Financial figures made clear

How can you explain a financial indicator to someone without a financial background without distorting what it measures?

1250 € per session, excl. VAT

In short

This half-day session of 3 hours introduces four financial indicators and provides practice in explaining them with generative AI. Using fictitious data, participants draft an educational note, check the calculations and distinguish between facts, assumptions and limitations before professional validation.

Why this training?

An increase in turnover does not necessarily mean an improvement in profitability or the cash position. Confusing these concepts can lead to a misleading presentation of a financial situation, even when the figures quoted are accurate. Generative AI can suggest accessible rewordings, but it can also invent a causal link or use an inappropriate definition. The training teaches participants to give it a precise framework and check every explanation against the data in the case file. Running case study: The fictitious company « Belrive Fournitures » is preparing a meeting with its sales managers. Between two quarters, its turnover rises, but its operating profit and available cash decrease. Participants must explain this situation using a simplified case file, without inventing causes not supported by the data. Transfer to the workplace: After the session, reuse the template for an indicator from your own area of work, using authorised and anonymised data. Have the explanation reviewed by a qualified financial professional before sharing it, then check that a non-specialist reader understands the figure and its limitation.

Objectives of this training

  • Identify what turnover, trading margin, operating profit and available cash measure.
  • Calculate a change between two comparable periods.
  • Write an accessible explanation with the help of generative AI.
  • Distinguish between a numerical observation, an explanatory hypothesis and missing information.
  • Check a financial note before submitting it for validation.

Who is it for and what are the prerequisites?

Roles and tasks concerned

  • Operational managers who need to explain figures to their team.
  • Management assistants and sales staff who want to understand a simplified financial table.

Prior skills

  • No prior AI knowledge required; guidance is provided when formulating a first prompt.
  • Ability to read a simple table and perform standard arithmetic operations.

What you will work on

  1. Distinguishing the four financial perspectives

    Objective: Link each indicator to a practical question. Sales achieved, trading margin after the purchase cost of goods sold, operating profit and cash availability; the difference between flows over a period and a position at a particular date.

  2. Interpreting differences without inventing their causes

    Objective: Establish reliable numerical observations. Absolute and relative change, basis for comparison, distinction between percentages and percentage points; limitations of the available data.

  3. Rewording without distorting the meaning

    Objective: Obtain an explanation that sales staff can understand. AI prompt specifying the audience, definitions, permitted figures, length and a prohibition on adding causes; the risk of plausible but inaccurate responses.

  4. Checking and explaining aloud

    Objective: Assess the faithfulness and clarity of the message. Checking definitions, calculations, units, periods and limitations; the role of validation by a qualified financial professional.

What you take away

  • Glossary of the four indicators with explanatory notes.
  • Table of changes with verified calculations.
  • One-page explanatory note for sales managers.
  • Completed checklist and reusable AI prompt.

Method and assessment

  • Short teaching inputs followed by immediate practice using the running case study.
  • Individual work followed by work in pairs, with participants reviewing each other's outputs.
  • Guided group discussion: what works, what needs correcting and what remains a human decision.
  • Preparation: Arrange access to a generative AI tool authorised by the organisation; no confidential financial data will be entered. Provide the fictitious case file: quarterly tables, agreed definitions, units and worked calculation answers.

Observable criteria: The four indicators are defined without confusing activity, profitability and liquidity. ; Every figure quoted matches the case file, with the period and unit explicitly stated. ; Changes are recalculated independently of the AI response. ; Unproven causes are presented as hypotheses to be checked. ; The note contains no automated sensitive recommendations and provides for qualified validation..

Frequently asked questions

Do you need accounting knowledge?

No. The necessary definitions are provided and applied to a simplified case file.

Does AI perform the reference calculations?

No. Its figures are checked using a calculator or spreadsheet and the worked answers.

Can we use our actual accounts?

The session uses fictitious or anonymised cases, only in tools authorised by the organisation.

Can the note be used to make an investment decision?

No. It is used to explain the indicators; no sensitive decisions are automated.

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