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Project Management Skills #1 - Financial Appraisal with NPV (Udemy.com)

How to decide whether your project is worth doing from a financial perspective

4.5
876 reviews

Created by: Gary Lloyd

Last updated January 2026

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What you will learn

  • Decide whether a project is financial viable by calculating Net Present Value.
  • Evaluate the key assumptions that underly the calculation and hence business case.
  • Challenge Return on Investment (ROI) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) calculation.

How it compares

Against the other 243 rated Udemy courses in Project Management on CourseDuck:

  • Rating4.5 out of 5higher than 44% of them
  • Reviews876#113 of 244 by number of reviews
  • Length1.1 hoursshorter than 91% of them
  • Last updatedJanuary 2026more recently than 61% of them

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Course Description

If a project costs $1.2 million in year 1 and generates revenue of $400,000 in each subsequent year, how many years does it take to break even?

If you answered 5 years (including year 1) then you probably need to take this course because it's likely that this project loses money over that five year period. 

The problem with break-even analysis and Return on Investment (ROI) calculation is that they usually ignore the fact that $1,000 in one year's time is not equivalent to the same amount today, That's because the money could be invested in a different way, brining interest rates into play.

The only sound way to determine whether a project is financially viable, is by calculating the project's Net Present Value. This project will teach you:

  1. Why Future Value does not equate to Present Value.

  2. How to Calculate Present Value.

  3. How to calculate Net Present Value across a number of year.

  4. Why Return on Investment, Break-even and Internal Rate of Return can be misleading

  5. What other types non-monetary value you can consider.

If you already have a good grasp of Net Present Value, Discounted Cashflow or Time Value of Money then this course is not for you. If, however, any of the terms make your stomach feel queasy then this course is for you.

Net Present Value is one of this things that is obvious when you understand but baffling until that moment when the "penny drops". This course aims to get that penny to drop for you.

Net Present Value is explained in 4 short, core videos (not including introductory and summary videos) using examples and exercises. Each exercise has a downloadable spreadsheet, containing the calculations to get the answers.

In addition, there are 2 additional optional videos, one covering Internal Rate of Return and Return on Investment, and another video on the treatment of inflation.

And there are a further two bonus videos, taken from my Lean Project Management course, that discuss non-financial types of value and the role of emotion in value.
Read More All Levels All Levels product length iconTime: 1.1h

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Instructor Details

Gary Lloyd

Today’s organisations are more like ecosystems than machines. Whether the challenge is organisational or personal, the chances of success are greater when change is approached like a gardener rather than a mechanic.

I’ve spent over 20 years helping organisations deliver complex change through programmes, projects, and leadership development. My roles have ranged from leading major transformation initiatives to acting as a trusted advisor to CEOs and senior leadership teams, helping them translate intent into action.

Alongside this work, I spent over a decade on the Executive Coaching and Mentoring Steering Committee at Warwick Business School, including two years as co-chair, supporting the development of leaders across a range of sectors.

I’m the author of Business Leadership for IT Projects and Gardeners Not Mechanics: How to Cultivate Change at Work, and I’ve published widely on leadership, change, and practice-based learning.

More recently, my work has focused on how leaders develop human skills such as feedback, judgement, and communication through practice rather than theory alone. This includes pioneering work using AI-supported role-play and reflective learning, in collaboration with leading university leadership programmes.

I also regularly speak on leadership and change and appear as a guest on leadership development podcasts, exploring how leaders build capability through practice in real-world contexts.

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Reviews

4.5

876 ratings on Udemy

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By Anonymized User on 7/11/2022

I knew how to do the calculation because of my mathematics background, but understanding the decision making process helps apply the math to a business project.

By Shirish Kulkarni on 5/11/2022

Content is very practical and useful. Certain parts were explained down to very very basics ... and hence seemed a bit too long! But, overall, a very practical topic for Project team members.

By Archit Aggarwal on 9/23/2021

Great Explanation of NPV. But why NPV of 72K is divide by 300K instead of initial investment of 900K ? ROI should be 72K/900K = 8%. Please correct me if I am wrong in understanding the logic.

By Trang Nguyen on 5/7/2020

Detailed instructions on how to calculate NPV. Instructor gives good insight on financial terms and implication, with reference spreadsheets to download. This will give the attendees a chance to go back and review the materials & calculations.

By Vladislav Bukreev on 3/6/2019

I am an international student of the London School of Economics taking financial management as a subject this year. This course seems good for me to study the topic of NPV.

By Tommy Dodd on 11/20/2017

I got a lot of this 1 hour course. And I personally agree with him, use NPV more than IRR. He was clear and to the point. One thing to improve on is the energy. I know he's British, but it sounded he was bored, just my opinion. But other than that, it was a very good course for someone who wants to know more about corporate finance.

By Pramod Kumar Sinha on 11/14/2017

Very nice course.I understand fundamental of finance and calculation of NPV. Improvement needed to explore-formulas/assumption for calculation of step-wise on NPV calculation.

By Ayushi Goyal on 10/20/2017

it was good learning of calculating net present value,and making the decision more effective and correct, learning about the lean project management i also get the knowledge of using IRR , ROI , etc i cleared my doubt regarding which method is used,what is more effective,how to apply etc.

By Junaid Asrar Khan on 10/11/2017

Its really useful course for the beginners.If you are beginners and want to know what does project appraisal means then in this course you can find exactly what you are looking for.Moreover, the bonus lecture is also very useful to having you the idea about lean management.

By EMAD HAMDI ABDELRAHIM TOUBAR on 7/10/2017

The course is providing sufficient information for NPV, IRR and ROI financial evaluation of projects and supported with solved problems using manual calculations as well as Excel sheets. It's more suitable for beginners.

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Overall Score : 90 / 100

Project Management Skills #1 - Financial Appraisal with NPV
Visit course on Udemy Write a review
  • Video Duration: icon 1.1h
  • Price: $19.99
  • Provider: icon Udemy
  • Updated: icon January 2026
  • Level: All Levels All Levels
  • Language: icon English
  • Certificate: icon Yes
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