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In this course we learn how to financially model a business using Excel. Financial models underpin strategic and business planning, solicitations for financing, budgeting and forecasting, business valuations, cash budgeting, capital budgeting, and so many other corporate finance purposes.
We concentrate on the preparation of a financial projection of the income statement, balance sheet and statement of cash flow. We use an approach that keeps model integrity and credibility top of mind throughout development.
Course Series
This course is included in the following series:
3 CoursesFundamental Skills for Finance Professionals
- Accounting 101: How To Do Basic Accounting In One Hour
- Learn Finance Principles in 1 Hour
- Financial Modeling Using Excel
10 CoursesFinance for Entrepreneurs
- Start-up Equity and Cap Table Basics
- Understanding Performance-Based Equity Awards
- Accounting 101: How To Do Basic Accounting In One Hour
- Learn Finance Principles in 1 Hour
- Financial Modeling Using Excel
- The Evolution of a Great Spreadsheet Report - How to Effectively Present Numbers in the Business World
- Creating a Winning Pitch for Venture Capital Investors
- Venture Capital Valuation Analysis Method
- Enterprise Risk Management 101
- The IPO Preparation Process - Preparing a Company to Access the Public Markets
Learning Objectives
- Identify a disciplined approach for using Excel to develop financial analysis
- Discover how to prepare financial projections of the income statement, balance sheet, and statement of cash flows
Last updated/reviewed: January 28, 2018
99 Reviews (309 ratings)Reviews
Munyaradzi Kadzinga
(Treasury Analyst at Yarra Valley Water)
Simple but very effective presentation. I loved how brief the financial model was with enough information useful for reporting. Very useful and practical tips for both seasoned professional and those who are just beginning. Another excellent presentation from Blair Cook.
Anonymous
(Finance Manager)
I have an accounting background, but was struggling to follow the instructor. He talked and navigated through Excel files so quickly, that I had a hard time keeping up. Luckily one can repeat the video and read the text as often as one wishes.
Sheilah Brown
(Controller at SMB LTC)
Great templates. Must have a good accounting background to understand where the assumptions come from and how they are inter-related or you would not get much out of this course. Took much more than 1.5 hour to really do the exercises.
Anonymous
(DIRECTOR)
The presenter is very engaging and very effective. The examples provided are very helpful. There are various useful tips provided that are easy to apply.
The time allotted for the course is about right.
Raveendran Madappattu
View Instructor Profile
Wonderful course!!! The course provided a lot of insights into the complexities and challenges of preparing financial models. The instructor has made many complex items look simple. Well done.
Jordann Hoo Jiun Horng
(Senior Internal Auditor at OCLARO INC)
This course is great in the sense that it clearly separates all the assumptions, formulas and reports to demonstrates how a forecast can be made. It is very easy to follow.
Ara Toroyan
(Director - Financial Planning & Procurem.. at NCCI Holdings, Inc.)
A really solid class on financial modeling. Clearly the presenter knows the content based on years of experience. Well worth the 1.5 hours at the intermediate level.
Anonymous
(CPA/Investment Advisor)
Good course - lots of good information I wish others would incorporate in their models to make them more useful to others. However, too long for the content included
Samuel Narotsky
(Plant Controller at Lonza)
Very good course. It's a lot of material, and considering the time to work on the files, it should be more than 1.5 CPE, at least 2.0 or even 2.5.
Lawrence Hirsch
(Controller at Builders design)
Blair may have just unseated my previous favorite presenter. He knows more about excel in his finger than I do in my Head. Well done.
Anonymous
(Board Member)
There is a lot of information in this course that is very valuable--you just might have to review it more than one time to get it all!
Quinn Bonta
(Associate Consultant at RSM)
this course does a good job of simplifying a complicated topic and provides a good baseline knowledge to building forecasting models.
Alec Black
( at Fairfield University)
Really enjoyed this course. The instructor did a great job breaking down the material and explaining. Highly recommend this course.
Andrew Anderson, CPA
(Principal Financial Analyst at Rio Tinto)
The course was very good overall. I was hoping it would cover discounting, nominal vs. real, and other valuation model items.
Alex Ristevski CTP, CRC
(VP, Portfolio Manager at SunTrust Bank)
I was impressed with how much content was covered in the allotted time. Good overview on how to build a basic financial model.
Rachel Anderson
( at Fairfield University)
A bit confusing considering I took a financial modeling course, some material contradicted. However, overall, well done.
Brian Bell
(Director, Assistant Controller at Cymer)
Simply the best instructor I have found on Illumeo. Extremely thorough, technical and practical.
Sharon Vincent
(VP of Finance at MJC Electronics Corporation)
Fast moving and easy to follow. The worksheets were great to follow and makes a great template.
Anonymous
(Assistant Accounting Manager)
It is not easy course, but certainly improve your knowledge of financial modeling and excel.
Monte Smith
(Chief Financial Officer at Gerding Companies, Inc)
Well organized and a thorough presentation. Enjoyed working along with the examples.
Anonymous
(Sr. Director, FP&A)
Was pretty confusing if you don't do a lot of balance sheet and cash flow budgeting.
Lawrence DeParis
(Founder & CEO at C-Level Solutions LLC)
Excellent introduction to preparing a comprehensive integrated financial model.
Craig Scanlon
(Owner at BST)
Reinforces a lot of what I have been doing for 30+ years and adds a few shortcuts
Jon Ardito
( at Fairfield University)
Personally, I do not think this was a good learning tool for financial modeling.
Eric Cox
(Senior Accountant at Mondo)
Highly recommend this course before diving into the budgeting process next year!
Anonymous
(Financial Analyst)
Very practical and useful. Need some accounting background to understand it.
Marc Ostroff
(VP, Production Finance at Digital Domain)
Really enjoyed this course. Very detailed and informative. Highly recommend.
Anonymous
(Assistant Vice President, Accounting & F..)
I have watched several of Blair's courses. Always informative and well done.
Anonymous
()
This course was beneficial to my understanding of complex financial models.
Anonymous
(Finance Director)
Good approach for those newer to modeling. Some handy excel tips included.
Yoshihiro Nishimura
(Director of Finance, Coporate Business F.. at WACOM Co., Ltd.)
Very helpful to confirm the principls i need to keep in mind when modeling
Dixie Gutwald, CPA, CMA
(Analyst, Financial Planning & Analysis at Tervita Corporation)
Useful ideas about good planning in the beginning to save headaches later.
Alex Bonn
(Student at Fairfield University)
it was a long course but I would suggest it for a college finance student
Karin Williams
(None at self)
The instructor made an otherwise dry subject, interesting. Kudos to him!
Anonymous
()
Another solid course from Blair Cook. I will refer to this in practice.
Chris Grimes
(Rules Master at Cisco)
Good calss for modeling tips and how to design an integrated workbook
Anonymous
(Owner)
This was a great course to grasp the concepts of financial modeling.
Amber Deadrick
(Assistant Controller at Trimble Navigation)
Many helpful tips that I will incorporate into my existing methods
Pamela LaPlaca, CPA
(Controller at EG USA)
This was an excellent prep for a job interview- Thank you, Blair!
Anonymous
(None)
should be broken down between statement or more time allotted
Heather DiLorenzo
( at Fairfield University)
There was a lot of information that was sometimes confusing.
Jeff Ratcliffe
(Chief Financial Officer at United Hunter Oil & Gas Corp.)
This is a great course for those new to financial modeling
Anonymous
()
Liked the course. Nice pace. Very useful insights gained.
Nicole Johnson
(Staff Consultant at EKS&H)
The instructor was easy to follow and clear to listen to!
Anonymous
(Sr Accountant)
Instructor moves at a perfect speed. An excellent course.
Jennifer Bor
(Sole Practitioner at Accounting and Business Management Consu..)
works for what i need to renew my cpa and cia licenses.
Janine Korovesis
(Accounting Controller at Google)
This course was fairly basic in the beginning lessons.
Forrest Savage
( at Fairfield University)
Good explanations and content. Effective instructor.
Anonymous
(Finance & Strategic Planning Consultant)
Great review of both financial and modeling basics
Anonymous
(Salaried Consultant)
The tips and tricks at the end were very helpful.
Anonymous
(CPA, CFE, CGMA)
Great presentation & illustration with examples.
Hicham Jawhar
(Financial controller at Basement Systems Quebec)
This courses delivered in a very effective way.
Anonymous
(Senior Financial Analyst)
Complex issues explained in detail. Informative
Bruce Reed
(Chief Financial Officer at PracticeLink)
One of the best modeling lessons I've taken!
Anonymous
(Vice President of Finance)
The exam answer choices should be rephrased
Saba Kazi
(Manager- Accounting & Finance at National Petroleum Services)
Excellent course for finance professionals.
Joyce Holiday
(Consultant at DLC)
Nice overview and some very helpful tips
John Noble
(Controller at eComEngine)
A thrill for finance Excel enthusiasts.
Stephen Hall
( at Systems Alliance)
Good combination of use and application
Anonymous
()
Difficult material, but very helpful.
Lorna Fisher
(Retired Finance Professional with active.. at Retired and enjoying time to pursue pers..)
Excellent class as usual from Blair.
Scott Berlinguet
(student at Fairfield U)
EXCELLENT AND INFORMATIVE LESSON!
Anonymous
(Senior Associate)
Great instructor, great overview!
Anonymous
(Associate with Two Degrees)
Very informative and organized!
Kelley Allen
(Staff Accountant at Phoenix Textile Corp)
Liked the Start and Solutions.
Corinne Adams
(President at CBA)
This is tougher than I thought
Anonymous
(None)
Good step-by-step presentation
Anonymous
(student)
interesting, lot of material
Anonymous
(Financial Analyst)
Challenging, but informative.
Lawrence Ward
(Not Provided at RJB Contracting Inc.)
Well organized and presented.
Gayle Christopher
(Not Provided at Midasco)
I enjoyed taking this course!
Qingkui Qiu
(Finance supervisor at Wanli New energy corporation LTD.)
Great! great! great course!
Michael McGee
( at Fairfield University)
Tough, but very informative
Andrew Wilding
(Controller at Sequence, Inc.)
Great course on modeling!
Sabine D\'amico
(RVP Finance at Anthem)
Convenience interesting
Samantha Hollibone
(Consultant at DLC Group)
useful and relevant!
Mohammad Ali, EMBA, CTP
(Revenue Analyst at Energy & Utilities)
Very Professional.
Terry Hartmann
(Trustee at GEVA Theatre Center)
some good ideas
Michael Maffucci
(student at Fairfield University)
Hard, but like.
Joseph Murphy
(None at Fairfield University)
very informaive
Anonymous
(Sr Financial Analyst)
great overview
Anonymous
(Director of Finance)
Great overview
Siva Vinay
(Interim Controller at Navona)
great details
Henry Guo
(Analyst at Fairfield University)
great lesson!
Hong Zhu
(- at Snack Street)
good lecture.
Anonymous
(NONE)
Great course!
John Daniels
(Sutdent at Fairfield University)
Great Course
Fred Neftin
(student at Fairfield University)
Great Course
Frank Perillo
(Not Provided at Frank Perillo CPA)
Good course!
Anonymous
(RECENT GRADUATE)
good course
Zarksis Italia
(Director Finance at Ensco)
Great Class
Richard Dandan
(Senior Accounting Specialist at National Food Authority)
Excellent!
Anonymous
(Senior Accountant)
Very good.
Anonymous
()
great!
Andrew Eidenshink
( at Fairfield University)
its ok
Anonymous
(Contracts Manager)
Great!
Anonymous
()
Great
Anonymous
(Financial Representative Intern)
A+
Anonymous
(Controller for Americas BU)
ok
Prerequisites
Course Complexity: Intermediate
Prerequisite: Basic proficiency with accounting and Excel
Advanced Preparation: None
Education Provider Information
Company:
Illumeo, Inc., 75 East Santa Clara St., Suite 1215, San Jose, CA 95113
Contact:
For more information regarding this course, including complaint and cancellation policies, please contact our offices at (408) 400- 3993 or send an e-mail to .