Entrepreneurs start businesses with an idea and a great deal of hope. To bring that idea to fruition, they must have a strong understanding of financing, accounting and investing. Financial management for entrepreneurs is essential to success, and it is a skill that most would-be entrepreneurs must learn. Few entrepreneurs grow up with financial management role models or take in-depth finance management courses in high school. Entrepreneurs who are determined to succeed can study financial management for entrepreneurs in a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Entrepreneurship program.
What Is Financial Management for Entrepreneurs?
Financial management for entrepreneurs encompasses every aspect of money related to a business. Entrepreneurs take into consideration — and manage or oversee — all of the following areas:
- Securing investors for their businesses.
- Tracking how investors’ money is utilized.
- Returning investors’ money plus a percentage of profits or interest.
- Establishing and monitoring costs.
- Analyzing sales and comparing gross income to resource costs.
- Determining the amount of money to set aside for the entrepreneur’s salary and the amount of money to re-invest or redirect for another business run by the entrepreneur.
- Understanding federal, state, county and local taxes.
Financial management for entrepreneurs is a broad topic. Entrepreneurs cannot expect to be experts in every area of financial management. They will, however, want to be well-versed in common financial terms and practices so they can quickly identify concerns and opportunities when they are reviewing loans, financial statements and investment documents.
What College-Level Financial Management Courses Should Entrepreneurs Take?
Earning a BBA in Entrepreneurship prepares entrepreneurs to oversee or directly manage all of their business finances. Courses in financial management for entrepreneurs include lessons on theory as well as practical financial applications. Lamar University offers students majoring in business and studying entrepreneurship relevant classes such as:
- Principles of Economics I (Macro): An overview of monetary theory, national income, international trade and current economic concerns.
- Principles of Economics II (Micro): A class exploring economic principles such as allocating resources, determining production, prices and product placement.
- Introduction to Financial Accounting: A class on the basics of accounting and financial statements.
- Business Analysis I: An introductory course exploring quantitative analysis methods used to identify and solve problems.
- Business Analysis II: An advanced course building on the foundations presented in Business Analysis I.
- Principles of Finance: An introductory class about the financial management of private businesses.
- Cost Accounting: A course emphasizing costs and budgets and their relationship to managing a profitable business.
- Economics of Entrepreneurship: A class reviewing comprehensive analysis that challenges students to complete practice exercises in entrepreneurship.
- Intermediate Financial Management: A course about analytical techniques used in financial decision-making.
A BBA in Entrepreneurship prepares students to do more than understand financial management. Students use the knowledge they obtain to become entrepreneurs who direct their businesses’ financial processes and analyze financial statements to make decisions that result in profits and ongoing growth.
Learn more about the Lamar University online BBA in Entrepreneurship program.
Sources:
Entrepreneur: Financial Management
Cleverism: What to Study in Order to Become an Entrepreneur?
