Understand Financial Information and Financial Management

Whilst employed at Specsavers Optical Group the senior managers, of which Sarah was one, were offered the opportunity to study for the Certified Diploma in Accounting and Finance - an ACCA qualification which enables managers not only to understand financial information but also link it to broader strategic decisions.

Prior to studying for the Diploma Sarah struggled with the interpretation of financial information, but the course added a new interest and dimension to her operational skills.

Following successful completion of the Diploma Sarah decided to write, in her spare time, a guide to the monthly management accounts that were produced for each Specsavers store. The purpose was two fold - firstly to test whether she could apply her learning, and secondly, in the absence of any form of explanatory guide, many store directors didn't understand or see the value of their monthly management accounts so ignored them.

The combination of operational knowledge and experience together with the ability to explain financial information in a manner that could be easily understood resulted in Sarah developing and delivering a number of financial workshops at the Specavers half-yearly national conference and developing additional workshops to address the specific financial issues faced by under performing stores.

Sarah was subsequently approached by the Commercial Director to assist with the development and delivery of a financial training course for the Specsavers store directors.  Having struggled herself before receiving adequate training provided Sarah with a valuable insight into the problems many managers encounter understanding financial information.

Case Histories

From the Blog