Course 6: Master Financial Management and EC auditing of European funded projects

Master the strategies for rejection-free claimed costs in EU funded projects and audit-proof approach
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Why this course will give you financial freedom and a fulfilling job for life

EU Project coordinators & managers, administrators and assistants as well as financial managers should participate in this comprehensive course. In fact anyone that is involved in the management and administration of EU funded projects should participate in this unique training that will master them to financially manage EU funded projects based on sound and stress free principles as well as to develop the proper practices on dealing with an EC audit. Sound financial management and proper reporting is not only under the responsibility of the financial managers but for all the individuals involved in the management of the project (Coordinators, partner's project manager, administrators, assistants and support staff).
Apparently, acceptance of the financial reports by EC financial officer or an auditing firm is not enough. Any EU funded project can be audited by EC services and its agencies for up to five years up after its last payment and EC audits have been tripled since the previous funding programme. EC auditing identifies errors to 87% of audited beneficiaries that lead to rejection of claimed costs in their financial statements that have been approved initially by the financial officer of EC or an certified auditor.
A well-trained individual on financial management and EC auditing practices provides great value to their organisation and to the related EU funded projects. A financial manager of EU funded projects in contrast to related proposal writers and managers, should only apply some specific rules and practices for becoming one of the best and most attractive financial managers of EU funded projects. On the other hand proposal writers and managers should always find creative and innovative ways to plan and implement their EU funded project.

Duration

The course duration is one day face-to-face including interactions or optional up to two days that includes also practical work for each participant to prepare their own financial reporting but also their strategy for dealing with EC audits.  The structure of the course has been optimized consistently in order to achieve the highest effect at the least possible duration and ensuring the largest participation, especially of individuals with a busy schedule.
The above structure doesn't include any hands on practice. Therefore, in addition, as extra optional module, we can add a  0.5, 1 or 1.5 day that involves practical assignments, group work and customised support on the specific needs that each participant has. The ultimate aim of this module is for participants not only to understand the full recipe with detailed steps on how to apply a rejection free financial management & also an EC audit-proof approach but also to build them with confidence, energy and joy for achieving breakthroughs in financial management of EU funded projects and in an extent in EU funded projects. 

Number of participants

There is no limitation on the number of participants as long as they can listen to the instructor (Mr. Nikolaos Floratos) with a lavaliere microphone and can see his projections on screen wall and what he writes on the flipchart. ​ 
For the Hands on Module it is better to limit the participants up to 20.

Learning Objectives

1. become confident with the EU budget structure and its underlying mechanism and legislation
2. get clarity on your responsibilities as a grant beneficiary but also on the responsibilities of the grant authority
3. be able to estimate the budget for each of the suggested activities in your grant applications
4. understand how to spot and deal with errors in financial reports
5. master an approach for ensuring that all your reported costs will be accepted by the EC auditors
6. ensure each of your reported cost items is eligible
7. be able to prepare error-free financial reports of an EU funded project
8. be able to prepare error-free financial reports of any EU funded project
9. understand how the EU external audit works and where they give focus
10. know what kind of information/documents are requested by the EU auditors and how they use them
11. understand your actions before, during and after the EU audit
12. know your next actions if you don't agree with the EU audit findings

Course Structure and Approach

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Module 1:

• Fundamentals in Financing Rules: Funding types, Financial Liabilities, EC payments and auditing periods
• How to use and take advantage of specific EU legislation  on european funds and apply it within your financial management practices and for defending your arguments to the EC officers and auditors in EU funded projects. 

Module 2:

• Eligible Costs/ Eligibility Check (ENA rule)
  
• Ineligible costs / Conditions for ineligibility
  
• Direct Costs Categories
  
• Indirect Costs
  
• Practices for eligibility of staff costs 
  
• Time monitoring and recording free tools
  
• Practices for eligibility of mission (travel and accommodation) costs 
  
• Practices for eligibility of Equipment costs
  
• Practices for eligibility of Subcontracting costs 
  
• Practices for eligibility of Other costs
  
  

Module 3:

• Fundamentals on EC Auditing: Audit types, Contractual Provisions, EC audit outcomes and process
• Preparing for the EC Audit
• Pitfalls to avoid in EC audits
• Familiarisation with all the documentation requested by EC Auditors​

Module 4:

• Strategy by the beneficiaries before, during and after the EC audit

Module 5 (optional)

• Hands-on practice on all the above modules with ultimate aim to complete and check for each participant their own approach in financial reporting and  for dealing successfully with EC audits
  
• Duration  of this module as an extra/optional one can be 0.5, 1 or 1.5 day​
  

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Specialisation Certificate

All participants after attending the whole course can receive a specialisation certificate on "Financial Management of European Projects"  issued by Institute of Leadership and Management,  part of City and Guilds group.

Important Note - Why you should attend this course

A competent financial manager of European funded projects and especially for research related projects with a large budget such as in FP7 and Horizon 2020 will add great value to the projects and to their organisation. More than never 80 billion EUR should be financially managed properly  by following the ENA rule. They need to be Economic, Necessary and Actual. 
However, acceptance of your financial reports by the EC officer or an auditing firm is not enough. Your project can be audited by EC services and its agencies for up to 5 years after its last payment and EC audits have been tripled since FP7.  EC auditing identifies errors to 87% of audited beneficiaries that lead to rejection of claimed costs in their financial statement that have been approved initially by its financial officer. 

Available Unique Resources

In addition, we will make available  to all participants the following powerful tools and templates that are based on best practices

1. The Full-Module Training Handbook™ with the training slides for each one of the modules above
2. The  Financial Manager toolkit™ that contains examples and resources for financially managing  and dealing successfully with EC audits

Training fee

We offer the best training experience at the most economical price. Please contact us at [email protected] to provide you more details on the training fee for delivering this distinct course at your premises. Please indicate to us 

1. the exact course you are interested in,
2. the provisional dates that are more convenient for you,
3. the expected location,
4. the estimated number of participants as well as 
5. whether you are interested in your participants receiving the ILM/City & Guilds Specialisation Certificate.

Training Logistics

A lavaliere microphone, projector to be connected to trainer’s laptop or to a PC, a screen wall, a flipchart and markers, wifi. 

100% Satisfaction Guarantee: 

We are the only training organization  that our approach is based on results and not on effort. We are so confident of the high value of our training that we personally guarantee on its quality, effectiveness and distinct value. In case, you are not satisfied with our training, then we will not get paid anything. Even if some of the participants have already participated in another similar training session, we are committed to deliver an eye-opening session for all participants from novices to senior experts in EU funds.

About the Trainer - Nikolaos Floratos

Nikolaos is ranked by Google and Linkedin in the top three positions as funding expert. The last 9 years, he has transformed hundrends of individuals into successful administrative and financial managers through science-backed and experience-based training and coaching practices. He has been involved as manager of european funded projects since 1997 and since 2010 supports organisations to develop an audit-proof approach in the financial management of their EU funded project. He has dealt with more  than 15 EC audits and his strong point is not only his vast experience in financial management and auditing practices but also his way to make people understand and master complex issues such as financial management and EC auditing by decomposing them into simple step-by-step practices. Through his PhD research that focuses on student engagement and his 10 years training experience, he has proved that anyone can master even complicated subjects very fast by receiving training and support in an engaging way and with the proper instruction strategy. He delivers all his courses and seminars based on continuous interactions with his audience and based on “recipes” and practical steps that allow them to absorb easily what they should master and achieve extraordinary results very quickly.

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