
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Workshop 1.3:
Identifying opportunities to apply BI to your organization’s budgeting process.
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Workshop 1.4:
Overview of leading BI tools and their features.
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Workshop 1.5:
The strategic value of real-time data in financial management.
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Workshop 2.1:
Connecting to diverse data sources (spreadsheets, ERPs, databases).
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Workshop 2.2:
Best practices for data cleansing and preparation.
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Workshop 2.3:
Building a logical data model for budgeting and reporting.
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Workshop 2.4:
Creating relationships between different data tables.
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Workshop 2.5:
Ensuring data integrity and accuracy.
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Workshop 3.1:
Navigating the user interface and key features of a BI tool.
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Workshop 3.2:
Building basic charts, graphs, and pivot tables.
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Workshop 3.3:
Using calculated fields and measures for financial analysis.
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Workshop 3.4:
Applying filters and slicers for interactive exploration.
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Workshop 3.5:
Developing reusable templates for reports and dashboards.
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Workshop 4.1:
Principles of effective dashboard design for financial data.
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Workshop 4.2:
Creating a summary dashboard for at-a-glance budget health.
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Workshop 4.3:
Building detailed drill-down reports for granular analysis.
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Workshop 4.4:
Implementing conditional formatting to highlight variances.
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Workshop 4.5:
Sharing and collaborating on dashboards with key stakeholders.
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Workshop 5.1:
Leveraging BI for predictive forecasting and trend analysis.
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Workshop 5.2:
Performing variance analysis and understanding deviations.
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Workshop 5.3:
Creating dynamic models for what-if scenario analysis.
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Workshop 5.4:
Incorporating external factors into your financial models.
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Workshop 5.5:
Using advanced functions to analyze complex data patterns.
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Workshop 6.1:
Automating the data refresh and report distribution process.
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Workshop 6.2:
Setting up alerts and notifications for budget anomalies.
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Workshop 6.3:
Integrating BI reports with other business applications.
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Workshop 6.4:
Managing access rights and permissions for financial data.
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Workshop 6.5:
Creating a single source of truth for all budget-related information.
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Workshop 7.1:
Developing a pilot project for a BI-driven budgeting initiative.
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Workshop 7.2:
Building a roadmap for full-scale implementation.
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Workshop 7.3:
Securing buy-in from senior management and key users.
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Workshop 7.4:
Establishing a governance framework for BI use.
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Workshop 7.5:
Best practices for training and supporting your team.
