Financial Management

Financial Management - Meaning, Objectives and Functions Meaning of Financial Management Financial Management means planning, organizing, directing and controlling the financial activities such as procurement and utilization of funds of the enterprise. It means applying general management principles to financial resources of the enterprise. Scope/Elements 1. Investment decisions includes investment in fixed assets (called as capital budgeting). Investment in current assets are also a part of investment decisions called as working capital decisions. 2. Financial decisions - They relate to the raising of finance from various resources which will depend upon decision on type of source, period of financing, cost of financing and the returns thereby. 3. Dividend decision - The finance manager has to take decision with regards to the net profit distribution. Net profits are generally divided into two: a. Dividend for shareholders- Dividend and the rate of it has to be decided. b. Retained profits- Amount of retained profits has to be finalized which will depend upon expansion and diversification plans of the enterprise. Objectives of Financial Management The financial management is generally concerned with procurement, allocation and control of financial resources of a concern. The objectives can be1. To ensure regular and adequate supply of funds to the concern. 2. To ensure adequate returns to the shareholders which will depend upon the earning capacity, market price of the share, expectations of the shareholders. 3. To ensure optimum funds utilization. Once the funds are procured, they should be utilized in maximum possible way at least cost.

4. To ensure safety on investment, i.e, funds should be invested in safe ventures so that adequate rate of return can be achieved. 5. To plan a sound capital structure-There should be sound and fair composition of capital so that a balance is maintained between debt and equity capital. Functions of Financial Management 1. Estimation of capital requirements: A finance manager has to make estimation with regards to capital requirements of the company. This will depend upon expected costs and profits and future programmes and policies of a concern. Estimations have to be made in an adequate manner which increases earning capacity of enterprise. 2. Determination of capital composition: Once the estimation have been made, the capital structure have to be decided. This involves short- term and long- term debt equity analysis. This will depend upon the proportion of equity capital a company is possessing and additional funds which have to be raised from outside parties. 3. Choice of sources of funds: For additional funds to be procured, a company has many choices likea. Issue of shares and debentures b. Loans to be taken from banks and financial institutions c. Public deposits to be drawn like in form of bonds. Choice of factor will depend on relative merits and demerits of each source and period of financing. 4. Investment of funds: The finance manager has to decide to allocate funds into profitable ventures so that there is safety on investment and regular returns is possible. 5. Disposal of surplus: The net profits decision have to be made by the finance manager. This can be done in two ways: a. Dividend declaration - It includes identifying the rate of dividends and other benefits like bonus. b. Retained profits - The volume has to be decided which will depend upon expansional, innovational, diversification plans of the company.

6. Management of cash: Finance manager has to make decisions with regards to cash management. Cash is required for many purposes like payment of wages and salaries, payment of electricity and water bills, payment to creditors, meeting current liabilities, maintainance of enough stock, purchase of raw materials, etc. 7. Financial controls: The finance manager has not only to plan, procure and utilize the funds but he also has to exercise control over finances. This can be done through many techniques like ratio analysis, financial forecasting, cost and profit control, etc. Definition of Financial Planning Financial Planning is the process of estimating the capital required and determining it’s competition. It is the process of framing financial policies in relation to procurement, investment and administration of funds of an enterprise. Objectives of Financial Planning Financial Planning has got many objectives to look forward to: a. Determining capital requirements- This will depend upon factors like cost of current and fixed assets, promotional expenses and long- range planning. Capital requirements have to be looked with both aspects: short- term and long- term requirements. b. Determining capital structure- The capital structure is the composition of capital, i.e., the relative kind and proportion of capital required in the business. This includes decisions of debt- equity ratio- both short-term and long- term. c. Framing financial policies with regards to cash control, lending, borrowings, etc. d. A finance manager ensures that the scarce financial resources are maximally utilized in the best possible manner at least cost in order to get maximum returns on investment. Importance of Financial Planning Financial Planning is process of framing objectives, policies, procedures, programmes and budgets regarding the financial activities of a concern. This ensures effective and adequate financial and investment policies. The importance can be outlined as1. Adequate funds have to be ensured.

2. Financial Planning helps in ensuring a reasonable balance between outflow and inflow of funds so that stability is maintained. 3. Financial Planning ensures that the suppliers of funds are easily investing in companies which exercise financial planning. 4. Financial Planning helps in making growth and expansion programmes which helps in long-run survival of the company. 5. Financial Planning reduces uncertainties with regards to changing market trends which can be faced easily through enough funds. 6. Financial Planning helps in reducing the uncertainties which can be a hindrance to growth of the company. This helps in ensuring stability an d profitability in concern. http://www.managementstudyguide.com/finance-functions.htm Financial activities of a firm is one of the most important and complex activities of a firm. Therefore in order to take care of these activities a financial manager performs all the requisite financial activities. A financial manger is a person who takes care of all the important financial functions of an organization. The person in charge should maintain a far sightedness in order to ensure that the funds are utilized in the most efficient manner. His actions directly affect the Profitability, growth and goodwill of the firm. Following are the main functions of a Financial Manager: 1. Raising of Funds In order to meet the obligation of the business it is important to have enough cash and liquidity. A firm can raise funds by the way of equity and debt. It is the responsibility of a financial manager to decide the ratio between debt and equity. It is important to maintain a good balance between equity and debt. 2. Allocation of Funds Once the funds are raised through different channels the next important function is to allocate the funds. The funds should be allocated in such a manner that they are optimally used. In order to allocate funds in the best possible manner the following point must be considered 

The size of the firm and its growth capability

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Status of assets whether they are long term or short tem

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Mode by which the funds are raised.

These financial decisions directly and indirectly influence other managerial activities. Hence formation of a good asset mix and proper allocation of funds is one of the most important activity 3. Profit Planning Profit earning is one of the prime functions of any business organization. Profit earning is important for survival and sustenance of any organization. Profit planning refers to proper usage of the profit generated by the firm. Profit arises due to many factors such as pricing, industry competition, state of the economy, mechanism of demand and supply, cost and output. A healthy mix of variable and fixed factors of production can lead to an increase in the profitability of the firm. Fixed costs are incurred by the use of fixed factors of production such as land and machinery. In order to maintain a tandem it is important to continuously value the depreciation cost of fixed cost of production. An opportunity cost must be calculated in order to replace those factors of production which has gone thrown wear and tear. If this is not noted then these fixed cost can cause huge fluctuations in profit. 4. Understanding Capital Markets Shares of a company are traded on stock exchange and there is a continuous sale and purchase of securities. Hence a clear understanding of capital market is an important function of a financial manager. When securities are traded on stock market there involves a huge amount of risk involved. Therefore a financial manger understands and calculates the risk involved in this trading of shares and debentures. Its on the discretion of a financial manager as to how distribute the profits. Many investors do not like the firm to distribute the profits amongst share holders as dividend instead invest in the business itself to enhance growth. The practices of a financial manager directly impact the operation in capital market. Some of the major functions of a financial manager are as follows: 1. Estimating the Amount of Capital Required 2. Determining Capital Structure 3. Choice of Sources of Funds 4. Procurement of Funds 5. Utilisation of Funds 6. Disposal of Profits or Surplus 7. Management of Cash 8. Financial Control.

Financial Manager is the executive who manages the financial matters of a business. The functions of Financial Manager are discussed below: 1. Estimating the Amount of Capital Required: This is the foremost function of the financial manager. Business firms require capital for: (i) purchase of fixed assets, (ii) meeting working capital requirements, and (iii) modernisation and expansion of business. The financial manager makes estimates of funds required for both short-term and long-term. 2. Determining Capital Structure: Once the requirement of capital funds has been determined, a decision regarding the kind and proportion of various sources of funds has to be taken. For this, financial manager has to determine the proper mix of equity and debt and short-term and long-term debt ratio. This is done to achieve minimum cost of capital and maximise shareholders wealth. 3. Choice of Sources of Funds: Before the actual procurement of funds, the finance manager has to decide the sources from which the funds are to be raised. The management can raise finance from various sources like equity shareholders, preference shareholders, debenture- holders, banks and other financial institutions, public deposits, etc.

4. Procurement of Funds: The financial manager takes steps to procure the funds required for the business. It might require negotiation with creditors and financial institutions, issue of prospectus, etc. The procurement of funds is dependent not only upon cost of raising funds but also on other factors like general market conditions, choice of investors, government policy, etc. 5. Utilisation of Funds: The funds procured by the financial manager are to be prudently invested in various assets so as to maximise the return on investment: While taking investment decisions, management should be guided by three important principles, viz., safety, profitability, and liquidity. 6. Disposal of Profits or Surplus: The financial manager has to decide how much to retain for ploughing back and how much to distribute as dividend to shareholders out of the profits of the company. The factors which influence these decisions include the trend of earnings of the company, the trend of the market price of its shares, the requirements of funds for self- financing the future programmes and so on. 7. Management of Cash: Management of cash and other current assets is an important task of financial manager. It involves forecasting the cash inflows and outflows to ensure that there is neither shortage nor surplus of cash with the firm. Sufficient funds must be available for purchase of materials, payment of wages and meeting day-to-day expenses.

8. Financial Control: Evaluation of financial performance is also an important function of financial manager. The overall measure of evaluation is Return on Investment (ROI). The other techniques of financial control and evaluation include budgetary control, cost control, internal audit, break-even analysis and ratio analysis. The financial manager must lay emphasis on financial planning as well. Responsibilities of Financial Management Staf

Effective cost-control standards and strong internal controls are a large part of what separates highly successful businesses from less-successful ones. Although every associate from the business owner on down is responsible for controlling costs and adhering to internal controls, members of the financial management staff provide financial oversight for the entire organization. The specific role the financial management staff plays may depend on the size of the business, but it often includes monitoring, analysis and advising duties. Who Financial Managers Are The smaller the business, the smaller and more varied the responsibilities of the financial management staff will be. In a medium to large business, each member of the financial management staff may be responsible for different areas of the business. There might, for example, be one staff member responsible for overseeing the credit department, one responsible for overseeing cash flows and one responsible for risk management. In a small business, however, there may be only one or two staff members technically on the financial management staff who enlist the help of department managers in carrying out daily responsibilities. Overseers of Internal Controls One of the most important responsibilities of the financial management staff is to ensure that each department develops, implements and adheres to internal business controls. The stronger the internal control system, the less chance a business has of falling victim to fraud, waste or abuse. Monitoring responsibilities may include participating in scheduled and random internal department audits and analyzing department financial data. Other responsibilities may include assisting in creating business policies such as a code of ethics or conduct that set behavioral expectations and outline consequences for violations.

Profit Expansion Specialists Financial managers spend time analyzing market and economic trends, and historic and current sales revenues to find ways to maximize business profits. Financial staff members don’t make decisions about, for example, whether to expand the business, add a new product line or move in a different direction. They do, however, provide information and give advice that can help a business owner or senior managers make critical financial decisions. They also assist in profit expansion by working with department managers to find additional ways to control costs. Planning Experts Year end is a busy time for financial management staffers. Many are responsible for advising and for assisting department managers and the business owner in creating budgets and forecasts for the upcoming year. Responsibilities can include financial statement analysis, assisting in creating sales and inventory forecasts and analyzing expenses to assist in budget planning. Other planning responsibilities may include cash flow management planning to ensure the business has funds on hand to meet daily expenses and minimize the necessity of using outside funding sources. Report Creators Routine end-of-month reporting responsibilities are often left to department employees, while members of the financial management staff take responsibility for reviewing reports for accuracy. Government, tax and industry-specific reporting, however, are often the sole responsibility of the financial management staff. Information contained in routine and specialized reports is then provided to the business owner, senior managers and, if appropriate, department managers.