Carlos Correia talks about the history behind Juta’s Financial Management.

The book, Financial Management, has been very successful for over 25 years. What do you ascribe this to?
Although the book has been around for a long time, the book has constantly evolved to reflect the significant changes that have occurred in financial markets, financial theory, and the teaching of corporate finance.

The 7th edition published in 2011 was written in line with SAICA’s Competency Framework, which added about 300 pages to the book. To be successful, you need to have a passion for corporate finance, which we think is reflected in our commitment to the book. In relation to how the book is written, our approach has been less formal as we view writing as a series of conversations with our readers.

How did the book come about?
David Flynn, Enrico Uliana and Michael Wormald (the co-authors) and I got together and over a few glasses of fine wine (from Enrico’s cellar) we decided that we should write a textbook specifically geared for South Africa. Although the American and British textbooks were of a high standard, we believed that there was a need for a book that met the needs of South African students. The rand had also fallen significantly at the time and we wanted to offer students value for money when purchasing a finance textbook. Over the years, the increasing professional demands on my co-authors required that I assume a greater role in the book, which I have done for the 6th and 7th editions.

Financial Management is prescribed at 21 universities in South Africa and the book has been a major force in the teaching of corporate finance and financial management. Why is this?
We tried to understand the needs of lecturers and students as well as practitioners. We have focused on South African financial markets, and how South African tax legislation impacts on finance, and have included questions that are aligned with SAICA’s final qualifying examination. This essentially makes it easier for students and lecturers to deal with the complex and ever-changing requirements of practice and the profession. We have tried to write simply and have used examples extensively to explain the financial theory.

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