Finance for Non-Finance: An Introduction for Engineers

As non-finance professionals, we might be overwhelmed with the language used by finance experts and media, but after all, it is not rocket science. This book is an introduction to finance for beginners and especially to engineers who want to develop a fundamental understanding in that area, be it to start their own business, improve in the corporate world or analyze companies for self-directed investments.

First, we lay out the cash flows through a company and introduce the concept of the cash reservoir. Then we introduce the balance sheet, income, and cash flow statements using a simple example. Depreciation and working capital are explained before a comprehensive example is discussed. We highlight the connection between the statements and how they are calculated. The last part explains how financial analysis is built on the statements - we cover growth, profitability, solvency and liquidity, operations, and investment ratios.

This book introduces all the essential concepts to get started.