Finance for Non-financial Managers

Vernon V. Kakoschke was a lawyer in the law department of Canadian Pacific.

This primer on financial management covers everything you always wanted to know about accounting and finance in under 300 pages. It is aimed at those readers who have never had any formal training or exposure to finance; consequently, it covers a wide range of topics with a broad brush.

Each chapter consists of a self-contained module on a different aspect of finance. The book starts out by putting the finance function into perspective within the overall structure and organization of a corporation. The main thesis of the book is that, over the last two decades, the finance function has undergone dramatic changes. The role of the modern financial manager is no longer limited to raising capital dollars; it now extends to finding ways to use the funds more effectively within a business.

Although the book covers the traditional topics of bookkeeping and accounting in separate chapters, it also goes on to deal with the analysis and interpretation of financial statements. It is this interpretive function that sets finance apart from accounting, which really involves more of a record-keeping function. A particularly useful chapter, entitled “Budgeting and Control,” explains the budgeting process in a simple and straightforward manner. This chapter is based on an article written by the same author that appeared in CA Magazine in 1980. Pierre Bergeron, a business professor and management consultant, is a prolific writer, whose articles have been published in various trade journals.

The book is not meant to give the reader an in-depth knowledge of any particular area of finance. Rather, it provides a flavour of the type of work that goes on in the financial departments of most business corporations. For those who would like to gain some insight into the mysteries of high finance, the book does a good job of demystifying and explaining some complex topics in layman’s terms.