Finance Training in Grand Rapids

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at beginner-level non-finance professionals who wish to have a foundational understanding of financial and accounting principles that are essential for effective decision-making in business.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand basic financial and accounting concepts that are essential for business decision-making.
• Interpret and analyze financial statements such as income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements.
• Apply key financial ratios to assess the financial health of a business.
• Develop and manage budgets and perform variance analysis to monitor business performance.
• Use break-even analysis to support operational and strategic decisions.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at application consultants and business process owners who wish to learn how to configure business processes for SAP S/4 HANA financials module.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the basic customizing settings in the main components of Financial Accounting with SAP S/4HANA.
• Configure the master data settings (G/L accounts, customer and vendor accounts) of FA with SAP S/4HANA.
• Configure document control, posting control, and financial document clearing settings of FA with SAP S/4HANA.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at intermediate-level professionals who wish to utilize QuickBooks to optimize accounts payable, receivable, payroll, and financial reporting tailored to their specific industry needs.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Navigate QuickBooks features relevant to financial and administrative tasks.
• Manage accounts payable and receivable efficiently.
• Generate and track invoices for various client and vendor workflows.
• Automate payroll processes and manage employee benefits.
• Create customized financial reports for analysis and decision-making.
• Optimize QuickBooks features to improve organizational efficiency.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at intermediate-level legal professionals who wish to gain a comprehensive understanding of FATF recommendations, with a balanced mix of theoretical knowledge and practical applications.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the history, purpose, and structure of FATF and its recommendations.
• Identify and explain the key concepts of money laundering and terrorist financing.
• Analyze and interpret the 40 FATF recommendations and their implications.
• Develop and implement effective compliance programs and risk assessments.
• Navigate the challenges of international cooperation and compliance monitoring.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at advanced-level cloud financial management professionals who wish to validate their expertise in financial operations (FinOps) related to cloud cost management.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Gain advanced knowledge required for the FinOps Certified Professional exam.
• Understand complex FinOps practices, including cost optimization, budget management, and reporting.
• Develop practical skills in applying FinOps strategies in real-world scenarios.
• Prepare for a successful completion of the FinOps Certified Professional exam.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at intermediate-level finance professionals and fintech developers who wish to use AI-powered prompt engineering techniques to enhance financial analysis, risk management, and decision-making.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the fundamentals of prompt engineering in financial applications.
• Leverage AI models for financial forecasting and market sentiment analysis.
• Automate financial reporting and data extraction using AI prompts.
• Develop AI-driven risk assessment models through optimized prompts.
• Ensure compliance and ethical considerations when using AI in finance.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at intermediate-level legal professionals who wish to gain a deep understanding of the mutual evaluation process, from preparation to follow-up, with practical applications and real-world case studies.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Gain an in-depth understanding of the FATF Recommendations, including technical compliance and effectiveness criteria.
• Learn how to effectively prepare for a mutual evaluation, including organizing national efforts, gathering documentation, and engaging stakeholders.
• Develop skills to conduct thorough and accurate on-site evaluations, including interview techniques, data collection, and stakeholder engagement.
• Utilize advanced analytical techniques and tools to support the mutual evaluation process.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at intermediate-level finance professionals who wish to gain a comprehensive knowledge of FinOps principles and methodologies, including cloud financial management, optimization strategies, and collaboration among finance, engineering, and business teams.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the FinOps framework, principles, and phases.
• Manage cloud costs effectively through data analysis and governance.
• Collaborate between finance, engineering, and business units to align cloud spend.
• Use FinOps tools for cost allocation, forecasting, and optimization.
• Prepare for the FinOps Certified FOCUS Analyst exam.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at beginner-level banking professionals who wish to gain in-depth knowledge and skills in using the SWIFT network for handling international bank transfers.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the SWIFT network and decode SWIFT codes.
• Navigate SWIFT messages and execute international transfers.
• Learn about the potential risks associated with international transfers and how to mitigate these risks.
• Explore advanced SWIFT services and understand how they improve the speed, transparency, and traceability of cross-border payments.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at finance and legal professionals who wish to learn the principles and practices of extrajudicial and judicial collection, enabling them to effectively manage and resolve collection issues.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the advantages and disadvantages of extrajudicial and judicial collection.
• Apply the main methods and techniques of extrajudicial and judicial collection.
• Evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of extrajudicial and judicial collection.
• Deal with the legal and ethical issues involved in extrajudicial and judicial collection.
• Integrate extrajudicial and judicial collection in a comprehensive and coherent way.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at beginner-level financial analysts who wish to learn how to use OneStream for financial analysis, reporting, and data-driven decision-making, and prepare for relevant OneStream certifications.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the core functionalities of OneStream XF.
• Navigate the OneStream interface and workspace.
• Load, transform, and validate financial data.
• Build and analyze financial reports and dashboards.
• Use OneStream’s workflow automation features for financial planning and consolidation.
• Prepare for OneStream certification exams (e.g., OneStream Certified Professional - Financial Modeler (OCP-FM), OneStream Implementation Consultant, etc.).

During the training, will present the issues of financial analysis using the advanced features of Excel.

This course is intended for financial analysts, accountants and all those who want to expand their skills spreadsheet with issues of financial analysis.

R is a popular programming language in the financial industry. It is used in financial applications ranging from core trading programs to risk management systems.

In this instructor-led, live training, participants will learn how to use R to develop practical applications for solving a number of specific finance related problems.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the fundamentals of the R programming language
• Select and utilize R packages and techniques to organize, visualize, and analyze financial data from various sources (CSV, Excel, databases, web, etc.)
• Build applications that solve problems related to asset allocation, risk analysis, investment performance and more
• Troubleshoot, integrate deploy and optimize an R application

Audience

• Developers
• Analysts
• Quants

Format of the course

• Part lecture, part discussion, exercises and heavy hands-on practice

Note

• This training aims to provide solutions for some of the principle problems faced by finance professionals. However, if you have a particular topic, tool or technique that you wish to append or elaborate further on, please please contact us to arrange.

Python is a programming language that has gained huge popularity in the financial industry. Adopted by the largest investment banks and hedge funds, it is being used to build a wide range of financial applications ranging from core trading programs to risk management systems.

In this instructor-led, live training, participants will learn how to use Python to develop practical applications for solving a number of specific finance related problems.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the fundamentals of the Python programming language
• Download, install and maintain the best development tools for creating financial applications in Python
• Select and utilize the most suitable Python packages and programming techniques to organize, visualize, and analyze financial data from various sources (CSV, Excel, databases, web, etc.)
• Build applications that solve problems related to asset allocation, risk analysis, investment performance and more
• Troubleshoot, integrate, deploy, and optimize a Python application

Audience

• Developers
• Analysts
• Quants

Format of the course

• Part lecture, part discussion, exercises and heavy hands-on practice

Note

• This training aims to provide solutions for some of the principle problems faced by finance professionals. However, if you have a particular topic, tool or technique that you wish to append or elaborate further on, please please contact us to arrange.

In this instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids, participants will learn how to create a time series data application using kdb+ and q.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the difference between a row-oriented database and a column-oriented database.
• Select data, write scripts and create functions to carry out advanced analytics.
• Analyze time series data such as stock and commodity exchange data.
• Use kdb+'s in-memory capabilities to store, analyze, process and retrieve large data sets at high speed.
• Think of functions and data at a higher level than the standard function(arguments) approach common in non-vector languages.
• Explore other time-sensitive applications for kdb+, including energy trading, telecommunications, sensor data, log data, and machine and network usage monitoring.

Audience

All Senior Management who need a working knowledge of AML / CTF and their prevention – and an awareness of the other relevant and current Financial Crime issues;

Format of the course

A combination of:

• Facilitated Discussions
• Slide Presentations
• Case Studies
• Examples

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, delegates will be able to:

• Explain how AML and CTF might be prevented
• Understand the major facets of AML and CTF as they apply to their companies and the national and international efforts being made to combat them
• Define the ways in which a company and its staff should protect themselves against the risks of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing
• Detail how a company might become a target for Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing: and explain which “red flags” might help them to identify, prevent and report any (suspicious or actual) criminal activity
• Understand some of the other “hot spots” in Financial Crime

The Compliance and MLRO Refresher Programme examines the key risk management issues and topics that are of vital importance in today’s highly-regulated environment. As well as being targeted at Compliance Officers, MLROs, MLCOs and other risk management professionals it is also aimed at members of senior management and board members keen to know more about what to expect from the risk control functions within their organisations. The Programme is lectured by subject-matter-expert from the UK.

The key learning objective of the Programme is to equip attendees with sufficient knowledge to assess objectively the adequacy of their organisation’s existing risk management controls and practices and to make appropriate enhancements.

Audience

All staff needing a working knowledge of Corporate Governance for their organisation

Format of the course

A highly-interactive combination of:

• Facilitated Discussions
• Slide Presentations
• Examples
• Exercises
• Case Studies

Audience

• Newly-appointed Personal Lending Managers
• Support staff responsible for gathering and interpreting information for the lending managers
• Staff responsible for the management of bad and doubtful debts who need a working knowledge of the decision-making process which led to the lending being made

Lending to Personal Customers – Consumer Lending – demands a high-level of skill in the assessment of individual lending proposals.

In many cases it has none of the sources of financial information traditionally associated with Corporate Lending – Balance Sheets, Profit & Loss Accounts etc. – and relies more on the trust and rapport built up between the customer and the lender.

By the end of this course lenders to Personal Customers will be able to:

• Understand the process for assessing lending propositions from Personal Customers
• Utilise that process to come to a logical decision to agree to the loan or to decline it with robust reasons
• Manage and control a Personal Lending portfolio to ensure, as far as possible, that all loans are repaid in full. (Remembering that there’s no completely risk-free lending…!)
• Build rapport with customers to (try to!) ensure that all their loans are fully repaid

Machine learning is a branch of Artificial Intelligence wherein computers have the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. Deep learning is a subfield of machine learning which uses methods based on learning data representations and structures such as neural networks. Python is a high-level programming language famous for its clear syntax and code readability.

In this instructor-led, live training, participants will learn how to implement deep learning models for banking using Python as they step through the creation of a deep learning credit risk model.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the fundamental concepts of deep learning
• Learn the applications and uses of deep learning in banking
• Use Python, Keras, and TensorFlow to create deep learning models for banking
• Build their own deep learning credit risk model using Python

Audience

• Developers
• Data scientists

Format of the course

• Part lecture, part discussion, exercises and heavy hands-on practice

This instructor-led, live training (online or onsite) is aimed at managers who wish to identify and minimize the risk of fraud faced by eCommerce merchants.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand how eCommerce fraud occurs.
• Analyze vulnerabilities in their company's eCommerce platform and processes.
• Assess a company's 'readiness' for adopting new anti-fraud measures
• Communicate and incorporate appropriate anti-fraud policies.

Format of the Course

• Interactive lecture and discussion.
• Lots of exercises and practice.
• Hands-on implementation in a live-lab environment.

Course Customization Options

• To request a customized training for this course, please contact us to arrange.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at financial professionals in US and non-US institutions who wish to understand the legal, compliance and enforcement aspects of FATCA so as to maintain compliance with US tax authorities (IRS).

By the end of this training, participants will be able to understand:

• FATCA's impact on global tax compliance and financial transparency.
• FATCA's due diligence and reporting requirements.
• FATCA's most important legal aspects and how to ensure compliance.

In this instructor-led, live training, participants will learn the key features of financial markets and how trading takes place in these markets. We start with an overview of financial markets and terminologies, trading lingo, and conventions used to describe their activites. Then we look at the why and how of investing in various types of financial instruments. Some of the specific topics include trading strategies, risk management and real-world case studies to examine the persons, institutions and strategies behind the investments in the financial markets.

Audience

• Business managers

Format of the course

• Part lecture, part discussion, and hands-on exercises

This introductory course will provide participants with a first class and detailed working knowledge of the key financial markets, their purpose, function, main activities and their regulation. It is intended to be part refresher, part educational and part challenging so that all delegates will derive the maximum benefit from it. Feedback and discussion will be actively encouraged throughout the sessions which are intended to be interactive not just reactive and factual.

The primary function is to ensure that by completion, all course delegates will be much better equipped to deal with clients and their ongoing needs and to put into context the services and markets in which they are trading and participating.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at cloud administrators, cloud architects, technology heads, and financial analysts who wish to record, manage, monitor, and process financial assets of an organization in the cloud.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to use FinOps practices in an organization to forecast costs, optimize processes, and perform financial management operations in the cloud.

The Introduction to Fixed Income training course is an overview of the fixed income securities designed for anyone seeking a solid understanding of fixed income securities and financial markets.

In this instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids, participants will learn how to use GnuCash to manage business accounting and finance projects and tasks.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Manage financial and accounting tasks including invoicing, billing, payments, VAT, reporting, etc.
• Track bank accounts, stocks, income, and expenses.
• Track multiple accounts in a multiple-department business.
• Use GnuCash to manage multi-currency business accounts.

Introduction to Structured Products

The purpose of the course is to provide delegates with an introduction to the Structured Products used in investment banking. On completion of the course all delegates will have a working knowledge of the subject and will be able answer

1. What are structured products?
2. Why issue them?
3. How do issuers and investors benefit?
4. How do you structure and price a range of derivative products?
5. What are the risks and costs of producing structured financial products?
6. What are embedded derivatives?
7. What are exotic options?
8. What are the pricing and hedging considerations?

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at managers who wish to gain a working understanding the IFRS 17 standard.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Identify the key requirements of IFRS 17.
• Know the differences between IFRS 17 and IFRS 4.
• Understand IFRS rules.
• Understand financial models and their numbers.
• Dissect and understand different types of insurance contracts and accounting models.
• Prepare a well-informed transition plan and schedule.
• Implement IFRS 17 within an organization.
• Identify and measure insurance contract performance.

This instructor-led, live training (onsite or remote) is aimed at accountants and bookkeepers who wish to use Xero for bookkeeping.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Get a real-time view of cashflow.
• Link bank accounts to Xero for bank reconciliation.
• Prepare and check VAT (Value Added Tax) returns in Xero.
• Create reports for sharing amongst team members.

Audiance

All staff who need a working knowledge of Compliance and the Management of Risk

Format of the course

A combination of:

• Facilitated Discussions
• Slide Presentations
• Case Studies
• Examples

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, delegates will be able to:

• Understand the major facets of Compliance and the national and international efforts being made to manage the risk related to it
• Define the ways in which a company and its staff might set up a Compliance Risk Management Framework
• Detail the roles of Compliance Officer and Money Laundering Reporting Officer and how they should be integrated into a business
• Understand some other “hot spots” in Financial Crime – especially as they relate to International Business, Offshore Centres and High-Net-Worth Clients

This course provides a comprehensive introduction to the MATLAB technical computing environment + an introduction to using MATLAB for financial applications. The course is intended for beginning users and those looking for a review. No prior programming experience or knowledge of MATLAB is assumed. Themes of data analysis, visualization, modeling, and programming are explored throughout the course. Topics include:

• Working with the MATLAB user interface
• Entering commands and creating variables
• Analyzing vectors and matrices
• Visualizing vector and matrix data
• Working with data files
• Working with data types
• Automating commands with scripts
• Writing programs with logic and flow control
• Writing functions
• Using the Financial Toolbox for quantitative analysis

Machine Learning is a branch of Artificial Intelligence wherein computers have the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. Python is a programming language famous for its clear syntax and readability. It offers an excellent collection of well-tested libraries and techniques for developing machine learning applications.

In this instructor-led, live training, participants will learn how to apply machine learning techniques and tools for solving real-world problems in the banking industry.

Participants first learn the key principles, then put their knowledge into practice by building their own machine learning models and using them to complete a number of team projects.

Audience

• Developers
• Data scientists

Format of the course

• Part lecture, part discussion, exercises and heavy hands-on practice

Machine learning is a branch of Artificial Intelligence wherein computers have the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. Python is a programming language famous for its clear syntax and readability. It offers an excellent collection of well-tested libraries and techniques for developing machine learning applications.

In this instructor-led, live training, participants will learn how to apply machine learning techniques and tools for solving real-world problems in the finance industry.

Participants first learn the key principles, then put their knowledge into practice by building their own machine learning models and using them to complete a number of team projects.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Understand the fundamental concepts in machine learning
• Learn the applications and uses of machine learning in finance
• Develop their own algorithmic trading strategy using machine learning with Python

Audience

• Developers
• Data scientists

Format of the course

• Part lecture, part discussion, exercises and heavy hands-on practice

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at developers who wish to use Open Bank Project API to develop and test decentralized applications that can be integrated easily with digital banking systems.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Set up the necessary development environment to start developing applications with OBP API.
• Understand the Open Bank Project architecture, technology, and concepts.
• Learn how to use and customize OBP API to develop and build applications for banking.
• Explore the features, tools, APIs, and sandboxes in OBP.
• Implement security and integrations in OBP API connectors and adapters.

Why should you attend?

We live and work in an increasingly global market which offers opportunities at every turn which we need to take. However, with those opportunities come increased competition and most of the complexities remain in place. Knowing the best ways to find and select the most suitable and competitive price for your product or services is crucial to the success and growth of any business. The knowledge, techniques and strategies that you gain during our training will enable you to increase profitability and effectiveness of your business.

Turning theory into practice:

The purpose behind this 1-day training course is to simplify and explain the successful strategies of pricing. You’ll leave our event more confident and more positive to continue and expand your business. We will provide you with the strategies and the best practice examples to improve and expand your knowledge about pricing and to make your plans and targets come true.

Who should attend?

This course is designed for sales managers, marketing managers, product managers, account managers, pricing analysts & managing directors. This course is also vital for executives who are new to pricing or who have limited experience of the subject.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at finance managers, controllers, and accountants who wish to explore QAD's advanced features to manage and report financials.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to manage, report, consolidate, and streamline manufacturing accounts and financial data.

This instructor-led, live training in Grand Rapids (online or onsite) is aimed at developers who wish to monetize a website or web application using the Stripe API.

By the end of this training, participants will be able to:

• Set up the necessary development environment to start developing.
• Build an application that integrates payment processing features such as Checkout, Payment Intents, and Billing.

Structured products are investments comprised of multiple components.