Stop nodding through the finance slide

Every function now has a budget story to defend. Marketing needs to explain campaign spend. Operations needs to understand cost behavior. Sales needs to assess pricing. Engineering, IT, logistics, and design teams are all expected to make proposals that hold up in front of the numbers.

Good ideas still have to survive the finance read. A manager may have a strong grasp of the business case, customer need, and operational realities behind a proposal, yet still lack the financial fluency to assess whether the numbers support it. The Finance for Non-Finance Managers program at Onsi Sawiris School of Business Executive Education at The American University in Cairo is designed to fill exactly that gap.

The program teaches managers to follow the money inside their own decisions. Across two modules, participants work through financial accounting, statement analysis, cost types, budgeting, financial decision-making frameworks, and implementation planning. By the end of the program, they can prepare budgets and operational forecasts and build short-run “what if” models, using case studies throughout.

The format keeps the commitment tight. The program runs over four weeks — eight sessions, 24 hours in total — through a blended format that combines Saturday on-campus classes with Monday evening live-online sessions. It is designed for senior managers and unit directors from non-finance functions, as well as business owners and professionals with little or no accounting or finance background.

Applications are open for the next cohort, which begins on 7 November 2026. For more information or to apply before 20 October 2026, click here