Energized Accounting

Christmas time again!

Calling All Entrepreneurs Troubled is how she looked. It’s not the expression you want to see when you happen to meet the manager of a nonprofit you chair on the street. What’s wrong? I asked. Nothing, she answered. I was just surprised to see you....Continue reading

The Bill & Melinda Gates foundation is suing a Canadian firm for misusing a grant. https://globalnews.ca//gates-foundation-sues-canadian-com/ This should be a wake up call for all charities accepting grants: be careful and consistent in the way you allocate overhead / administration / indirect costs to programs. The Gates Foundation has specific rules https://docs.gatesfoundation.org/d/indirect_cost_policy.pdf about what they will allow and what percentage of the grant m...ay go to indirect costs (e.g. rent in this case). I have seen charities attempting to track indirect expenses in separate spreadsheets. This isn't a good idea. It's better to build an allocation process into the system, not just to make the results more auditable, but more importantly so that managers and the Board also understand the true costs of programs. I feel for the company involved, but when you receive a $30 million grant, you have to do the accounting!

As accountants, we don't always consider how information is communicated, but, as this article points out, that is as important as what is being communicated.

Do accountants care about their clients’ numbers? Of course they do!! Read here, Accountants Care More Than You Think http://ow.ly/phUx30m0hVj #accounting #volunteering #charities