Financial Acumen - Basic Finance for Non-Finance Managers
This 2-day programme is designed to build practical financial understanding among Management Trainees and emerging leaders who do not come from a finance background.
The course helps participants understand how financial information is used to make better business decisions. It covers financial statements, budgeting, cost control, cash flow, profitability, working capital, financial ratios, and finance-based decision-making.
The programme aligns with the ELITE Management Trainee Programme, a 24-month structured talent development initiative for selected Management Trainees in DRB-HICOM’s talent pipeline. The third quarter of 2026 focuses on Business Acumen and Financial Acumen, with this programme listed as a 2-day Module 3 in-house session delivered by an external trainer.
The training is designed to move participants from basic financial awareness to practical financial application. It helps them connect operational choices to revenue, cost, margin, cash flow, and business value.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
a) Explain key financial concepts such as revenue, cost, profit, margin, cash flow, assets, liabilities, and working capital in simple business language.
b) Interpret basic financial statements, including the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement.
c) Analyse how operational decisions affect cost, profitability, cash flow, and business performance.
d) Apply budgeting, cost control, and variance analysis concepts to support better workplace decisions.
e) Use simple financial ratios and business case logic to evaluate options and present finance-based recommendations.
Course Details
Trainer
Industries: Banking, IT, Supply Chain, Plantation, and Healthcare
Dr. Khairul Anuar Abdullah is a Professional Learning Facilitator and Executive Coach. He brings over 35 years of diverse leadership experience, having held senior executive roles in management consulting, investment banking, and corporate finance and operations across publicly listed companies. His strategic acumen and operational insight are shaped by his time as CEO, CFO, and Project Director - roles in which he consistently delivered measurable value and transformational outcomes.
Dr. Khairul holds an MBA from Heriot-Watt University, UK, and earned his PhD from the University of Newcastle, Australia. Professionally, he is credentialed as a Neuro-Semantics-NLP Licensed Trainer and Certified Meta-Coach (ISNS, US), Certified Coach of Design Thinking (Genovasi Malaysia), Certified Trainer of Emotional Intelligence (SixSeconds), and Certified Virtual Facilitator (neOOne & DRB-Hicom University). He is also an HRDC Accredited Trainer and actively contributes to academia as a master’s level lecturer and external doctorate examiner at multiple Malaysian universities.
Dr. Khairul’s facilitation style is grounded in both theory and real-world application. His programmes are designed to build business acumen, cultivate visionary leadership, foster innovation through design thinking, strengthen problem-solving capabilities, and embed a culture of operational excellence and risk management. His ability to engage participants meaningfully, challenge their thinking, and inspire transformation consistently earns him exceptional ratings from clients and participants alike.
In every engagement, Dr. Khairul partners with organisations to unlock human potential, align talent with strategy, and foster learning cultures that drive sustained performance. His work goes beyond delivering content - it is about enabling growth, instilling the right mindset, and preparing today’s managers to become tomorrow’s leaders.
Dr. Khairul is currently the Honorary Treasurer of the Malaysian Nature Society and the Chairman of the Institute of Neuro-Semantics Malaysia. He is a Past President of the Rotary Club of Bukit Kiara Sunrise and served as a member of the Rotary District 3310’s Learning and Development team for 2024/25.
Evaluation Summary
Evaluations are collected through private QR links shared by trainers after actual training sessions.