Southern Oregon University : School of Business

Master in Management

Course Syllabus

Budget and Finance

MM 512
Spring 2006

Curt Bacon, DBA
552-6487
bacon@sou.edu

Text and Materials:

Several spreadsheets
Several readings
Case studies

Course Description and Objectives:

The official SOU course description for MM 512 reads as follows: MM 512, Budgeting and Finance, is designed to familiarize managers with the role of budgeting and the budgeting process in diverse organizations. Students develop an appreciation for both the theory and application of financial practices to aid in their fiscal decision making. It is recommended that students have an understanding of basic accounting concepts prior to enrolling in this course.

We will also devote time to a basic understanding of financial concepts building on the material you may have covered in the elective course, Corporate Finance. I intend to guide the course in four broad paths culminating in a comprehensive set of pro forma financial statements.

Understanding Financial Statements: In this section we review financial ratio analysis, the Dupont method, sustainable growth, and a discussion of cash and working capital management.
Pension Funds: In the United States and around the world pension fund liabilities are a major cost consideration for most large and many small companies. We will discuss some of the issues surrounding pension funds and focus on what anticipated funding of pensions might mean for employees.
Developing a set of pro forma financial statements: We will combine the items previously discussed and add in the issues of amortization and capital budgeting to develop these statements.
Public Budgets: We will discuss local, state, and federal budgeting processes examining different objectives and techniques. We will compare and contrast these public budgets with the budgeting process for corporate entities.

Instructional Methods:

I will take the position that you are the experts with current real-world experience and that I am the professor moderating the discussion. Many of the examples we use to bring the discussion to life will be yours not mine. Therefore, it is critical that each of you is prepared to discuss your current and/or past work experiences as they apply to the topics under discussion. Your examples are far better and more current than anything I can bring to the discussion. I intend to lecture, discuss, and work in groups on in-class assignments of problem sets, case studies, and spreadsheets. If you participate and work hard in class this mode of learning will be successful. Failure to participate and work hard will result in many hours of listening to me talk about finance and budgeting. I can assure you that this is not an optimal outcome!

Grade Determination:

Attendance and Participation	20%
Discussion Forums	10%
CASE # 3: Playing the Numbers Game (Dupont Analysis)	10%
Chapter 2: Pro Forma Forecasts	5%
GM Article and Presentation	5%
CASE # 6: Saving for Retirement	10%
IBM Case	5%
Investment Spreadsheet	5%
Amortization Spreadsheet	5%
TVM Problems	5%
Pro Forma Spreadsheet and Presentation	20%
Total	100%

Tentative Course Outline:

Date	Topic
May 10 Wednesday	Introductions Understanding Financial Statements Ratio Analysis Dupont Analysis Sustainable Growth Case #3 - Group work in class with completed write-up next session
May 17 Wednesday	Discussion of Case #3 McCloskey Work Cash Budgets and Forecasting Chapter 2 - Forecasting Future Needs Pro Forma Forecasts - Group work in class with completed write-up next session GM articles assignment - Presentations in pairs next session
May 19 Friday	GM Article Presentations Pension Funds Revenge of the Retirees - Discussion of Pension Options IBM Case - Assignment - completed write-up next class Investment Spreadsheets - Discussion and in-class work TVM Problems - Assignment - Completed write-up May 31 Case #6 - Saving for Retirement - Group work in class with completed write-up next session
May 24 Wednesday	Discuss IBM Case Discuss Case #6 Retirement SS - Discussion and ideas for improvement
May 31 Wednesday	Complete work from last week and discussion period TVM Discussion Catch up on all materials
June 3 Saturday	Class in CE 105 Pro Forma Financial StatementCombining what we have discussed into a single set of financial statements using YOUR assumptions about companies (real and hypothetical). Example: Bacon Signs Inc. Amortization Table Growth Assumptions Work in groups in complete the project and to prepare presentations for the last class.
June 7 Wednesday	Final Pro Forma Project Presentations