Budget Module Refresher

Abila MIP Budget Module

• Allows you to budget by any chart of account segment
• Allows you to pull in up to 2 comparative columns to develop budget
• Allows you to have an unlimited number of budget versions
• Allows you access to budget specific reports to develop and maintain budget
• Allows you to budget based on any budget cycle
• Allows you to easily modify and develop the budget using the budget worksheet
• Easily make and track budget revisions

Microix Budget Module

• Establish a workflow and involve staff in the budget development process
• Budget by position for payroll and benefits with import of employees from Abila MIP payroll module
• Historical data can be refreshed from MIP general ledger to make sure you are working with the latest data
• Distributes the budget using MIP distribution codes
• Ability to use budget assumptions and narratives in the budget worksheets
• Seamless integration with Abila MIP Fund Accounting

Nonprofit Forum - September, 2017 online: Overlooked Benefits of Outsourcing

September 27, 2017 (Wednesday) 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. EST

(11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) Overlooked Benefits of Outsourcing Nonprofit Accounting

(12:30 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.) How to Have the Best Possible Accounting System

Register Here

Detailed Agenda:

• Has your organization ever looked at outsourcing all or a portion of its accounting? If not, it is because you’re not sure how the organization would benefit from this decision. Since it is not a common practice for nonprofits to outsource its accounting, we will discuss the process and discuss the overlooked benefits of outsourcing your Nonprofit Accounting.
• In the nonprofit community, outsourcing typically means long-term delegation of key operation to outside experts. The accompanying expectation is improvement of the quality, strengthening effectiveness, and lowering or controlling costs.
• A key difference in the nonprofit sector is not only controlling costs, but becoming a more effective organization.
• Outsourcing accounting provides nonprofit organizations with a team of experts who have multiple client experiences which benefits its clients and the nonprofit organization’s it serves.
• We will review six overlooked, and sometimes unknown, benefits of outsourcing nonprofit accounting.
• This webinar will help Executive Directors, Finance Directors, and finance staff to develop and use a financial policies and procedures manual. Savvy nonprofit leaders know that effective financial policies and procedures that lead to effective processes can be the difference between good and great performance.
• We will answer this and more. We will review and provide you with a candid conversation of the benefits and disadvantages of outsourcing nonprofit accounting. Immediately following the presentation on benefits of outsourcing nonprofit accounting, we will host a discussion on how to have the best possible accounting system.

Register Here

Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable-MIP Spotlight

We will be focusing each Module of the Month on a particular software module or application that helps our clients.  We are going to focus this article on the Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable Module.   We will focus on tips and tricks during the MIP User Group portion of the August 30, 2017 FTM Nonprofit Forum.  Our module refresher will include the following topics:

1. Accounts Payable Query for Vendor Balances and Activity
2. Changing AP Invoices after posting and check production
3. Voiding a Check
4. When to use Accounts Payable Invoices versus Cash Disbursements
5. Setting up unposted and posted transaction reports for Accounts Payable Invoices
6. Using the AP reports to include Accounts Payable Aging and Vendor Activity
7. Assigning Manual Checks and bank payments to Invoices
8. Best Practices to enter in credit card charges
9. Setting up an after the fact Accounts Receivable Invoice

Let us help you to maximize your use of the MIP Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable Modules.   Our firm and staff use MIP Fund Accounting on a daily basis so let us help you maximize the use of this powerful application.

How your board can provide effective financial governance for your organization?

In the nonprofit community, board members don’t typically provide effective financial governance.
 
A key difference in the nonprofit sector is that the board focus in on the nonprofit’s mission and not the finances or profits.

The following are some essential financial governance areas that your board should be performing for your organization.

1.    Financial tracking by funds and program.  It is not good enough just to know if your organization has a surplus or a deficit for the organization.  You should know if your funds and programs are generating a surplus or deficit.  It is impossible to perform your financial stewardship role if you don’t know which funds or programs you are overspending or underspending.

2.    Financial reports need to be produced monthly.  It is imperative that you receive financial reports at least monthly.   You can only perform your financial governance role if you can help the organization to anticipate and plan for changes based on financial results.  It is important that these financial reports are timely and accurate to avoid making the wrong financial decisions.  The financial reports should be goal oriented to allow the financial governance to focus on its accomplishments.  Best practices financial reporting would include both budget and historical variance financial analysis.

3.    Financial health is priority.  Poor financial health usually results when no one knows the financial condition and when one person controls all financial information.  Significant comments from the annual audit and staff turnover are also indicators of poor financial health.  It is important that the board pays attention when these conditions exist and work towards increasing financial expertise and capacity.  Financially healthy organizations hold themselves accountable, understand roles, and maintain compliance with adequate and qualified staff.  Effective board and management practices are essential for segregation of duties and internal controls.   These board financial practices should promote communication, expectations, and operating efficiencies so the organization can be monitored efficiently and effectively.

4.    Proper Accounting Software.  Many nonprofits use manual or commercial applications to perform nonprofit accounting.   It is important that you provide the finance staff with the right tools and accounting software to do the job properly.   It is important the you ask question regarding how you track financial information.  Some financial questions to ask might be like do you track financial information by funding source, by program, and by accounts.  You should review accounting software and tools annually to see what additional software modules or needed including whether you have outgrown your current software.  It is important that organizations review software that is designed for nonprofit organizations.   Nonprofit accounting software typically allows you to integrate third party systems like fundraising and payroll to increase efficiencies of various systems.

5.    Financial stewardship.  All board members need to act as financial stewards not just the treasurer for the nonprofit’s that they govern.  Unfortunately, board members don’t take this role seriously enough and thus organization’s fail financially which significantly reduces public trust.  Board members must understand financial stewardship and make it a priority for the organization that they govern.  Board financial practices should include financial policies and procedures that promote stewardship and accountability.

6.    Budget Management.  Board members need to work to enable management to know when to modify programs and operations.   It is important the budgets be realistic and revenue based to anticipate any shortfalls.  Budget management should include budget projections and cash flow management to insure stable nonprofit operations and programming.

7.    Financial Reserves.   Board member financial stewardship roles should include establishing financial reserves for the organization.   Financial supporters would rather support well established and financial stable organizations.   It is important board and management are committed to generating an operating surplus and positive cash balances.   It takes a lot of financial discipline to establish financial reserves.   A nonprofit is typically financially stable once it can generate financial reserves of several months of operating reserves.  The financial reserves are essential to shield the organization from reductions or delays in funding.

8.    Financial Plans.  Board members need to have financial plans for the organization.   Just as an individual has a financial plan that changes as the individuals needs changes, the nonprofit needs financial plans that are reviewed and modified as needed.  Financial goals and strategies should change and anticipate the future.

   

I challenge you to review these financial governance areas within your organization to see how you are performing your financial governance role.  As a board member, it is important that you help the organization perform its financial role and not just rely on the Treasurer or Executive Director to perform this role.   It is important that you don’t just assume financial governance is occurring, but verify that it is actually taking place.

We need to equip board members with the tools and abilities to perform the financial governance roles.  Board members need to verify that management and staff has the proper capacity and expertise to perform the finance function for the organization.  If the organization does not have the proper internal resources, then they may need to look for outside expertise.

Board Financial Reports and Other Governance Issues-MIP Spotlight

We will be focusing each Module of the Month on a particular software module or application that helps our clients.  We are going to focus this article on the Abila MIP Report Writer to assist with board financial reports preparation.   You can use financial reports to assist the board with its financial governance role. This Module and Application allows our clients to do the following financial reports:

1. Statement of Revenues and Expenditures 
2. Combining Statement of Revenues and Expenditures
3. Statement of Revenues and Expenditures by Period
4. Balance Sheet
5. Combining Balance Sheet
6. Statement of Cash Flows
7. Statement of Financial Position
8. Statement of Activities
9. Statement of Functional Expense

Let us help you to maximize your use of the MIP financial reports writer application.   Our firm and staff use MIP Fund Accounting on a daily basis so let us help you maximize the use of this powerful application.

These financial reports can be customized to meet specific needs of nonprofit organizations.   The financial reports for board's typically include budget or historical information to allow for financial analysis.

Form 990 Key Reports-MIP Spotlight

We will be focusing each Module of the Month on a particular software module or application that helps our clients.  We are going to focus this article on the Abila MIP Report Writer to assist with Form 990 preparation.   You can use financial statements and Form 990 worksheets to assist and for suporting documentation to prepare this form.  This Module and Application allows our clients to do the following:

1. Form 990-Part VIII-Statement of Revenue
2. Form 990-Part IX-Statement of Functional Expenses
3. Form 990-Part X-Balance Sheet
4. Form 990-Part XI-Reconciliation of Net Assets
5. Form 990-Part 1-Summarized Statement of Revenues and Expenses
6. Form 990-Schedule A-Schedule of Support
7. Form 990-Schedule B-Schedule of Contributors
   

Let us help you to maximize your use of the MIP Form 990 report writer application.   Our firm and staff use MIP Fund Accounting on a daily basis so let us help you maximize the use of this powerful application.

The MIP worksheets are for Form Form 990, Part 1, Part VIII, Part IX, and Part X.  While this supporting documentation is preset, it does require you to assign the proper setup during the chart of account setup.   Another more flexible option is to use the financial and transaction reports to setup whichever tax form you need and use the report writer.

Abila MIP Fund Accounting Report Writer - Application Spotlight

We will be focusing each Module of the Month on a particular software module or application that helps our clients.  We are going to focus this article on the Abila MIP Built-In Report Writer.   This Module and Application allows our clients to do the following:

1. Setup Grant specific reporting formatting
2. Group chart of accounts segments
3. Board and Management Financial Reporting
4. Date and Formula based custom columns
5. Setup report formats to produce graphs and charts
6. Produce financial reports for auditor including statement of functional expense
7. Product trend reports by month, by quarter, and by year

Let us help you to maximize your use of the report writer application.   Our firm and staff use MIP Fund Accounting on a daily basis so let us help you maximize the use of this powerful application.

The grant specific reporting would be to setup a custom statement format.   The report group feature allows you to group the various chart of accounts segments.   The balance sheet and statement of revenues and expenditures are typically used to produce board and executive management reporting.  The custom column feature on certain report templates allows to to setup custom columns.  You can setup chart and graph formats directly from within the report writer.   We typically provide the statement of functional expense and schedule of federal awards for our clients including numerous other auditor reports.  The revenue and expenses by period report allow you review trends based on different historical periods.

Contact us to see what we can do to help your financial reporting using MIP Fund Accounting.