This post is part of the Finance for Non-Financial Managers book series of posts, which is the first subset of posts in the larger PMBA series of posts. You can buy Finance for Non-Financial Managers from the author Gene Siciliano for $14.95.
This is the first post in a series regarding my experiences following the PMBA. The PMBA has a great reading list, and I chose to start out reading Finance for Non-Financial Managers.
The first chapter was a very easy read and I finished it in about 15 minutes (checkout a really good resource for learning how to read non-fictional material that I came across a reference to, from the PMBA website). The first chapter is a good primer for someone who has absolutely no idea what Finance and Accounting involves, and why it is useful. If you already have a good understanding regarding the difference between Finance and Accounting, you may be able to skip this chapter and be no worse for the wear.
I think my biggest take-away from this first chapter was that all levels of management are ultimately responsible for the finances of the company. “Managers need to understand the rules of accounting and the boundaries of proper finance well enough to avoid getting into trouble as they agressively try to achieve their goals.” [Siciliano, Gene. Finance for Non-Financial Managers. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2003.]