Lessons Learned Key Success Factors in Financial Monitoring/Management
You need an accounting system that meets your needs and has room to grow as those needs change. For example, as your funding diversifies, it also usually necessitates expanding and making your accounting systems more flexible.
Sophisticated accounting packages allow you to track specific payables and receivables (e.g., by company name), as well as categories of payables and receivables. Such systems can also cross tabulate any of them (alone or in combination) by many variables (e.g., by time period such as year-to-date, quarter, month, etc.), as well as by project, by site, by funder, and so forth.
A well-designed accounting system will pay for itself in the time it saves by enabling you to quickly generate the various reports different funders need, as well as the various reports you need to keep tabs on the income and costs associated with all of your projects.
As important as a computer based accounting system is you must have an excellent paper filing system for documentation and other paperwork.
Use consistent and effective budget tracking systems. Have a good template that is used throughout the organization to track expenses.
Develop a realistic cash flow at the beginning of a project. Regularly track and report budget variances – monthly or bi-monthly.
If a monthly budget report for a project is over budget by a set amount (e.g., 20%) the Executive Director must become involved to work out an action plan with the project manager or staff
As with most small businesses, cash flow needs to be monitored constantly. If you don’t have a line of credit one should be set-up in case it is necessary to get over a cash shortage period. But don’t let your line of credit become a regular part of your business. It should be used only in instances where payments have not yet caught up with project expenditures.
Make sure all non-compliance issues are reported to your Board of Directors. Non-compliance in meeting objectives of contracts, material variances to budgets and any risk factors could have a short or long term impact on your finances if they are not addressed successfully.
