Reading the Financials
This report shows whether your department is spending more or less than expected this month.
What is a budget vs. actual (variance) report?
This is the first thing to check before approving a purchase or expense.
What is available budget?
The safest time to involve Finance
What is budgeting and/or before the expense is incur?
True or False: Cash in the bank means you automatically have budget to spend it.
What is False?
This should happen before posting a job or signing a vendor contract.
What is checking budget and approval process?
This shows how much money came in, how much went out, and whether we ended up ahead or behind.
What is the Statement of Activities (P&L)?
This is the most common way depts end up over budget.
What are commitments made without a budget first?
This is the # of grants the ML has
What are 62 grants?
This explains why cash and budget don’t always line up.
What are timing or restriction differences?
When costs go up but funding doesn’t, this is the first thing to look at.
What is reprioritization?
Spending less than budget isn’t always a win if this didn’t happen.
What are trends over time?
If you know a cost is coming but haven’t been billed yet, it should still be thought about as this.
What are planned or budgeted expenses?
Before charging something to a grant, this should be checked.
What is that the expense is allowed by the grant?
Some cash is set aside for specific purposes and can’t be used freely.
What is restricted cash?
This kind of decision keeps costing money year after year.
What is a recurring or ongoing cost?
This section of a financial report explains why numbers differ from budget, not just that they differ.
What is the variance narrative or explanation?
If things change mid-year, this is better than quietly overspending.
What is talk with Finance about a reforecast or adjustment?
Using grant funds incorrectly creates this type of risk.
What is audit or repayment risk?
This tells us how long the League could keep operating with the cash it has.
What is days cash on hand?
Strong leaders bring this team in early to avoid issues later.
What is Finance
After looking at your report, this is the most useful question you can ask.
What is “What changed, why did it change, and should I act?”
Good budget management is less about cutting costs and more about this habit.
What is intentional prioritization?
The best way departments help protect grant funding long-term.
What is planning early and asking questions upfront?
Before spending available cash, this is the smartest question to ask.
What is “Is this budgeted, allowable, and aligned with priorities?"
What good department heads are always balancing when making decisions.
What are mission impact, financial sustainability, and compliance?