About a year ago, I became the treasurer of a well-established but tiny nonprofit. With an annual budget of less than $100,000 and limited staff, our organization is as grassroots and community-based as it gets.

I’ve served on several boards. I train boards for a living. I write books about how to be an effective board member, including one about the board’s role in financial oversight.

However, this is my first time as treasurer, and the position comes with some surprises.

What the treasurer does  

Lacking a job description – for better or worse, most nonprofits don’t have written job descriptions for their officers – I’ve been building one on the fly, with support from the president and the previous treasurer. The job currently looks like this:

1. Create and monitor the annual budget. As needed, suggest adjustments for approval by the board.
2. Create and oversee financial controls and separation of financial duties.
3. Supervise the contract bookkeeper who pays the bills, assembles the financial statements, etc.
4. Create and implement a fundraising plan for the organization. Given our limited staff, I also write thank you notes and build relationships with our members.
5. Plan for long-term sustainability. For us, this includes launching a monthly giving program for membership donations (done!) and pursuing planned gifts/legacy gifts from our long-time members.
6. Provide regular financial updates to the board.
7. Train the board to understand our business model. One strategy: create a dashboard that highlights 4-5 key indicators that measure our financial health.

In a larger, fully-staffed organization, the treasurer’s role could be quite different. Ditto if you’re serving as treasurer for a major institution – a hospital, university, etc. – that employs lots of financial specialists.

In other words, our treasurer job description may not look like yours – and that’s appropriate. Customize based on your circumstances. 

Treasurers come in many flavors

My predecessor is the chief financial officer of a multi-million-dollar government agency, where he has served for almost twenty years. If an award was given for Most Overqualified Treasurer, there’s my nominee.

He’s wired to be very fiscally conservative. As he’s told me many times, always with a smile, “I hate spending money.” Thanks to his prudent approach, we have consistently balanced our budget while socking away a substantial operating reserve.

I’m wired a little differently. My focus begins with fundraising. My initial impulse is, “How do we raise more money?” rather than, “How do we control spending?” Yes, let’s spend the money carefully and wisely – but if we can raise more, we can do more.

As our organization invests in new staff, increases outreach, and expands our membership, this new approach is also serving us well. Expenses are increasing, but so are revenues.

Here’s my biggest surprise and my favorite lesson: a job description is useful, but temperament may have more influence over how one approaches the position.

As you’re recruiting your next treasurer, pay attention.

What most treasurers miss 

Nonprofit board members are required to take fiduciary responsibility. Saying this differently, their job is to oversee the financial health and integrity of their organizations.

However, when faced with profit and loss statements, balance sheets, and other financial documents, one’s eyes tend to glaze over. Most board members start thinking, “What do all these numbers mean – and what am I supposed to do with them?”

How can you assume fiduciary responsibility if you don’t understand the numbers?

Therefore, the treasurer must:

• Provide the numbers in ways that regular people can understand.
• Prioritize and highlight the most important numbers and trends (this is where a dashboard can be helpful).
• Train board members to increase their skill and comfort.

The more I do this job, the more I view training as a priority. How will you help your board become more engaged with the numbers and financially fluent?

There’s a book for that 

If you’re the treasurer – or you just want know what all those numbers mean – check out The Board Member’s Easier Than You Think Guide to Nonprofit Finances, which I wrote with my colleague Nancy Wasserman.

It’s clear, concise, and practical. The best part? You can read it in an hour.

Also, here’s a previous post you might find helpful: What every board member should know about finances (and probably doesn’t). It includes a simple quiz you can use to test your board’s financial literacy and improve their skills.

With thanks to April Weppler, whose question inspired this post.