April 4, 2023 - Finance, Tech & Analytics Career Resources

What does Operational Risk Management mean? Explain its principles

Posted on April 4, 2023April 2, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

What is Operational Risk Management?

Operational risk management is the process of evaluating and dealing with the risks that come up in an organization’s day-to-day operations. These are things like operational risks, the organization’s assets, and how they are managed. Operational risk is the risk of the organization’s assets causing losses to the organization. For example, potential losses from physical assets such as a building, machinery, or computers.

There are also operational risks that come with managing these assets, such as the chance of an accident. To manage these risks, organizations must know the threats that could harm them. But, as you can imagine, it becomes difficult to identify every threat that could harm you. This is where risk assessment comes in.

What are the principles of operational risk management?

Risk assessment: you must identify the threats that could harm your organization. After you know what the threats are, you should look at your organization’s weaknesses to see if the threats could take advantage of them.

Risk Mapping: This is where you convert the information you collected during risk assessment into a format that you and your team can relate to. This includes key performance indicators (KPIs). Key performance indicators are metrics used to measure the success of an organization.

Risk analysis: At this point, you have all the information you need to evaluate the threats your organization faces and how they affect it. This is a risk analysis. You can use statistical tools to do this, like risk assessment tools, or you can use your own experience.

Controls: Now that you have all the information you need to decide on the controls needed to manage the threats identified during the risk assessment and analysis, you can either come up with a list of controls or put one in place and see how it affects the metrics you mapped out during the risk assessment.

Ways You Can Benefit From Operational Risk Management

Better Performances: The two main benefits of operational risk management are better performance and improved control. When you improve performance and control, your resources will work better, and your operations will be more stable.

Better Security: Another key benefit of operational risk management is that it leads to better security. When you deal with the risks found during a risk assessment, you can expect your risks to go down. This leads to better security as you can limit the number of threats and the damage they can cause.

Reduced downtime: You may also expect a reduction in downtime as you can anticipate issues before they occur. This leads to less downtime, causing less disruption to your organization and customers.

What are the main types of operational risk management?

There are several different types of operational risk, including financial risk, business risk, human resources risk, information technology risk, and compliance risk.

The most obvious type of operational risk is financial risk, which usually has to do with how money is handled.

Business risk refers to the risks associated with the selection of business ventures, the execution of business plans, and the management of risks associated with changes in business conditions.

Human resources risk is the most common type of operational risk. It means that employees could hurt an organization by doing or not doing something.

Information technology risk is the chance that something outside of an organization’s control could harm or stop its IT systems from working.

Compliance risk is the risk that an organization will break the rules and laws that govern how it works.

Why do you need a professional course on operational risk management?

Operational risk management is an important element of any business, and CFOS need to understand the risks involved in their operations. A professional course on operational risk management can help CFOs become better equipped to handle such risks.

The Postgraduate Certificate Programme for Emerging CFOs, jointly conceptualized by IIM Indore and Imarticus Learning, is an ideal CFO leadership training program in operational risk management. The program is a one-of-a-kind 12-month financial plan that was put together by experts with more than five years of experience. It not only teaches people the basics of finance and management but also gives them a full picture of how the financial services ecosystem works.

Through this program, CFOs can learn how to manage risks, spot possible risks, and come up with plans to deal with them. This program also helps them understand the legal and regulatory requirements that are related to operational risk management.

Who is an incident handler and what role does it perform

Posted on April 4, 2023April 2, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

The modern world is completely inclined towards technology and is nearly impossible to function without it in any major aspect of work. As everything is getting digitized, the security of information and data is of prime importance. That’s where incident handlers have important tasks to perform.

Incident Handler is a very booming career option in today’s world as every company requires data and information security. To become an incident handler, it is essential to have due knowledge about cyber security. A PG in cyber security can help in achieving greater insights.

Let us learn about incident handlers and their importance!

Who is an Incident Handler?

An incident handler is an individual that investigates and responds to computer security incidents. They are responsible for identifying and containing security threats, analysing systems for vulnerabilities and determining the extent of the security breach. Incident handlers may also be responsible for coordinating with stakeholders, preparing reports and documenting the incident.

These challenging situations are mostly handled by either an Incident Response Team (IRT) or an Incident Management Team (IMT) inside a structured organisation. Most multinational companies spend a lot of time and effort on building such incident-handling teams before an important event or during the occurrence of the same. Incident handling is important for retaining business operations and keeping intact the security of integral data and information.

Cybersecurity career is rising with each passing day and becoming an incident handler can be a very prosperous career option for anyone interested in the field.

Role of an Incident Handler

Throughout any cybersecurity incident, the incident handler has the overall control and authority to take necessary steps regarding that situation. They oversee and coordinate all aspects of an incident or a cybersecurity breach and are responsible for rectifying such situations.

Following are the roles and responsibilities of an incident handler in an organisation:

Quick resolution of an incident: An incident could be anything starting from system failure, security breaches, system outrage and so on. It is the job of an incident handler to quickly solve critical problems of such nature. Quick resolution in cases of security breaches is very important so that the important data and information do not go into the wrong hands.
Assessment of the situation: An incident handler is faced with a lot of challenging situations, which can be a security breach or system outage while walking in a big company. Before coming to a solution, an incident handler needs to properly assess the whole situation.

The quick resolution does not mean that solutions can be derived in a hurry. An incident handler needs to properly evaluate the critical situation so that they can come down to a proper conclusion.

Determine the best course of action: When there is a critical situation at hand, there is a need to solve it with the best possible solution. An incident handler must evaluate the problem and land on the best course of action that should be taken in such a situation. Rectifying the problem is not enough. The task of damage control should also be performed effectively.
Tracking decisions and making relevant changes: Strictly sticking to a particular decision or solution is not an ideal course of action. Constantly tracking a situation and taking the best course of action accordingly and changing decisions, if necessary should be practised by an incident handler. That is how a company can deal with critical situations in the best possible way.
Communicating decisions and information: Without proper communication, everything can get haphazard and business operations can get hindered. Being capable of doing all the tasks alone is not enough for becoming a successful incident handler. Proper communication of decisions and relevant information is also an important aspect of the responsibility of an incident handler.

As a team manager, an incident handler has to inform the team members and other relevant employees about the present decisions of a situation in a company.

Preparation in times of emergencies: One never knows when there will be a need to protect the important information and data of a company from the black hats. Panic typically occurs when security vulnerabilities arise. But with an efficient incident-handling team, an incident handler can remain composed under pressure. Such situations must be addressed rationally and effectively.

Conclusion

As technology is ever-increasing there will always be a demand for incident handlers in all companies. It is a very prosperous career option for the young generation. If someone is interested in stepping into this discipline, cyber security training and placement can help them learn the important aspects of incident handling.

Enrolling on the Postgraduate Program in Cybersecurity by Imarticus means looking forward to having a prosperous professional life as an incident handler. This program teaches all the prerequisites of incident handling that are necessary for stepping into this field of work.

The importance of linear regression in machine learning

Posted on April 4, 2023May 13, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

Are you interested in knowing linear regression and how it is used in machine learning? We got you.

Machine learning is a field of study that uses statistical and computational techniques. This enables machines to learn from data and improve their performance over time. Linear regression is a fundamental machine learning technique. It plays a critical role in predicting outcomes from data.

If you want to become a data analyst and learn data analysis and machine learning, then machine learning certification courses like Postgraduate Program in Data Science and Analytics are among the best options. In this article, we will discuss the importance of linear regression in machine learning. You can also find one of the best machine learning certification courses to improve your understanding.

Introduction to linear regression

Linear regression is a statistical technique. it is used to establish a relationship between two continuous variables. It is a popular method for predicting outcomes based on input data. The basic idea of linear regression is to find a line that best fits the data points. The line is defined by an equation of the form y = mx + c. Here y is the dependent variable, x is the independent variable, m is the slope of the line and c is the y-intercept.

Linear regression is widely used in various fields. This includes finance, economics, physics and social sciences. In machine learning, linear regression is used to predict the output variable based on one or more input variables.

Types of linear regression

Linear regressions are usually differentiated into two types: simple and multiple linear regressions.

Simple linear regression involves only one independent variable, while multiple linear regression involves two or more independent variables.

Simple linear regression is used to establish a relationship between two variables. Here one variable is dependent and the other is independent. For example, predicting the price of a house based on its size is an example of simple linear regression.

Multiple linear regression is used to establish a relationship between the dependent variable and multiple independent variables. For example, predicting the sales of a company based on multiple variables such as advertising budget, price and location is an example of multiple linear regression.

Importance of linear regression in machine learning

Linear regression is one of the most important techniques in machine learning. It is widely used in various applications such as:

Predictive modelling

Linear regression is used to predict the output variable based on input variables. For example, predicting the price of a house based on its size, location and other factors is a common application of linear regression.

Data analysis

Linear regression is used to analyse the relationship between two or more variables. It helps in identifying the significant variables that affect the outcome variable.

Feature selection

Linear regression is used to identify the most important features in a dataset. It helps in selecting the relevant features that are important for prediction.

Model evaluation

Linear regression is used to evaluate the performance of a model. It helps in determining the accuracy of the model and identifying areas for improvement.

Individuals who want to become data analysts should complete machine learning certification courses like Postgraduate Program in Data Science and Analytics to learn data analysis and machine learning concepts.

Postgraduate program in data analytics and machine learning

The Postgraduate Program in Data Science and Analytics is a 6-month job-oriented curriculum course for working professionals and young data analysts. Students who complete this course create analytical models that enhance company results. They can also comprehend how data science is used in practical settings.

With the course, you will gain helpful information about the uses of analytics and data science in actual organisations. You will also get equipped to work as a data science specialist in the developing industry. Also, it provides you with the opportunity to work with leading firms and learn about the most recent developments in the analytics field. Following are the various benefits of completing the Postgraduate Program in Data Science and Analytics:

The Postgraduate Program in Data Science and Analytics focuses on practical knowledge and a job-specific curriculum.

It offers guaranteed job opportunities where students have a chance to get placed in companies like Infosys, Goldman Sachs, Deloitte, KPMG, IBM and more.

Students who complete the program are provided with a KPMG certificate.

To sum up

Linear regression is a fundamental machine learning technique that plays a critical role in predicting outcomes from data. It is widely used in various applications such as predictive modelling, data analysis, feature selection and model evaluation. Understanding the basics of linear regression is essential for anyone working in the field of machine learning.

Those interested in becoming data analysts should enrol in our Postgraduate Program in Data Science and Analytics. For any queries, feel free to contact us.

UAE – Why Power BI Certifications are set to become even more important?

Posted on April 4, 2023April 2, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

In today’s data-driven world, businesses need to make informed decisions based on data insights to stay competitive. Power BI is one of the most popular business intelligence and data analytics tools that help organizations make data-driven decisions. It has become a valuable asset for businesses.

Professionals are seeking Power BI certifications to validate their skills and knowledge. It is expected that companies will continue to use data in various business functions. As a result, the demand for Power BI Certification will continue to increase.

What is Power BI Certification?

Power BI certification is a validation of a professional’s skills and knowledge in using the tool. Microsoft offers several certification options for professionals who want to demonstrate their expertise in using it. Professionals must pass a certification exam to obtain a Power BI certification.

It is just like any other certification from a technology company. Professionals use these certifications to show their skills in using these platforms.

Importance of Power BI Certification

Power BI certifications are set to become even more important in the coming years. Here are the key reasons for the importance of the certification:

1. Increased Demand for Data Analytics

The demand for data analytics is on the rise. Businesses are seeking professionals who can analyze and visualize data insights. The tool plays an important role in data analytics. It is primarily used to create interactive dashboards and reports. This growing demand for data solutions has made Power BI an essential tool for organizations. Its importance has increased significantly. An increasing number of organizations look for professionals with expertise in this tool.

2. Continuous Improvement in Power BI

Power BI is continuously evolving and improving with new features and capabilities. As a result, professionals need to stay updated with the latest developments in the tool. Power BI certifications can help professionals remain relevant. It also helps to demonstrate their proficiency in using the latest features and capabilities of the tool.

3. Recognition of Expertise

Certifications are an essential way to demonstrate expertise in a particular tool or skill set. Power BI certifications provide recognition of a professional’s expertise in using this tool. This recognition can help professionals stand out in a competitive job market. It is also useful in demonstrating their value to potential employers.

4. Competitive Advantage

Organizations are always looking for ways to gain a competitive advantage. Certified professionals who can analyze data using Power BI can provide a competitive advantage. These professionals can help in making informed decisions based on data insights. These decisions can help a business achieve better business outcomes. In short, it helps a business build a competitive advantage.

5. Career Advancement

Power BI certifications can lead to career advancement opportunities for professionals. Organizations are seeking professionals with expertise in Power BI to fill critical roles. Power BI certifications can help professionals stand out in a crowded job market. It can also help to demonstrate their ability in using this tool.

Conclusion

It is expected that Power BI Certification would continue to hold its value in the market. As a result, companies need to build an army of professionals who are certified to use this tool. Organizations and professionals are expected to continue to invest in Power BI certifications. These are expected to be better equipped to make data-driven decisions. It would also help to stay competitive in the data-driven world.

Imarticus Learning provides certification and a post-graduate program in data analytics. It covers Power BI certification among other topics. Click here to know more.

Learn SEO Secrets to Quickly Skyrocket Your Rankings and Traffic

Posted on April 4, 2023April 4, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

You’ve just launched your website, and you’re eager to see it climb the search engine rankings. Or maybe you’ve been running your site for a while, but you’re not getting the traffic you want. Either way, it sounds like you could get help with your SEO. This blog post will give you five essential tips to get you on track.

SEO Tip #1: Do Your Keyword Research

Before optimizing your website, you must know which keywords you will target. This isn’t as easy as it sounds, as you need to find keywords that are both popular enough to generate traffic and specific enough that you can rank for them. A keyword research tool is the best way to find the right keywords.

SEO Tip #2: Optimize Your Title Tags and Meta Descriptions

Your title tag is the HTML code that determines what appears in the title bar of a web browser when someone visits your website. It also appears in the blue link text when your website appears in a Google search.

The same goes for your meta descriptions, which are short snippets of text that appear below your title tag in the search results. These should be descriptive and keyword-rich so that people know what they’ll find on your site before they click through.

SEO Tip #3: Use Heading Tags Strategically

Heading tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.) are used to structure the content on your website into distinct sections. They help both users and search engines understand the hierarchy of your content.

When used correctly, they can also help improve your SEO by making it easier for Google to index your content and giving users an overview of what they’ll find on each page. Don’t go overboard with them or stuff them full of keywords—a few strategic heading tags are all you need.

SEO Tip #4: Optimize Your Images

Images are an essential part of any website, but they often get overlooked regarding SEO. That’s because people think of SEO as being all about the text, but it’s much more than that. Search engines index the text on your website and the images.

That’s why it’s essential to make sure that each image on your site has an alt attribute with a brief, keyword-rich description of the image. This will help Google index your images and give users additional information about what they’ll find on each page.

SEO Tip #5: Implement Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a free tool that enables you to track how users interact. It gives you valuable insights into which pages are most popular, how people find your site, and where they’re coming from geographically.

It also provides data on things like bounce rate and time on site to see which areas need improvement. Google Analytics is essential for any website owner who wants to improve their SEO because it allows you to track progress and measure results over time.

These days, SEO is an essential part of any successful online business, but it’s also one of the most complex and ever-changing fields in digital marketing. That’s why staying up-to-date on the latest trends and best practices are essential if your website ranks high in the search results.

Discover a Career in Digital Marketing with Imarticus Learning

With a more collaborative curriculum that places a strong emphasis on employability skills, capstone projects, and opportunities for stable employment, our digital marketing certification course offers placement assurance.

Course Benefits for Learners:

By examining client case studies, students will discover how big businesses use online digital marketing training to keep their competitive edge.
Students can now access the most crucial digital marketing course with placement, which fully grasps concepts in digital marketing.
Students can now participate in digital marketing online training to learn SEO basics.

Visit our training centers in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Gurgaon , Bengaluru, Delhi, Chennai, or Ahmedabad, or get in touch via the chat support system.

Financing Projects: Financial Planning for Projects

Posted on April 4, 2023April 4, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

In today’s business landscape, projects are becoming increasingly complex and require strong financial strategies to ensure success.

Proper financial planning is critical in driving project success by providing a clear roadmap for managing project finances, mitigating risks, and making informed decisions.

This blog will discuss the importance of financial planning for projects and explore critical elements such as decision analysis, risk management, and financial reporting.

What is Project Financing?

Project financing is a type of funding for big infrastructure projects. It involves creating a separate legal entity (a particular purpose vehicle or SPV) just for the project. Lenders rely on the project’s cash flow for repayment.

It is often used for costly projects with uncertain revenue and helps mitigate risks for lenders. Project financing is crucial for funding vital infrastructure for economic growth.

Key Features of Project Financing

Unique funding features: Project financing features distinct characteristics such as decision analysis, risk management, and financial reporting, which are vital for ensuring its success.

Limited or non-recourse financing: Project financing typically involves limited or non-recourse arrangements. Lenders have minimal or no recourse to the borrower’s assets beyond those tied to the specific project.

Decision analysis: Project financing necessitates thorough decision analysis to assess project feasibility and profitability, and determine the optimal financing structure, often requiring expertise from a certified management accountant.

Asset-based financing: Project financing relies on the potential revenue streams or assets of the project as collateral, rather than solely considering the borrower’s creditworthiness.

Risk management: Project financing involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks that may impact the project’s financial performance or completion. It includes developing risk management strategies and contingency plans.

Special purpose vehicle (SPV): An SPV, often used as an intermediary, helps bridge the gap between sponsors and lenders in project financing. It manages fund procurement, safeguards project assets, and monitors project progress.

Financial reporting: Accurate and transparent financial reporting on the project’s financial performance and progress to lenders, investors, and other stakeholders is crucial in project financing.

It includes preparing financial statements, forecasts, and reports, and complying with regulatory and contractual reporting requirements, often involving the expertise of a certified management accountant.

What Are the Various Stages of Project Financing?

Project financing involves several stages that need to be meticulously executed to ensure the project’s success. These stages can be broadly categorised into pre-financing, financing, and post-financing.

Pre-financing stage

During the pre-financing stage, the project’s strategic plan is identified and analysed to ensure it aligns with the goals of the financial services company.

Risk management is essential before the project financing venture begins to recognise and minimise any risks. Checking the project’s economic and technical feasibility is also crucial before a lender decides to invest in it.

Financing stage

The financing stage is the most important part of project financing. It involves arranging finances for the project. The sponsor must acquire equity or a loan from a financial services organisation aligned with the project’s goals.

During the loan or equity negotiation stage, the borrower and lender negotiate the loan amount, and during the documentation and verification stage, the loan terms are mutually agreed upon and documented.

Once the loan documentation is complete, the borrower receives the funds for the project’s operations.

Post-financing stage

Regular project monitoring is crucial during the post-financing stage to ensure project success. The project manager should conduct timely monitoring at fixed intervals.

Project closure signifies the end of the project, and after its completion, it is important to keep track of the cash flow from its operations to repay the loan taken to finance the project.

Types of Sponsors in Project Financing

Sponsors are a critical part of project financing, responsible for initiating and driving a project’s development. They provide the initial equity that serves as the foundation for project financing.

A sponsor’s involvement is crucial in determining the project’s objective, potential risks, and returns. Without sponsors, project financing ventures would not be possible.

The common sponsor types include the following:

Industrial sponsors

Industrial sponsors in project financing are associated with a business that is either upstream or downstream relative to the project.

For instance, if the project focuses on constructing a new manufacturing plant, an industrial sponsor could be a company involved in producing the plant’s final product.

Public sponsors

Public sponsors are affiliated with governmental bodies or municipal corporations. Their primary aim is to deliver public services, including constructing infrastructure, schools, hospitals, or public transportation.

Contractual sponsors

Contractual sponsors are an important part of project financing ventures, as they are vital in the development and operation of plants.

These sponsors can include suppliers, contractors, and other service providers who play a crucial role in ensuring the plant’s success.

By being involved in the project from its beginning, contractual sponsors can help mitigate risks and ensure the project’s success.

Financial sponsors

In project financing, financial sponsors are investors who participate in project finance initiatives. They aim to maximise their returns and prefer projects that have high growth potential, strong cash flows, and minimal risks.

Financial sponsors play a vital role in providing both equity and debt financing required for the project.

How To Create a Project Financial Plan

You can follow these steps to create a project financial plan

Step 1: Defining the project scope

Defining the project scope is the crucial first step in creating a financial plan. It involves identifying the activities that are part of the project and the necessary resources needed for completion.

By establishing the project objectives, professionals can accurately estimate the costs involved and have a clear understanding of the project’s financials.

Step 2: Estimating the project costs

Estimating the project costs is the subsequent step. It includes the calculation of all the expenses incurred, comprising labour, materials, and other costs. Accurate projections require accounting for both one-time and recurring expenses.

Step 3: Forecasting project revenues

After estimating the project costs, the next step is to predict the potential revenues. This step involves estimating the amount of income generated from the sale of products or services associated with the project.

Being realistic while forecasting the revenues is important as it has a direct impact on the financial goals of the project.

Step 4: Creating a financial model

After estimating the costs and revenues for the project, the next step is to develop a financial model. This will help in the visualisation of the project’s cost and revenue interactions over time.

It’s important to create a realistic and achievable financial model that considers potential risks or challenges.

Step 5: Making assumptions

Once the financial model has been created, assumptions need to be made about the project’s future. It involves estimating the project’s growth rate and predicting the time it will take to achieve your financial goals.

Regular reviews of these assumptions are necessary to ensure their accuracy, and any necessary revisions must be made.

Step 6: Evaluating the financial plan results

Evaluating the results of your project financial plan is a crucial final step. It involves assessing whether you were able to achieve the financial goals you set for the project. If your goals were not met, you may need to revise your plan.

Evaluating the results provides valuable insights into any mistakes made and helps make necessary adjustments for future projects.

Conclusion

Project financing is a valuable tool for funding large-scale infrastructure and energy projects. Sponsors play a critical role in initiating and driving the development of these projects.

If you’re interested in advancing your knowledge in financial planning and becoming a Certified Management Accountant, consider Imarticus Learning’s Certified Management Accountant course.

The US CMA Course offers comprehensive training in risk management and financial planning, which can be invaluable for aspiring Certified Management Accountants involved in project financing.

Bookeeping v/s Accounting: What’s the Difference?

Posted on April 4, 2023July 19, 2023 by Imarticus Learning

The finance and accounting domain is burgeoning with new career paths as technology and newer trends keep popping up. Used interchangeably, accounting and bookkeeping are two popular terms the financial industry lives by.

Accounting, as widely known, refers to analysing, interpreting, classifying, reporting and summarising a business’s financial data. Bookkeeping is limited to recording financial transactions. The two concepts are fundamentally different, each requiring a different skill set. For instance, an aspiring accountant may need to sit for the CMA exam, which isn’t necessary for a bookkeeper.

Read the article if you are confused about the two and cannot decide which career option is for you. It will walk you through the difference between the two job roles and the responsibilities each entails.

Bookkeepers v/s Accountants: How are they different?

The differences between bookkeepers and accountants are minor but necessary for defining their responsibilities. While bookkeepers focus on daily updation, accountants are responsible for the more prominent financial image of the company. Read on to learn the job roles and responsibilities of bookkeeping and accounting.

Bookkeeping

Bookkeeping is securing a company’s financial transactions in an organised manner, usually in a ledger. Recording and maintaining such transactions always comes in handy during tax audits and rechecking any financial transaction-based errors. The process is a part of the more extensive work of accounting.

Key Responsibilities

The key responsibilities of a bookkeeper in accounting are as follows:

Preparing an updated ledger
Separating different essential accounts
Developing bookkeeping rules and procedures
Running payrolls and invoice generation
Ensuring financial ledgers as legally compatible
Maintaining secondary and tertiary accounts, if needed
Allocating finances properly to maintain the balance sheet
Assisting during trials and tax audits

Accounting

Accounting is measuring, securing and analysing a company’s financial assets in a way that positively affects its growth. In an organisation, an accountant is responsible for creating all-important financial decisions. They are also responsible for tax audits, balance sheet updation, bank statements and error-free financial records.

Key Responsibilities

The key responsibilities of an accountant are as follows:

Overviewing and managing all account transactions
Analysing budgetary trends and preparing forecasts
Ensure timely bank-related transactions in the company
Prepare audit-related financial documents
Presenting the company’s financial goals
Assisting positive growth in the company’s financial graph

What are the differences between bookkeeping and accounting?

A regular accounting cycle has eight levels:

New transaction
An entry in the accounting ledger
Posting
Updating the balance sheet
Worksheet duty
Adjusting the trial balances in the trial sheet
Generating a financial statement
Closing the ledger

The first six assignments are in the domain of the bookkeeper. The accountant performs the last two. Apart from the basics, here are some more fundamental differences between the two jobs:

Educational qualifications

Bookkeeping and accounting require different educational qualifications mentioned in the eligibility criteria.

Bookkeepers can join directly after high secondary completion or with some work experience, depending on the organisation’s needs.

Accountants need a bachelor’s degree or higher. Many aspiring candidates prepare for the CMA exam or enrol for similar postgraduate diplomas.

Specific skills

Bookkeepers can work without extreme technical or job-specific knowledge.

Accountants need accounting degrees and previous work experience. The accountant requires technical competence and specialised analytical skills to present the company’s financial growth and trends to the stakeholders. Communication skills and basic knowledge of reports/slides are required to present the company’s financial growth.

Important financial decisions

The complexity of the job is a lot less for bookkeepers. However, their work entails minute attention to financial details and a solid mathematical bent of the mind. Any mistake in the daily updation of a ledger can lead to accumulated errors. However, bookkeepers are outside the decision-making space.

Accountants require extremely high analytic skills to focus on the company’s financial figures. The accountant’s predictions and decisions pull the company’s graph upward.

Career potential

Accounting offers a long-term and secure employment opportunity. Even for beginners, this ensures a salary as per industry standards. The competition in the field is high, but there is a rising demand for it.

Bookkeeping jobs are an excellent start for internships or short-term jobs. Bookkeeping candidates receive a decent salary, and the competition for entry-level jobs is less. Many choose bookkeeping as a potential work experience-gaining job while preparing for higher studies or competitive examinations.

Conclusion

Choosing the right career in finance can be confusing. Examining the different job roles, eligibility criteria, and required qualifications is necessary to decide the right profession. You can start your career by enrolling in the right finance course.

Imarticus Learning’s Certified Management Accountant (CMA) course in accounting, financial, and business analytics domains is the perfect choice for aspiring accountants. It comes with pass protection that ensures students pass the CMA exam. Imarticus charges 50% of the total fee after passing the examination. The course provides unlimited access to study materials, practical projects, and expert mentoring.

Book your seats today, or visit Imarticus Learning for more.

How to Become a Supply Chain Analyst

Posted on April 4, 2023April 2, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

A supply chain analyst develops an efficient way to make a robust supply chain strategy with the help of data analytics. Also, he/she interprets and leverages data to enhance performance resulting in overall improvement.

As daunting as the career might sound, becoming a supply chain analyst is relatively easy. With the correct supply chain analytics certification, one can bag job opportunities as an analyst in leading companies. However, prospective candidates must know and understand the skills required to become a supply chain analyst.

In this article, let’s learn about the job roles of a supply chain analyst and the steps to become one.

The job role of a supply chain analyst

Besides being a professional who ensures the company’s supplies meet the customer’s demand, a supply chain analyst plans production, manages inventory management, sources raw material, plans demand, designs supply chain network and plans distribution. The other duties include:

Collection and analysis: A supply chain analyst collects and analyses different supply chain data by implementing accurate supply chain methods.
Management and coordination: Supply chain analysts have to manage and coordinate vivid supply chain operations with the staff involved in the process.
Quality assurance and inventory analysis: A supply chain analyst oversees quality assurance and inventory analysis. By doing inventory analysis, they design robust reports to help the enterprise in prospects.
Supply chain hazard identification and analysis: A supply chain has many hazards. A supply chain analyst helps to identify issues and develops strategies to resolve them quickly and efficiently.
Training and conflict resolution: A supply chain analyst must possess leadership skills to train his/her staff and resolve any conflict arising amongst team members.
Business administration and effective communication: A supply chain analyst is responsible for business administration and must have communication skills to deal with the clientele and their team.
Business expansion and strategic initiatives: A supply chain analyst takes up strategic initiatives to expand the business horizon. They adopt many ways to make the business approachable, thus incurring more profit.
Collaboration and evaluation: A supply chain analyst has to collaborate with people from different departments – sales and operations, design, marketing, etc. An analyst must use customer trends and previous activities to understand product demand effectively. They even analyse and evaluate routes and collaborate with transport companies to deliver products on time and in order.

Skills required to become a supply chain analyst

The job of a supply chain analyst not only entails research and analysis but also has traces of leadership and effective communication.

Technical skills

A supply chain analyst should be well-versed in data analysis, mathematics, SQL, Excel, Hadoop and statistics. They analyse large and multi-dimensional data sets by incorporating various mathematical equations. These calculations also play a crucial role in the cost and savings of raw materials.

Interpersonal skills

Supply chain analysts have to work with various stakeholders. Hence, this requires top-notch interpersonal skills. It helps build effective relationships amongst stakeholders and teams and share ideas in a hassle-free way.

Organisational and project management skills

Strong organisational skills would help a supply chain analyst to achieve long-term goals in a short time. Possessing the above-mentioned skills would not only help them to polish their leadership skills but also help them manage workload efficiently and pace up different projects.

How to become a supply chain analyst: Eligibility

A supply chain analyst needs to have specific prerequisite skills and qualifications. A bachelor’s degree in logistics or supply chain management is required to be eligible for the job. Other eligibility criteria are:

Candidates must have internship experiences from companies with a working supply chain for at least two years. They should have an understanding of inventory management.

An ideal candidate should have impeccable analytical skills and in-depth knowledge of logical reasoning and mathematics. They should also possess adequate knowledge of data collection and analysis.
A candidate must have sound theoretical and practical knowledge of data analysis and inventory management tools. It would help them develop useful insights from the data and act accordingly.

Conclusion

A supply chain analyst acts as a strategist in an organisation. This makes them an important part of an organisation where they are responsible for logistics, marketing, product management, quality assurance and other important sectors. They also provide insights into newer technologies and these tools further make the business efficient.

If you are looking for a good supply chain management course, then check out Imarticus Learning’s Executive Certificate Programme in Global Chief Supply Chain and Operations Officer offered in partnership with IIM Raipur. This IIM Raipur supply chain management course will embark you on a journey to a new era of supply chain analytics. This 150-hour interactive session is taught by the skilled IIM Raipur faculty.

Why Full Stack Developers Must Learn Kubernetes

Posted on April 4, 2023April 4, 2024 by Imarticus Learning

Due to the emergence and growth of cloud computing and microservices, Kubernetes has become very important for a Full Stack Developer. It is a crucial tool for managing and orchestrating essential containers.

Nowadays, developers do a lot more than write codes and programs. Choosing the right infrastructure is crucial when working with microservices architecture. Companies count on developers to create and maintain the infrastructure.

In essence, Kubernetes has taken over as the industry standard for defining infrastructure. Read on to learn about Kubernetes and why Full Stack Developers must master Kubernetes.

What is Kubernetes?

Kubernetes is an open-source robust framework for container orchestration. It enables a Full Stack Web Developer to orchestrate and run container workloads automatically. Kubernetes provides numerous tools as a layer of abstraction.

It helps deploy standardised full-stack applications across various platforms, including package managers, source plugins, monitoring tools, etc. Born out of Borg, a Google project, Kubernetes is considered one of the most popular container orchestration engines. It helps developers to manage a cluster of hundreds and thousands of workloads for running dynamic applications.

However, managing the Kubernetes cluster can be much more complex than managing a conventional application environment. It increases operational costs and is time-consuming. Also, it requires a specialist to monitor the operations.

Why is it essential for a Full Stack Developer to learn Kubernetes?

A Full Stack Developer is proficient in handling an application’s front and back ends. The data structures and algorithms that Kubernetes offers are compatible with front and back-end development. Here are some of the reasons why a Full Stack Web Developer needs to learn Kunernetes:

Easy availability

Kubernetes is an open-source software that can be used by anyone. It is a community lead effort instead and is available to developers free of cost. It does not require any contributions, and developers are welcome to use it for web development and related aspects.

Enhanced productivity

Improving the efficiency of developers for web development is one of the major advantages of adopting Kubernetes. It helps one eliminate complex manual processes and can ultimately increase productivity for better results. Kubernetes automates a lot of tasks which results in greater efficiency, increasing the productivity of developers.

Stability of applications

The stability of an application is a deciding factor when it comes to evaluating its performance efficiency. Fortunately, users of Kubernetes have no reasons to worry about the performance efficiency of web applications because the platform provides unparalleled stability. Developers can always trust the stability of Kubernetes even if they are dealing with a very complex application.

Increased flexibility and portability

Kubernetes is compatible with practically every imaginable container runtime. The container type does not affect the flexibility of Kubernetes. It can operate with any type of infrastructure, including private and public cloud as well as on-premises services. It is easier for Full Stack Developers to design the perfect scalable solution with a higher degree of flexibility and portability with Kubernetes.

Offers multi-cloud capability

A fantastic benefit of adopting Kubernetes is that it allows one to get rid of traditional conventions and move to the modern cloud infrastructure. A Full Stack Developer can keep all their work in a single cloud as well as can distribute the workload and store it in different clouds. This helps strengthen the resilience of the infrastructure. In this way, a developer can extract the benefits that each cloud has in store to offer, ultimately lowering the expenditure of web development.

Offers systematised automation

It is very challenging to manually manage thousands of containers simultaneously. But Kubernetes helps to overcome this problem with almost zero effort on the part of developers. It is highly automated, and it can launch thousands of containers and manage them automatically. It is a great automation solution with built-in intelligence assisting human administrators.

Provides better up-time

A server or a container is prone to crash and fail anytime. However, Kubernetes offers the feature of auto-recovery. It can automatically replace the faulty server or container and, thus, reduces the possibility of service interruptions to the users. This is how up time can be explained, the time period when fully functional services are available online. Kubernetes guarantees a high level of up-time.

Conclusion

Kubernetes has proven to be a reliable platform for container orchestration. The number of dynamic features the platform offers will enable you to achieve greater heights in web development and promote faster growth. If you aim to become a full stack developer, consider learning Kubernetes, as it is a high-demand technology with a proper workflow framework.

Do you want to kickstart your career as full stack web developer? Check out the Full Stack Development Programme by Imarticus. This will help you gain insights into the high-scale ability platform that Kubernetes is, as well as learn about GitHub, data structure and algorithms, and much more.