Financial Management Notes - Scope
Financial management can be broadly defined as the management of the finances of
an organization in order to achieve its financial objectives. Financial management mainly involves decisions regarding
investments, financing and dividends. Here in this site we try to show you some
summary
financial management notes so that you can have
a better understanding of the scope of the financial management.
There are two key objectives of financial management as given below in the
financial management notes.
A.
Financial planning
Financial planning refers to ensuring that an organization
has enough funds to meet the requirements of the organization in the short,
medium & long term. The financial manager will need to plan to ensure that
enough funding is available at the right time to meet the needs of the
organization for short, medium & long term capital requirements.
B.
Financial control
Financial control is relevant to the funds that have
been raised. For instance ensuring assets are used efficiently is a part of
financial control. The financial manager will need to consider whether the
organization is meeting its objectives & the assets are being used efficiently.
For this purpose, financial manger will have to compare the actual & the
forecast performance.
Scope of the financial management is considered to include the following key aspects, which are discussed in little more detail later.
1.
Financing decisions
Various means of acquiring fund, selecting the most suitable means of funding &
their risk, etc. are generally discussed under this topic. Following key sub
topics can be identified in our
financial management notes.
A. Equity
financing
B.
Debt & near-debt
financing
2.
Investment decisions
Selecting a suitable investments, risk analysis, capital rationing, lease or buy
decisions, etc. come under this topic. Following sub topics are generally
covered by the
financial management.
A. Project
appraisal
B. Capital
rationing
C. Leasing
decisions
Proper working capital management is crucial for short term survival of any company. Various techniques of the management & analysis of creditors, debtors, cash & stocks including ratio analysis are discussed under this. Most common areas covered here are as follows:
A. Liquidity of
a company
B. Management
of debtors & creditors
C. Management
of stocks
D. Cash &
treasury management
Various types of business and share valuation techniques of both quoted and non quoted companies and their suitability are discussed here. Following are most widely covered areas in financial management.
A. Valuation of
debt & market efficiency
B. The cost of
capital
C. Portfolio
theory
D. The capital
asset pricing model (CAPM)
E. Capital
structure
Financial risk management is an important topic discussed in financial management notes. Various types of risks, their measurement and mitigating techniques such as below are discussed here.
A. Foreign
exchange risk
B. Interest
rate risks
C. Financial
Engineering