The Riskworx Academy recently delivered a series of Balance Sheet Optimisation workshops for staff of the FirstRand group. The main purpose of these three-day workshops was to instil a practical understanding of Balance Sheet Optimisation – also referred to as Strategic Balance Sheet Management (SBSM).   To make the learning practical, theoretical discussions were kept short and were interspersed by hands-on simulations, using the SimArch GuardB@nk simulation program. 

To ensure that the simulations reflect the African financial landscape, the simulator was configured to reflect a typical African bank, where interest rates and non-performing loan ratios are rising and there are limited sources of funding.  The simulations covered concepts such as optimal balance sheet structures, liquidity management, interest rate risk management, credit risk management, Treasury trading activities (market risk) and Capital Management, thereby enabling true Action Learning, where attendees learn by doing, rather than listening and staring at countless PowerPoint slides.

The workshops create a fun environment, with participants having the opportunity to get to know their colleagues from different countries and different departments.  This casual atmosphere in small teams allow team members to learn from each other without fearing that their questions might make them sound uninformed.

Feedback from some of the attendees:

“Brilliant team of presenters and coordinators”
“Wealth of experience displayed, appreciated”
“Excellent presentation skills”
“This is the best online course I have ever attended”

The focus on practical application is an integral component of the Riskworx Academy’s training approach and thanks to online collaboration tools we were able to deliver the training virtually across 9 countries and 56 attendees.