Detailed Syllabus

DETAILED SYLLABUS

Financial management

1.  Information about the study program

1.1 University / Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca
1.2 Faculty / Faculty of Economic Sciences and Business Administration
1.3 Department / Finance
1.4 Field of study / Finance
1.5 Program level (bachelor or master) / Bachelor
1.6 Study program / Qualification / Finance and Banks – English line

2.  Information about the subject

2.1 Subject title / Financial management
2.2 Course activities professor / Associate professor Adrian Zoicas-Ienciu, PhD
2.3 Seminar activities professor / PhD Lecturer Simona Nistor
2.4 Year of study / III / 2.5 Semester / V / 2.6 Type of assessment / Summative / 2.7 Subject regime / Ob

3. Total estimated time (teaching hours per semester)

3.1 Number of hours per week / 3 / out of which: 3.2 course / 2 / 3.3 seminar/laboratory / 1
3.4 Total number of hours in the curriculum / 42 / out of which: 3.5 course / 28 / 3.6 seminar/laboratory / 14
Time distribution / Hours
Study after textbook, course support, bibliography and notes / 33
Additional documentation in the library, through specialized databases and field activities / 10
Preparing seminars/laboratories, essays, portfolios and reports. / 10
Tutoring / 3
Assessment (examinations) / 2
Others activities...... / -
3.7 Total hours for individual study / 58
3.8 Total hours per semester / 100
3.9 Number of credits / 4

4. Preconditions (if necessary)

4.1 Curriculum / -
4.2 Skills / -

5. Conditions (if necessary)

5.1. For course development / During the lecture there is a strong recommendation for students to avoid engaging in other activities like chatting, reading, listening, electronic and mobile chat, and others.
5.2. For seminar / laboratory development / It is recommended for students to have scientific calculators in order to perform the necessary computations.

6. Acquired specific competences

Professional competences / •  An adequate usage of concepts, theories, methods and instruments from the financial field within public and private entities;
•  Gathering, analyzing and interpreting data and information referring to different economical and financial problems;
•  Developing different works concerning economic and financial aspects of private and public entities, operations and financial transactions.
•  Applying theoretical decision making rules to the direct activity within public and private entities;
Transversal competences / •  Applying the principles, norms and ethical values of the profession within the own work strategy in an efficient and responsible way;
•  Knowing, understanding, and having the capacity of analyzing and using the theories, principles and fundamental methods of investigations specific in the case of a market economy;

7. Subject objectives (arising from the acquired specific competences)

7.1 Subject’s general objective / To introduce to the students the basic building blocks of financial decision making in the corporate field;
7.2 Specific objectives / • To describe the context in which a financial manager has to perform (the corporate model, the objective of a company financial or nonfinancial, its decisional limits and main responsibilities).
• To clearly asses the market risk involved in different businesses, through the usage of best empirical estimates for the classical model of risk and return.
• To offer the student the instruments that will allow him/her to develop an income and expenses budget through different sales forecast techniques.
• To allow the student to undertake a professional valuation of the firm value including the financial aspects regarding interdependent investment projects, DCF model and valuation multiples.
• To asses, manage and analyze the capital structure of a company, to insure a smooth transition to the optimal capital structure.
• To manage the dividend policy and other alternative returns to the stockholders, understanding the different theories explaining the informational impact of dividend or buybacks announcements on the firm market value

8. Contents

8.1 Course / Teaching methods / Remarks
The Role and Functions of Financial Management
Comparative analysis of objectives in corporate finance. Conflicts of interests between the firm’s various stakeholders
Elements of decision theory. Typology of financial decisions. The role of financial management. Special case of nonprofit organizations
The business environment and the financial markets. The impact of monetary and governmental policies. The international context – globalization effects
Short-term financial planning and forecasts
1 
2 
Short-term financial planning. Elements of budgeting. Developing and implementing cash budgets
Methods for sales forecasting. Analysis of trends, seasonal effects and cycles
Developing production schedules. Cost estimation and analysis – allocation of fixed costs. Expenses budgets
Working capital management. Cash conversion cycle. The firm’s credit policy. Elements of inventory management
Evaluating the financial and managerial performance. Firm scoreboard with the main financial indicators. Policies for compensating the firm’s management and staff
Management of equity capital and long term debt
1 
Management of the permanent capital. Comparative analysis: initial public offerings (IPOs), seasoned stock issues, private placements, venture capital; bank loans and financial leases. Multiple listings and the access to the international capital markets
Financial aspects concerning the mergers & acquisitions operations. Managerial defense solutions against aggressive takeovers.
2 
Fundamentals of risk management / Lecture / 1 lecture / week
References
R. Brooks, Financial Management. Core concepts, Pearson, 2010
Zoicaş-Ienciu, A., Management financiar. Teorie, exemple, aplicaţii, PUC, 2014
8. 2 Seminar/laboratory / Teaching methods / Observations
Examples of major financial decisions in a firm
Risk and uncertainty in decision making
Analyzing the business environment
The cash conversion cycle
Topics in working capital management
Assessing the managerial and financial performance
Principles in risk management / Explanations,
Demonstrations, problem questions, case studies
References
R. Brooks, Financial Management. Core concepts, Pearson, 2010
Zoicaş-Ienciu, A., Management financiar. Teorie, exemple, aplicaţii, PUC, 2014

9. Corroboration / validation of the subject’s content in relation to the expectations coming from representatives of the epistemic community, of the professional associations and of the representative employers in the program’s field.

The course holder was an active member of the financial markets analysts’ profession during 2004-2007 performing the main tasks for an important brokerage and fund management company based in Cluj-Napoca. Each year, both under and graduate students are attending practice and internship in different banks while during different workshops and conferences held at the faculty the representatives of the banking industry are discussing with the teachers important matters in the field and challenges for the discipline.

10. Assessment (examination)

Type of activity / 10.1 Assessment criteria / 10.2 Assessment methods / 10.3 Weight in the final grade
10.4 Course / Knowing the basic architecture of financial decision making; objectives in decision making;
Short term financial planning; Management of working capital; Sources of financial funds; opportunities and costs; the cost of capital . / Written exam during the regular exam session consisting in open questions / 100%
10.5 Seminar/laboratory / Computing the cash conversion cycle
The firm’s credit policy
Dividend policy
Raising capital / Written exam during the regular exam session consisting in applications / 100%
10.6 Minimum performance standard
Knowing the characteristics of decision making in short term and long term financial planning;
Knowing the main financial risk affecting the financial activity; ways of quantifying them and reduce their impact.
It is necessary to obtain a minimum grade of 5 (five) in order to pass this subject;
The grades being granted are between 1 (one) and 10 (ten);

Date of filling Course professor

20.01.2018 Associate Professor Adrian Zoicaş-Ienciu

Seminar professor

PhD Lecturer Simona Nistor

Head of department

Professor Cristina Ciumaş

Date of approval by the department 22.01.2018

2

NOTE: This document represents an informal translation performed by the faculty.