You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off you.
Maya Angelou
Searching for income for your organisation should be a responsibility that your board and managers work together to achieve. Without income, what will you be able to achieve?
Each organisation will have different financial management, depending on your local legislation, the size of your organisation and your income. All organisations need to have good financial management, because:
- You have a duty to use the resources you are entrusted with to have the most impact you can
- You have a duty to ensure your activities are legal
- It allows you to plan for the future, knowing your budget
You should make sure that in your organisation there are clear responsibilities for:
- Who handles cash
- Who has access to your bank accounts (at least two people, not related)
- Who can sign cheques (at least two people, not related)
- Who can pay bills
- That the person with access to the accounts cannot take out money or reimburse their own expenses without the permission of someone else (not related to them)
- Who can access the bookkeeping
- Preparing and scrutinising the accounts
These are only the most basic systems. Your board should ensure that there are policies in place to ensure that these responsibilities and risks are clear.
Reflection Questions
- Who is responsible for the money for your project?
- What systems do you have in place?
- What do you need to do to improve your systems?