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Financial Fitness for Boards
Does everyone on your board have a clear understanding of the
organization's financial position? Are board members focusing on the right
issues? ESC's Financial Fitness for Boards training session is useful for
all board members, regardless of their financial management knowledge or
skills. Here's why:
- Board members who do not have financial backgrounds are not familiar with finance issues and systems. They may be unclear about their fiduciary responsibilities to the organization, and may micro-manage financial issues.
- Board members who do have a background in finance may not be familiar with the unique aspects of nonprofit financial management - like restricted funds and functional expenses.
- The board's fiduciary role is an equal responsibility of all members. Your organization will benefit when all board members are on the same page and are able to perform oversight functions effectively.
Financial Fitness for Boards begins with a thorough assessment of your organization's finances. The assessment will show where your organization is on a developmental scale, and reveals areas where there are opportunities to improve financial management practices.
An ESC finance consultant will share the results of the assessment with your board during a two-hour training session. The training session uses your organization's own financial reports as examples, and covers the following topics:
- Assessment report
- Financial oversight and the role of the board
- Budgets - types of budgets, their purpose, and how the board can use the budget to better understand the organization's performance
- Financial reports - how to read and use them to provide oversight
- Audits and reviews - what they are, how they differ, and the role of the board audit committee