Course summary

Well done on completing this course. Here is a summary of the key ideas from the course. We encourage you to discuss what you have learnt with your team.

“Maintaining strong budgeting practices is crucial for the sustainability and success of any non-profit organisation.”

Importance of budgeting:

• A budget really should be a piece of guidance that all organisations look to in order to understand whether they’re on track in terms of income, or whether or not they have the ability to spend what they need to.
• Really valuable budgets are ones that are prepared with input from across the organisation. These are owned by everyone in the organisation and they enable the leadership to make informed decisions about resources that are required, or perhaps make difficult decisions when deficits might be predicted and when cuts in certain areas might be needed.

Ideas to bring budgeting to life:

• Align budget to mission
• Diversify income streams
• Gain awareness with better expense categories
• Check your program and activity budget
• Use your previous financial information to create a forecast
• Build a sustainability fund
• Create transparency in your budgeting
• Seek appropriate board involvement in your budget
• Check compliance with your donors
• Budget for your fundraising strategy
• Monitor and control costs
• Evaluate and adapt your budget process
• Delegate the day to day budget
• Report monthly numbers compared to your budget
• Make budgeting an inclusive process

Cash flow planning:

Cash flow planning is an extension of budgeting, linking the allocation of resources with the management of available funds. Budgeting serves as the foundation. Cash flow projections break it down into operational details, helping the organisation anticipate cash inflows and outflows. This integration ensures that the organisation has the needed funds at the right time, maintaining financial stability and aligning short-term financial management with long-term goals.

Ideas to maximise your cash planning:

• Understand your income sources
• Create a cash flow projection
• Include your cash reserve
• Track cash flow regularly
• Implement cash flow management tools
• Manage receivable and payables
• Plan for seasonal variations
• Plan for different scenarios
• Keep your board involved
• Seek expert advice
• Regularly review and adjust your projections
• Keep close track of your bank and cash balances

Leaders guide questions:

• What 3 action steps can you take to bring life into your budgeting process?
• What is your current cashflow planning? In what ways can you change the process to serve you better?
• After reading through the ideas to maximise your cashflow planning, what action steps will you take?