Can you describe your ideal setup for OTW finances going forward, given that many of you flagged the current situation as an issue?
Without knowing all the details of our current situation, it’s difficult to outline a comprehensive plan. I hope by now a thorough internal audit has taken place and a draft budget for 2016 has been started.
Ideally, I think we need a Finance committee who can help guide and supervise the OTW’s financial practices. They would be responsible for handling taxes, tracking and analyzing spending, ensuring we have adequate internal controls, managing accounts, and developing the annual budget. Board should work closely with the Finance committee to ensure the committee is staying on track and meeting its responsibilities.
There is currently no internal or external auditing structure checking the OTW’s bookkeeping (no legal worries, here: the Delaware state laws do not require annual auditing from nonprofits). If you join Board, is this something you would like to change? If so, how?
I would like there to be an internal audit each year to ensure our finances are being managed responsibly. I also think we should consider having an independent CPA review every three years; this review would be presented to our members and posted publicly for review.
Our finances are currently being overseen by only one person with actual decisional and content-producing power, which is concerning in terms of transparency, and efficiency. If elected, how would you go about building a sound administrative Financial structure for the Organization?
As mentioned above, I think we need a strong Finance committee who can help guide and supervise the OTW’s financial practices. This committee should have at minimum 3-5 staffers who have experience with handling finances, preferably in a nonprofit setting. These staffers would work closely with committee chairs and Board to ensure all finances are managed responsibly.
I saw many concerns about finances in the candidates’ statements, but I did not see outsourcing financial oversight mentioned as a solution. I’d like to know what the candidates think about outsourcing (paying for) some responsibilities, in particular engaging a company with a background in financial services for non-profits.
Again, as mentioned above, I am very much for this idea. The OTW has reached the stage where I believe it would be beneficial to seek professional advice from trained accountants. While I don’t think we need to outsource all financial management, I do think we should have an external audit by a licensed CPA done every three years. Eventually we may need to investigate having formal external audits done more regularly, however due to the cost I don’t think they are needed as of yet.