THE Isle of Man branch of the Institute of Directors is running a one-day course on ‘Finance for Directors’ aimed primarily at non-finance directors, at the International Business School on Thursday October 13.

Clive Parrish, a director of CDP Associates, chartered director and vice chairman of the IOD, Isle of Man said, “As a company director how would you rate your interest in or your ability to read and understand your company’s financial accounts?”

He posed a series of questions which will be examined during the course.

·         Do you simply rely on your finance director or accountant to keep you on the straight and narrow?

·         At a basic level do you really understand the difference between profit and cash?

·         Do you appreciate that a profitable company can go bust very quickly!?

·         Can you read and understand the company balance sheet?

·         Do you really understand your Bank Manager when he/she talks about cash flow, ratios, covenants, gearing and liquidity?

He added, “As an ex-bank manager with over 30 years experience I continue to be surprised how many company directors own up to finance not being their bag and rely on others to keep them informed.”

Ann Clayton, training officer for the local branch of the IoD, said, “Directors are as responsible as co-directors for the financial governance of a company and should always ensure they understand the financial condition of a business.”

She added, “It does not mean you have to be a ‘finance director’. What it does mean is that you need to know what questions to ask and be able to understand the responses you are given. That includes the non-executive directors – gone are the days, if they ever existed, that your eyes could glaze over when the FD presents the accounts!”

The Institute of Directors is committed to helping Directors become better at what they do and locally 

Anyone interested in attending should contact Ann Clayton on annclayton@manx.net or call her on 470162.