Internal Controls

Internal Controls: Safeguard Your Nonprofit’s Assets

by with No Comment Podcast

What processes does your nonprofit have in place to mitigate risks, ensure compliance, most importantly safeguard your precious assets? In this podcast episode, Stephanie discusses what internal controls are and why it’s important to have them in place… to safeguard your precious assets. 

She has seen all too many times the consequences organizations face when they do not have these procedures in place. And no, it’s not just because an auditor “dinged” the organization for not having these policies. Unfortunately, she’s seen much worse. The good news?! You don’t have to be one of those horror stories, because you’re going to tune into this podcast and learn all the things about internal controls, like…

…the four most important types of internal controls: financial, fraud protection, cybersecurity, and conflicts of interest. Plus, strategies to implement these policies in your nonprofit and how to communicate procedures with your board members and staff. Hint: It’s not creating the policy, filing it into a drawer, and never looking at it again. (And if you’ve done this in the past, there is zero judgment. However, there is a better way!)

Read the podcast transcript here. 

 

Episode Summary

In today’s episode, you’ll learn strategies for safeguarding your assets by using internal controls, including: 

•What internal controls are (1:05)

•Financial management and controls (3:55)

•Fraud prevention and protection (6:45)

•Cybersecurity and data protection (10:30)

•Conflicts of interest (12:45)

•Sharing internal control policies with your team (16:00)

•Resources for training your board (18:50)

 

Teasers

“We have a responsibility as nonprofit organizations to safeguard our assets and to safeguard the money that has been entrusted to us by our donors, by our funders, and we need to have the appropriate controls and rules in place to make sure that everything is safe.”

“Making sure that you’ve got two people in every step of that process is really helpful for having a solid internal control.”

“If this [cybersecurity] is not in your budget for next year, I would do some research and put it in your budget.”

“It’s always this continuous improvement process.”

 

Huge thank you to our sponsor, GrantsWorks!

With billions of dollars in federal grant funding available, now is the time to learn about how to apply for and manage federal grants from Patrice Davis, an expert who simplifies federal grants. Her Federal Grants Simplified Bootcamp is a six week hybrid training that gives you the freedom to access on-demand training on your schedule and to attend live weekly Q&A sessions with Patrice. Plus, GrantsWorks is an ACFRE approved continuing education provider. Use code DEGREES for 10% off your registration.

 

Resources

Grantsworks: www.grantsworksacademy.com/federal-grants-simplified 

Master Your Nonprofit Numbers: 100degreesconsulting.com/nonprofitnumbers 

Keep up to date with the podcast: @100degreesconsulting

Follow Stephanie on Instagram: @stephanie.skry/ 

Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

Visit the podcast page:  100degreesconsulting.com/internal-controls 

 

Want more of the podcast?

New episodes are released weekly! Find them all plus show notes and exclusive bonus content at 100degreesconsulting.com/podcast.

Leave us a review! Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let me know what you loved most about this episode!

Subscribe to the show so you don’t miss a thing!

build financial health

7 Strategies to Strengthen Your Nonprofit’s Financial Health

by with No Comment Uncategorized

Is your nonprofit financially healthy? Are you looking for ways to boost your organization’s long-term financial sustainability? If so, you’ve come to the right place. Before we dive into the seven ways to build your nonprofit’s financial health, let’s first discuss what it means to be a financially healthy organization. 

What is financial health? 

In short, financial health means sustainability. Are we going to be able to do this work next year? What about five or even ten years down the road? Do we have enough financial and human resources to keep doing this work as long as we need to? 

And just how do we figure out these things? By doing some math. I know. I know. But stay with me here. I know it’s a chore for most nonprofit leaders, but it is still important to determine our organization’s financial health. 

We need to answer these questions: 

•How much money do we have in the bank?

•How long could we operate if no more money comes in the door? 

•How are we spending that money?

•Where’s that money coming from? 

For all the “math haters” out there, I’ve got something just for you, The Financial Health Checkup. It’s a simple spreadsheet that will walk you through five important financial metrics and give you a crystal clear picture of how your organization stacks up. And the best part is: no math required!

After you’ve answered those questions and tracked the metrics on the spreadsheet, you’ll have your benchmark. Keep in mind a “good” number is going to look different from organization to organization. From here, we can look at ways to build or elevate your nonprofit’s financial health. 

Seven things you can do to boost your nonprofit’s financial health

1. Prepare your plan

One crucial thing that is almost always missing from strategic plans is financial management. This can be anything from providing timely analysis and forecasting for better decision-making or building a diverse, durable, and flexible revenue portfolio. Be sure to include specific things inside your strategic plan that are related to financial management. For example: maintain a fully funded six-month operating cash reserve. This is a crucial step because what gets measured gets done. 

2. Know your numbers

You may not have a clear sense of your current financial health. Maybe you just know that things don’t feel good and you want to be prepared, but you can’t pinpoint exactly what to change. That is exactly why calculating and reviewing sets of metrics that are relevant to your organization is essential. It is going to help you understand if you are financially sustainable and build a plan… rather than just crossing your fingers and hoping for the best.

3. Create a cash stash

Building a cash reserve is important for your long-term financial sustainability. If you’re living donation to donation or building a zero-based budget every year, it leaves you no money for savings. Before you start building your cash stash, you need to figure out if you already have a policy on a cash reserve and if you are adhering to it. If you don’t have one, talk to your board and think about creating one. A great starting goal is a three-month cash reserve. Create a plan for how you are going to build up your funds and start including savings transfers into your finance routine each month. 

4. Check on your bookkeeping

I know that bookkeeping feels like such a boring task that nobody wants to look at or deal with. But bookkeeping is a vital part of the financial health of your organization. You will not understand your financial health if you do not have timely, accurate bookkeeping with checks and balances to review things because it provides important data to drive decision-making.

5. Reinforce your revenue

Understanding your organization’s current revenue diversity is the crucial first step in reinforcing your revenue. From here you can figure out your current risk level and if there are any areas or periods of time that are more risky than others. Once you know exactly where your organization stands, you can create a plan to work on spreading out your risk and diversifying things. 

6. Edit your expenses

Analyzing your nonprofit’s monthly expenses to determine what’s contributing towards the growth of the organization and what is not, is the first step in editing your organization’s expenses. Look at your expense and fundraising ratios to see if there are any extra expenses your organization isn’t currently utilizing. From there, you can determine if the money can be redirected elsewhere.

7. Review your relationships

Reviewing your relationships comes in two parts, your vendors and service providers along with donor relationships. Assess all of your agreements with vendors and service providers to understand specific contract commitments, fee structures, cancellation policies, and any other financial commitments. Focus on true relationship-building with donors, going beyond asking for money. Cultivating and growing existing donors is less expensive and time-consuming than adding new donors. 

Final Thoughts and Resources

We just did a quick breakdown of the seven things you can do to build your nonprofit’s financial health. If you can’t get enough and are looking for even more information on this topic, I have some resources for you!

•FREE Financial Health Calculator 

•The 7 Ways to Build Your Nonprofit’s Financial Health Podcast Episode

•Follow us on Instagram 

•Connect with me on LinkedIn

Diverse Leadership Team

Building a Diverse Leadership Team with Jailan Adly

by with No Comment Podcast

Is your nonprofit struggling with building a diverse leadership team? Are you facing difficulty when it comes to attracting and retaining top talent? Are you finding it hard to compete with the corporate sector? These are all common challenges within the nonprofit sector, but you’re in luck! 

Our guest today, Jailan Adly is an expert on nonprofit leadership talent search. She’s helped countless organizations build successful diverse leadership teams by finding top talent for nonprofits. On today’s episode, she dives into the challenges many nonprofits face in their talent search, how to set both candidates and organizations up for success, and strategies for building a safe environment. She also discusses why she thinks CFOs are one of the most challenging roles to fill and what nuances come with attracting a nonprofit CFO. 

Plus, Jailan gives practical tips for job seekers in the nonprofit sector and how both job seekers and organizations can leverage technology. And most importantly, she discusses how a diverse and proximate leadership team can make huge strides in decolonizing the nonprofit world. 

 

About Jailan

Jailan Adly is a seasoned social impact executive and strategist with experience navigating organizations through pivotal transitions and periods of growth. Jailan leads GoodCitizen’s East Coast hub and supports the organization’s business development and strategic initiatives. Jailan joined GoodCitizen to help social sector organizations find extraordinary leaders to move the needle forward on complex challenges.

She holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from George Washington University and has spent her entire career forging mutually beneficial partnerships between diverse stakeholders from the private, public, and social sectors to build the capacity of impact-driven initiatives, individuals, and organizations. Through her work with PYXERA Global and Taproot Foundation, she supported numerous corporate social responsibility programs for Fortune 500 companies including IBM, Novartis, SAP, MetLife, John Deere, and Medtronic in more than 20 countries. She has created and led global fluency workshops to prepare business professionals to provide high-caliber consulting services to enterprises, entrepreneurs, and NGOs in emerging and frontier markets.

 

Read the podcast transcript here. 

 

Episode Summary

On today’s episode, you’ll learn how to attract and retain top nonprofit talent by setting candidates and the current leadership team up for success including:  

•Challenges nonprofits are facing with talent search in the post-covid world (3:55)

•Setting up candidates and organizations up for success (6:00)

•Things to consider when attracting and retaining top talent (9:45)

•Strategies for providing a safe and successful environment for new leaders (14:00)

•The nuances of a nonprofit CFO role (18:30)

•Why it’s important to assess the skills and leadership styles of the executive team in the search process (23:10)

•How tech plays a role in the search for nonprofit leaders (27:00)

•Advice for job seekers in the nonprofit sector (29:45)

•Strategically using ChatGPT (34:45)

•How proximate leadership helps decolonize the nonprofit world (39:40)

 

Teasers

“I think there’s a tendency to kind of fast forward to, ‘Well if we just hire diverse candidates, we’ll be okay.” But if the organizations don’t actually do the work, oftentimes they’re setting candidates of color up for failure.”

“I think there’s a conversation and a discussion that needs to be had sector-wide, right? Where the folks who are arguably dealing with the most stress, ’cause they’re on the ground doing the work, are yet nowhere near as paid as those deciding who gets the funding because of where the money is held in.”

“The advice I would give candidates in the non-profit sector and, and frankly, in any sector is: get really clear on not just the issue areas you want to work in, but the function area that you want to work in as well.”

“A prosperous nonprofit is one that has its eye on the ultimate outcome of the impact.”

 

Huge thank you to our sponsor!

This series is sponsored by Blackbaud, the essential software provider for the organizations and people who change the world. Blackbaud has been working with finance professionals at nonprofit and social good organizations for almost 40 years with its Blackbaud Financial Edge, NXT Fund, accounting software expertise, and services. You can streamline your financial operations, strengthen your accountability, and make data-driven decisions to increase your impact. To learn more, visit https://www.blackbaud.com/   

 

Resources

Connect with Jailan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jailanadly/

Check out Good Citizen’s website: https://www.goodcitizen.com/

Blackbaud Nonprofit Accounting Software: https://www.blackbaud.com/   

Keep up to date with the podcast: @100degreesconsulting

Follow Stephanie on Instagram: @stephanie.skry/ 

Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

Visit the podcast page: 100degreesconsulting.com/diverse-leadership-team  

 

Want more of the podcast?

New episodes are released weekly! Find them all plus show notes and exclusive bonus content at 100degreesconsulting.com/podcast.

Leave us a review! Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let me know what you loved most about this episode!

Subscribe to the show so you don’t miss a thing!

Trust-Based Philanthropy

Trust-Based Philanthropy with Kelsey Vatsaas

by with No Comment Podcast

Nonprofit leaders, are you seeing a trend of trust-based philanthropy in your organization? Have you seen an uptick in unrestricted funds? Maybe you’re searching for innovative ideas to use this funding. If so, you’re in the right place! In today’s episode, I chat with Kelsey Vatsaas, a nonprofit industry expert who is the managing principal of the national nonprofit industry at CLA, a top 10 professional services firm.

Kelsey dives into getting unrestricted funds from the employee retention tax credit, how you can qualify for the credit, and strategies for pursuing these tax credits. She also discusses questions to ask your accounting firm and how to spot red flags of predatory firms. 

Plus, we talk about nonprofit trends like the uptick in trust-based philanthropy across organizations and how organizations are using these funds in an innovative and unique way. Kelsey tells us about some challenges she’s seen with unrestricted funds, how to overcome them, and gives recommendations for nonprofits that receive federal grants. 

 

About Kelsey Vatsaas

Kelsey is the managing principal of the national nonprofit industry at CLA, a top 10 professional services firm. Over her career at CLA, Kelsey has been a nonprofit auditor, strategic consultant, and consulting CFO. In her current role, Kelsey works to bring the firm’s national resources, teams, and experiences to over 10,000 nonprofits for whom CLA provides a variety of services.

 

Read the podcast transcript here. 

 

Episode Summary

In today’s episode, you’ll learn strategies for evaluating your accounting firm, understanding employee retention tax credits and government funding, plus innovative ways to use trust-based philanthropy funds.

•Getting unrestricted funds through employee retention tax credits (6:00)

•How to qualify for retention tax credits (10:50)

•Avoiding predatory accounting firms (11:45)

•Red flags to avoid (17:15)

•Steps you can take to pursue employee retention credits (21:00)

•Trends in nonprofit funding (27:00)

•What trust-based philanthropy is (29:30)

•Innovative ways organizations are using unrestricted funds (30:15)

•Challenges with trust-based philanthropy (34:15)

•Recommendations for nonprofits receiving federal funding (38:20)

 

Teasers

“I’ve got a client I’m working with right now who’s got seven employees and that organization is eligible for retention tax credits. They are going to get $300,000 worth of credits, which is actual money in the bank.” 

“Let’s make sure an organization’s a good organization, but then let’s trust their leadership to do what they need to with that money. I love that.”

“You’re seeing that organizations when presented with this large, unrestricted gift are choosing to invest it back into the organization, back into their people.”

“If you are thinking about getting into the world of federal grants and there’s a lot of money available and it can be really transformational for your organization. Just make sure you have the right systems in place first so that you’re not having to go back and try and redo work and recreate things, after you already have this money.”

 

Huge thank you to our sponsor, GrantsWorks!

With billions of dollars in federal grant funding available, now is the time to learn about how to apply for and manage federal grants from Patrice Davis, an expert who simplifies federal grants. Her Federal Grants Simplified Bootcamp is a six week hybrid training that gives you the freedom to access on-demand training on your schedule and to attend live weekly Q&A sessions with Patrice. Plus, GrantsWorks is an ACFRE approved continuing education provider. Use code DEGREES for 10% off your registration.

 

Resources

Connect with Kelsey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kvatsaas/ 

Check out CLA’s website: https://blogs.claconnect.com/nonprofitinnovation/

Grantsworks: www.grantsworksacademy.com/federal-grants-simplified 

Keep up to date with the podcast: @100degreesconsulting

Follow Stephanie on Instagram: @stephanie.skry/ 

Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

Visit the podcast page:  100degreesconsulting.com/trust-based-philanthropy 

 

Want more of the podcast?

New episodes are released weekly! Find them all plus show notes and exclusive bonus content at 100degreesconsulting.com/podcast.

Leave us a review! Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let me know what you loved most about this episode!

Subscribe to the show so you don’t miss a thing!

Institutional Fundraising

Institutional Fundraising and Empowering Your Nonprofit with Ash Rogers

by with No Comment Podcast

Is your nonprofit achieving its institutional fundraising goals? What about empowering team members through its leadership structure? Did you know these things can actually go hand in hand? We are so excited for today’s episode with Ash Rogers, where she dives into institutional fundraising and decolonized leadership structure and talks about tons of practical tips and strategies. 

She tells us how she helped to transform her organization’s leadership structure into a decolonized model, how this benefits and empowers team members, as well as challenges many organizations need to overcome. Ash discusses just how this decolonized structure has helped empower her organization across several areas, including fundraising. 

We dive into institutional fundraising and the impact it has on nonprofits. Ash gives us strategies for attracting these large donors, as well as how to push back, handle disagreements with funders, and even say no to bad money. She also speaks to the importance of long-term strategic planning and how she and her co-CEO work together to achieve the organization’s goals. 

 

About Ash

Ash Rogers is Co-Chief Executive Officer of Lwala Community Alliance. Lwala matches community-led change with university-backed research and evaluation to advance quality health for all. Ash has overseen a 14-fold increase in annual revenue, exponential reach of the model, increased diversity in board membership, and publication of many peer-reviewed studies. 

Prior to Lwala, Ash was the Director of Operations at Segal Family Foundation, overseeing a $12m portfolio of 180 grantees. Ash is a Global Health Corps alum and has worked with organizations including Komo Learning Centres and HELP International. Ash serves as a board member of the Community Health Impact Coalition, Orkeeswa School and Komo Learning Centres. The through line of Ash’s work is shifting power and money so that local leaders go from local impact to system-level change. Ash holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington and a BA in Political Science from Brigham Young University.

Read the podcast transcript here. 

 

Episode Summary

On today’s episode, you’ll learn how you can boost your organization’s institutional fundraising and empower your leadership team including:

•How Ash helped restructure Lwala’s leadership structure (7:00)

•What a decolonized leadership model looks like (8:30)

•Benefits and challenges of a decolonized leadership structure (11:30)

•Developing a fundraising strategy as a co-CEO (13:55)

•One of the best tactical ways to find funders (17:10)

•Strategies for attracting large donors (20:00)

•How to handle disagreements with funders (21:50)

•Saying no to bad money (26:00)

•Overcoming challenges of transformational giving (28:10)

•Long-term strategic planning for fundraising (31:30)

 

Teasers

“Everything’s a co-decision. That sounds real tough. I feel like the best analogy is a marriage where you have some separate responsibilities.”

“I think funders also are people who often deeply care about this work and have their own technical knowledge and experience and they want to engage in real conversations.”

“I think it’s really important to be able to engage with people, to tell them when you disagree, to have debates with them about real ideas. I think people can feel the authenticity of that.”

“You need to have your own kind of boundaries and parameters about the money that you’ll take.”

“It doesn’t have to be expensive and detailed and cumbersome to be able to put together this big vision that then you can share that can help advance your fundraising and your revenue generation, conversations, and activities.”

 

Huge thank you to our sponsor!

This series is sponsored by Blackbaud, the essential software provider for the organizations and people who change the world. Blackbaud has been working with finance professionals at nonprofit and social good organizations for almost 40 years with its Blackbaud Financial Edge, NXT Fund, accounting software expertise, and services. You can streamline your financial operations, strengthen your accountability, and make data-driven decisions to increase your impact. To learn more, visit https://www.blackbaud.com/   

 

Resources

•Connect with Ash on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/asrogers/ 

•Check out Lwala’s website: https://lwala.org/  

•Blackbaud Nonprofit Accounting Software: https://www.blackbaud.com/   

•Keep up to date with the podcast: @100degreesconsulting

•Follow Stephanie on Instagram: @stephanie.skry/ 

•Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

•Visit the podcast page: https://100degreesconsulting.com/institutional-fundraising  

 

Want more of the podcast?

New episodes are released weekly! Find them all plus show notes and exclusive bonus content at 100degreesconsulting.com/podcast. Leave us a review! Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let me know what you loved most!

7 Ways to Build Your Nonprofit's Financial Health

7 Ways to Build Your Nonprofit’s Financial Health

by with No Comment Podcast

Is your nonprofit financially healthy? If you’re thinking, “Well, what exactly does financially healthy even mean?” Then, you’re in the right place! On today’s podcast episode, Stephanie covers everything you need to know about your organization’s financial health, sustainability, and how to make improvements so you can continue to have a lasting impact on the communities you serve. 

She breaks down the seven financial metrics your nonprofit should be tracking, common pain points in organizations, and strategies for overcoming financial obstacles and increasing sustainability. Plus, a super simple way to find things your organization is paying for, but no longer using, helping you cut down on costs. 

Stephanie also dives into the number one thing most strategic plans are missing, and why it can be detrimental to a nonprofit’s sustainability. As well as the critical role building and fostering relationships plays in an organization’s financial health. She has helped countless nonprofits understand where they are in terms of financial health and how to elevate the way they are managing their finances. Now she’s sharing her wealth of knowledge (pun intended) with you! 

Read the podcast transcript here. 

Episode Summary

On today’s episode, you’ll learn how you can boost your nonprofit’s financial health including:

• The best way to figure out if your nonprofit is sustainable (2:55)

• How to calculate your metrics (5:10)

• Why your budget shouldn’t always be “break-even” (8:30)

• Where you can find templates and tools you need to enhance the way you’re managing your organization’s money (15:00)

• Seven things you can do to turn your organization into a financially healthy one (16:00)

• The number one thing most strategic plans are missing (17:10)

• A major pain point in most organizations (22:15)

• How relationships play a key role in the financial health of your organization (26:45)

• Recap of the financial metrics you need to be measuring (30:50

Teasers

“For better or for worse, we as nonprofit organizations are rated on the way that we are spending our money.”

“Just understanding your asset composition is an important place to start on your balance sheet.”

“We need to know exactly where we are right now so we can make good strategic decisions as to what to change.”

“I can almost guarantee that you are gonna find some unused subscription, something you’re paying for that you didn’t really need anymore.”

Resources

FREE Financial Health Calculator: https://100degreesconsulting.com/health  

Keep up to date with the podcast: @100degreesconsulting

Follow Stephanie on Instagram: @stephanie.skry/ 

Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

Visit the podcast page: www.100degreesconsulting.com/nonprofit-financial-health 

Want more of the podcast?

New episodes are released weekly! Find them all plus show notes and exclusive bonus content at 100degreesconsulting.com/podcast.

Leave us a review! Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let me know what you loved most about this episode!

Subscribe to the show so you don’t miss a thing!

Process Improvement and Managing Change with Margaret Chapman

Process Improvement and Managing Change with Margaret Chapman

by with No Comment Podcast

Nonprofit leaders, when is the last time you did a process improvement audit for your organization? Does just the thought of it make you cringe or give you all the thoughts of overwhelm? If so, fear not! Today, you’re in luck because we have a special guest, Margaret Chapman, who is an expert in implementing strategic and meaningful changes in nonprofit backend processes. She’s going to break down some strategies for us and give us a wealth of information starting with strategic planning. 

Margaret shares with us strategies for making your strategic plan a tactical document your organization will actually use, instead of putting it together once every three years, shoving it in a closet, and never looking at it again. If this is your organization, there is no judgment here! It happens a lot more often than you think. That’s why we are so excited to dive into process improvement for backend systems with Margaret! 

Read the podcast transcript here.

About Margaret

Margaret Chapman, MBA, MA, CNAP has spent the last 20 years of her career helping organizations with their finance, operations, fundraising and overall programmatic strategy. From national candidates and multi-billion dollar nonprofits to small start-ups, she leverages what’s unique about each group to ensure they are able to leap to the next phase in their growth.

Specifically, Margaret focuses on using strategic planning methods in building robust back office systems that fit the needs of the organization. Rethinking staffing, accounting, and operational structures are her specialty.

Throughout her career, Margaret has worked to make financial analysis, processes, and all things money approachable for all audiences. Dealing with numbers is often anxiety-producing but Margaret translates finance-speak into easily understandable concepts and practices that every organization can efficiently implement and feel confident in sharing.

Episode Summary

On today’s episode, you’ll learn strategies for process improvement and leveraging your organization’s strategic plan including:

• Common challenges nonprofits are seeing right now (12:55)

• What components your strategic plan needs to have to be a successful, tactical document (16:00)

• One of the most common missing pieces of a nonprofit strategic plan (18:00)

• One strategy for getting the bigger picture of what is going on in the organization (22:50)

• Proven strategies for managing change in an organization (27:00)

• What happens when you empower your team members (30:00)

• Creating a culture of improvement (36:05)

Teasers

“I think strategic planning is a lot more about what you’re not doing often times than what you are doing.”

“I’m not sure that we could get any more inefficient than that, having someone physically drive checks across the city for a signature. But that’s the way that they had always done it.”

“Change is hard, even if it’s a change that we know will probably improve our lives and our ability to do our work.”

“It’s really engaging the people who are having to do it every day and saying, what are your ideas for how to do this better?”

“This is how we’ve always done it is not always a bad thing. I think the key is to continuously review and continuously think about is there a way that we could iterate and make this better, or is this process working really well?”

Resources

• Follow Margaret on Instagram: @jamstrategies

• Keep up with Margaret on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JaMStrategies 

• Connect with Margaret on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/margaret-chapman-mba/ 

• Check out Margaret’s website: https://jamstrategies.com/ 

• FREE Cash Forecast Spreadsheet: https://100degreesconsulting.com/cash 

• Keep up to date with the podcast: @100degreesconsulting 

• Follow Stephanie on Instagram: @stephanie.skry

• Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

Want more of the podcast?

  • New episodes are released weekly! Find them all plus show notes and exclusive bonus content at 100degreesconsulting.com/podcast
  • Leave us a review! Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let me know what you loved most about this episode!
  • Subscribe to the show so you don’t miss a thing
Participatory Budgeting: How to Create Your Best Budget Yet

Participatory Budgeting: How to Create Your Best Budget Yet

by with No Comment Podcast

Nonprofit leaders, are you looking for a better way to budget this year? A process that actually builds morale instead of squashing it? Sounds too good to be true, right? It doesn’t have to be! In this episode, Stephanie discusses the participatory budgeting process. She does a deep dive into what exactly participatory budgeting is, and equally, if not more importantly, what it is NOT. Hint: it is NOT a free-for-all.  

Participatory budgeting is an innovative way for nonprofits to include their team in a process that has often been part of a power dynamic in organizations. This approach helps leaders to dismantle this power structure present in the organization where one party holds all the money and the power. It’s also an excellent way to boost morale and buy-in as well as encourage accountability and transparency.

While collaborative budgeting is an excellent strategy for nonprofits to implement, that’s not to say it doesn’t come with its challenges. Stephanie has worked with countless nonprofits throughout this process and has seen her fair share of the challenges they face. With her expertise and guidance, she has helped these nonprofits overcome these obstacles. Now, she’s sharing these proven strategies with you! 

Read the podcast transcript here.

Episode Summary

On today’s episode, you’ll learn strategies to help you create a more collaborative budgeting process including: 

• What participatory budgeting is (5:00)

• What participatory budgeting is NOT (7:05)

• What to do before putting a single number on a spreadsheet (9:00)

• How to include team members in the budgeting process (11:45)

• How to avoid getting back 15 different spreadsheets that all look differently (13:00)

• How to keep morale high during this process (15:15)

• Challenges with participatory budgeting (18:45)

• Creating a line item wish list (21:30)

• Tips for making participatory budgeting successful (23:00)

Teasers

“Nobody knows those line items in those departmental budgets better than the people who are actually running those programs.”

“What is most important here is transparency.”

“What we need to take away from this is that not every single thing that people suggest and people want is going to happen.”

“We are actively working to dismantle the innate power structure present in the organization where one party holds all the money and the power.”

“We want to have more meaningful dialogue organization-wide on the direction that the organization is going.”

Resources

• FREE Cash Forecast Spreadsheet: https://100degreesconsulting.com/cash 

• Keep up to date with the podcast: https://www.instagram.com/100degreesconsulting/ 

• Follow Stephanie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephanie.skry/ 

• Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanieskryzowski/ 

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