An annual financial plan that consists of an inaccurate spreadsheet with unexplained, costly variances will not endear you to upper management. If you want to win approval for your projects, you need to be able to align supply chain decisions with financials and speak the language of finance. To help supply chain professionals learn to do that, the University of Wisconsin-Madison will offer a course called "Supply Chain Finance" this spring.

This two-day executive education course will teach participants the basics of business case development, accounting, and budgeting and help them learn how to assign a value to improvements. Attendees will leave with a better understanding of how to integrate operational risk and uncertainty into their financial plan, prioritize their initiatives and understand the initiatives' financial consequences, and maximize the likelihood of achieving their operating plans.

The next course will take place April 2-3 on the university's campus in Madison. For more information, visit http://exed.wisc.edu/supplychain/scf.