July 7, 2017
Innovate 2017 Takeaways: Connecting Data to Tell a Story of Impact
This year, at Innovate, attendees saw some fascinating presentations by subject experts in a variety of fields and gained valuable insights to bring back to their respective organizations. Jeremy Aranda’s memorable session covered the importance of connecting data to mission — a subject that’s beneficial to all nonprofits. We’ve compiled an overview of the presentation…
June 28, 2017
How to Increase the Transparency of Your Nonprofit’s Financial ReportingFinancial Reporting Challenges for Nonprofits Most of the organizations we work with experience the same challenges. They’re dependent on manual processes, pulling data from unintegrated systems, and have almost no real visibility into their operations. If these issues sound familiar to your organization, you’re not alone. In fact, 70% of nonprofits struggle with at least…
June 20, 2017
What Happened at Innovate This Year?Innovate Conference Supports Nonprofit Mission Throughout the Year Recently, JMT Consulting hosted our annual customer conference Innovate 2017. Hundreds were in attendance to receive hands-on training for financial management solutions along with thought leadership sessions geared toward C-Level nonprofit financial executives. INNOVATE 2017 was kicked off at an open-air welcome reception at the Margaritaville restaurant…
June 16, 2017
Innovate 2017 Takeaways: How to Create a Drama-Free Work EnvironmentInnovate 2017 had so many incredible speakers that it can be hard to recall all the great information shared during the conference. To solve that problem, we’re providing lecture summaries from some of the speakers who took part in the Financial Leadership Track. Davidoff’s session on eliminating workplace drama was one to remember. Who is…
June 8, 2017
How to Make Sure Your Nonprofit Gets the Most Out of #GivingTuesdayGiving Tuesday is November 28, 2017. With summer just beginning, it’s hard to think about something so far away. But as a nonprofit, Giving Tuesday campaigns should be part of your strategy, and—if done right—the kickoff to your year-end push for donations Last year, on this global day of giving, people gave over $168 million…
May 24, 2017
How to Get Board Buy-in for a Financial Management SystemYou may feel like hanging on to your legacy financial management system is saving you money, when in reality, it’s costing you big time. Your outdated systems and manual processes are costing you productivity—and ultimately, time and money. You may already know the secret to saving time and freeing up resources. Maybe it’s your board…
May 17, 2017
How to Know When it’s Time to Ditch QuickbooksAs Nonprofits Grow, They Quickly Outgrow Quickbooks Quickbooks offers an effective introductory accounting system for new, small businesses. It’s easy to use, efficient and provides solid reports. However, as nonprofits grow, organizations invariably face new financial management challenges and they quickly find that Quickbooks isn’t a scalable solution for their accounting needs. Data entry and…
May 8, 2017
One-on-One with John AlfonsoJohn Alfonso is an accomplished CPA with over 30 years of experience providing audit, accounting, and consulting services to not-for-profit organizations. He works extensively with associations, community development corporations, educational institutions, private foundations, religious organizations, governmental entities, and social service agencies. Based in New York, John is a partner in CohnReznick’s Not-for-Profit and Education Industry…
May 2, 2017
One-on-One with Thomas PeffFeatured Speaker at Innovate 2017 Thomas Peff has implemented business change and driven growth at both early and late stage companies in a variety of financial, operational and principal investment roles. He currently serves as Director of Finance at Adaptive Insights, a high-growth enterprise software company. Prior to Adaptive Insights, he held roles as an…
April 27, 2017
Get Accessibility Anywhere with Cloud-Based Financial ManagementMore Nonprofits are Switching to Cloud-Based Financial Management Systems The trend is clear. Cloud-based options offer benefits that include automated billing and revenue management, simplified compliance with regulations, cheaper IT support and increased efficiency for organizations. One of the most alluring assets provided by cloud-based systems, however, is the incredible mobility they provide. The mobile…
April 21, 2017
What’s wrong with your chart of accounts and the solutions you need to make it rightIn the most basic terms, a Chart of Accounts (COA) gives a complete listing of every account in your accounting system. To a nonprofit financial manager or controller, a chart of accounts is much more than that. Your chart of accounts is the framework that gives insight into your nonprofit organization’s financial health. If well-designed,…
April 13, 2017
Save Time and Free Up Resources With Cloud-Based Financial Management SystemsIf you work for a nonprofit, odds are you’re looking for ways to save time and free up resources so that your organization can focus on its primary mission. But when it comes to financial management systems, that desire can sometimes be misguided. For instance, many nonprofit finance managers believe that hanging on to their…
March 30, 2017
From Managers to the Board Members: How to Show Them the Data They WantManaging finances for a nonprofit organization means getting visibility into how your organization is achieving its mission. Program managers, CFOs, CEOs, and board members all need insight into different aspects of the financial and operational data to make the right decisions. How can you be sure every decision maker on every level is equipped with…
March 23, 2017
Why Every Nonprofit Needs Dashboards to Resolve the Visibility IssueAs a CFO of a nonprofit, you not only face unique challenges in business and finance but also experience significant pressure to prove you’re making the right decisions about your organization. Board members and stakeholders expect to see you’re making informed and successful decisions about your organization’s financial matters. More than ever, donors want transparency…
March 16, 2017
Why Your Nonprofit Needs to Measure KPIs (and How to Get Started)When working with nonprofit organizations, I see the same common financial management challenges time and again: lack of visibility, data pulled from too many sources without integration, disparate types of data, and extensive use of manual processes like spreadsheets to analyze, track, and report. Does any of this sound familiar in your organization? Because of…
March 14, 2017
Is Your Financial Data Safe From the Storms?Is Winter Storm Stella going to be your deciding factor for finally moving to the cloud? With this megastorm threatening much of the Northeast, your on-premise systems are in danger of being compromised. From having redundant data to dispersed geography and backup disaster recovery (BDR) processes, cloud computing protects organizations of all sizes from a…
March 3, 2017
Why Your Grant Management isn’t Working (and How to Fix it)A special breed of nonprofits, Community Action Agencies are the primary source of direct support for the more the 34.5 million people living in poverty in the United States. Community Action Agencies and Head Start Programs serve more than 16 million individuals and more than 3 million families every year. While exhibiting at the Annual…
