Wharton/SAIF Modules

Module I: Finance for Senior Executives

Faculty: Itay Goldstein, PhD and David Wessels, PhD

With financial factors of risk and value underpinning every business decision today, the days of finance operating as a stand-alone corporate function are long gone. Yet senior-level executives from non-finance areas — such as legal, operations, engineering, and sales and marketing — often lack the requisite finance skills to identify and effectively communicate the financial implications of their strategic initiatives.

This module, Finance for Senior Executives, fills this need, providing participants with highly relevant, actionable, and practical tools to understand the financial implications of their decisions, create sustained value for their company, and communicate the rationale for their decisions to finance colleagues. Participants leave with a solid understanding of corporate finance and its role as a critical business skill set.

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Module II: Private Equity

Faculty: Bilge Yilmaz, PhD

Private equity is a critically important asset that investors cannot afford to exclude from their portfolios. With its potential for high returns that can outperform other asset classes — such as conventional stocks, bonds, and mutual funds — private equity offers a competitive edge to sophisticated investors.

This module is taught by renowned Wharton finance faculty who will deliver the latest information about the private equity sector while teaching the latest concepts investors need to know to confidently evaluate investment opportunities in the private equity space.

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Module III: Investment Strategies and Portfolio Management

Faculty: Jules H. van Binsbergen, PhD
Investment managers are facing unprecedented change on many levels. The growing number and complexity of asset classes, disruptive worldwide economic and regulatory environments, emerging technologies, and shifts in investor behaviors and preferences make it challenging to keep knowledge and skills current. Investment Strategies and Portfolio Management addresses all of these concerns, leveraging the research and theories of Wharton’s renowned finance faculty with practitioner experience and expertise. The program provides a solid understanding of today’s investment landscape and the tools and theories for developing and measuring the performance of portfolios. It then looks closely at specific asset classes. Participants will gain a solid foundation that will help them advance their careers and meet their clients’ objectives.

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Module IV: Venture Capital

Faculty: Kevin Kaiser, PhD; Bilge Yilmaz, PhD; and David Wessels, PhD

Venture capital is the fuel that drives emerging companies and ambitious entrepreneurs worldwide. But for every successful, disruptive, trailblazing start-up, there are dozens of other businesses that fail, even after receiving multiple infusions of capital.

Designed for investors and entrepreneurs alike, participants will come away with a greater understanding of how venture capital works; how the best venture capitalists source, screen, and value deals; and how to design contracts that protect both investors and founders

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Module V: Mergers and Acquisitions

Faculty: Harbir Singh, PhD; David Wessels, PhD; Itay Goldstein, PhD; and Maurice Schweitzer, PhD

Managing a merger or acquisition can be one of the greatest challenges faced by an organization. To reap maximum value, leaders must consider multiple factors, balance short- and long-term needs, and guide well-planned execution — often under the watchful eye of their boards and investors.

In Mergers and Acquisitions, an interdisciplinary team of Wharton professors makes sense of the complexities of this topic and helps you develop and implement successful strategies to support your company’s mergers and acquisitions activity.

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Module VI: Advanced Corporate Finance

Faculty: Itay Goldstein, PhD; Joao Gomes, PhD; Gordon Bodnar, PhD; and David K. Musto, PhD

Advanced Corporate Finance offers a deep dive into the areas of corporate finance required for senior finance executives to make informed decisions and mitigate financial risk, including a macroeconomic view of today’s global economy.

This module brings finance executives up-to-date on issues such as fintech and financial regulations, which are currently changing and disrupting the corporate landscape. Finance executives who are on the frontlines of such disruptions will particularly benefit from this session.