Nonprofit organizations must abide by numerous accounting standards and regulations. Making their accounting functions burdensome and difficult. With our experience in the non-profit sector, we understand how difficult these functions can become.
However, there is no need to worry. As some of these difficulties can be reduced with the assistance of a full-service accounting team. We’ve compiled a list of typical accounting issues non-profit’s encounter along with their solutions.
Grant Tracking
Non-profits get donations and grants from numerous sources, making it difficult to keep track of collection and reporting. These organizations MUST have accurate and timely data to make clear business decisions.
However, the challenge comes when these organizations have accounting teams made up of part-time bookkeepers, volunteer accountants, and multi-tasking team members. The inconsistency in bookkeeping and accounting makes it difficult to ensure all receipts, invoices, donations, expenses, and payroll transactions are recorded into a system accordingly.
Accurate Financial Reports
Once an organization has mastered organized financial data, then you must make sense of it through financial reports.
At minimum a non-profit organization should be able to observe and understand their balance sheet, income statement, cash flow report, budget to actual. Your financial reports must be timely, accurate, and consistent.
Stauffer & Associates has the ability to tailor a full-service accounting package to cover everything from the basics to the boardroom. Providing you with top of the line user friendly financial reports so you feel fully prepared to present to the board
Modernizing The Organization Accounting System
A large number of organizations have cluttered filing cabinets and an inbox piled three feet high with paper invoices, because “this is how we’ve always done it.”
Adopting clear, uncomplicated methods that rely on technology to save you time and effort. Simple operations like entering bank deposits and credit card transfers by updating your accounting software.
Our team of professionals are here for you, and here to provide you with knowledge. We want to push your organization to the next level. We are committed to always staying up to date with new and improved technologies and software to better serve our clients.
Accounting for Grants
Grants can completely alter your financial situation. It makes sense that you’re eager to begin writing grants. Until you notice the workload it can have on your accounting department.
A non-profit organization faces a variety of new accounting issues when adding grants to its revenue portfolio.
To secure the funding, you must first present current and accurate (often audited or approved) financials. To maintain your funding, you will then need to provide your grant writer with monthly financial updates. Second, many grants are exclusively issued for certain programs or a certain type of expense. Which results in the need to track grant funds separately to ensure how much has been spent and what you’ve spent it on. While it takes a lot of time and may be risky to handle grant tracking on your own.
Rather, seek out a professional that specializes in tackling the unique difficulties faced by charity tracking.
Recording Payroll
For non-profit organizations payroll requires special compliance and concerns. Many nonprofits have employees, volunteers, and contractors. Making it difficult to determine how to categorize everyone. However, you must do so correctly, to properly withhold and pay your federal and state payroll taxes.
Underutilized grant funds or misusing grant funds may be caused by the absence of payroll tracking by grant fund. If your organization is struggling with this, we suggest reaching out to our team of professionals at Stauffer & Associates to help you navigate non-profit payroll challenges. We will help simplify your payroll processing and tax management, with access to our support team when you have questions.