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Blog: Top Reasons to Outsource Your Nonprofit’s Accounting

Top Reasons to Outsource Your Nonprofit’s Accounting

Accounting is a core function of any organization; naturally, the financial health of the organization is a constant leadership priority. 

Partnering outsourced accounting support can resolve many of those challenges and set up an organization for success and future scaling. Here are five reasons why a trusted outsourced accounting partner might make sense for your organization.

  1. To Scale, The Foundation Must be Strong and Efficient.

    Organizations with growth goals need to ensure their systems are optimized for an expansion in throughput and complexity. If reconciling each transaction is not happening efficiently, or financial systems are not properly integrated, adding more volume or scale to those operations will not be sustainable. Investing dedicated resources to get a strong accounting and financial management system with the proper controls in place makes the basics run smoothly so you can focus on other priorities. Partnering with outsourced experts helps you keep the daily details of accounting flowing, avoiding a bottleneck or inconsistencies later on. An outsourced accounting partner can help ensure the books are in order and that financial controls and processes are implemented correctly, often within a fraction of the time it would take nonexpert in-house resources to accomplish. Instead of adding an in-house accountant, investing in the limited outsourced support you need helps reduce overhead costs without losing the expert systems and support you need. Spend your most expensive resources—like management’s time—in their respective areas of expertise, not on what someone else can do quickly. Finding a partner who can support this foundation and higher-level strategic decisions only increases the efficiency.

  2. Equip Leaders to Make Informed Decisions Faster

    With a proper accounting system that provides real-time information, leadership can make informed, confident decisions faster. A trusted outsourced accounting partner can manage the systems and processes at a granular level so that in-house managers can make informed reporting decisions with a clear sense of the organization’s financial realities. When in-house teams add accounting responsibilities to their list, it may create bottlenecks in reconciliation and financial reporting—and, therefore, decision making. Challenges can compound quickly, and key decision-makers may not have the most accurate and recent data they need to make financial, operational, or other critical strategic decisions. Having a fully integrated and optimized system in place ensures you spend your time making the right choices with your data, not wrestling with it in preparation for a decision.

  3. An Objective Third Party Provides Trusted Systems & Guardrails

    Creating an efficient accounting system with an outsourced partner can help organizations practice resilience through unexpected transitions, changes in leadership, or new operational initiatives. They can support documentation, training, and insight to help organizations ensure that every layer of their budget aligns with their mission and strategic plans. In addition, many membership communities may be comforted by having an expert, objective third party that can provide balance to staff or volunteer leadership.

  4. A Strategic Partner Can Help Visualize the Financial Big Picture

    If your organization doesn’t have the capacity or need for a full-time CFO, an outsourced accounting partner like Vault can provide more flexible access to that level of experience, foresight, and strategic financial thinking. We provide many clients with the staffing support to manage day-to-day details and expert advice that can shine a light on the details leading to greater clarity for long-term planning. With a partner like Vault, expect a high level of customization that focuses first on your organization’s mission, strategic goals, and existing operating realities. 

  5. Technology and Security Best Practices Are Best Left to the Experts

    If you specialize in wildlife conservation, you may not be up to speed on the latest innovations that allow you to execute payroll quickly and securely. Having an outsourced accounting partner to stay on the lookout for opportunities where your systems and processes can become more manageable, more integrated, and more secure will most certainly help you achieve your mission more efficiently. Finding an experienced outsourced accounting firm to keep those systems updated, integrated, and secured can help your organization stay on track toward your mission and objectives with less risk.

Ready to learn more about what an outsourced accounting expert like Vault can do for your organization? Let’s connect about your goals.