Digging the Data: What Is the Story Behind the Numbers?

$20.00 – $120.00

Are you benefitting from all your financial data has to offer?  Financial reports reveal far more than just whether you’re in the red or the black.  They tell the story of your current financial situation, your capacity to provide services and even forecast your future financial sustainability, IF you know where to look!

This class will begin with a brief review of the three principal nonprofit financial reports, their parts, and how they are all related, remind you of some key definitions to shake off the dust, and then we’ll share some in-depth analytical tools to help you make sense of the numbers. After this we’ll dig right in and look at actual financials from organizations focused on very different services to show how nonprofits can be compared and contrasted to build understanding, while highlighting common nonprofit challenges.  You’ll practice using what you’ve learned to make observations and form conclusions about the organizations’ future, based on what the statements reveal.

This deeper level of understanding will enhance your ability to communicate your financial picture to funders, board members and other key stakeholders.  Equally important, you will be able to make decisions based on a more precise financial picture.