Set Up Bank Accounts

Set up your checking and savings account at a convenient local bank, ideally one that will be involved in your efforts. The bank will ask you to name the authorized signers for these accounts. Choosing authorized signers is a decision for your board, and one to be recorded in your board minutes.

Set Up Annual Audits And Bookkeeping System

Once your organization has been in business for a year, most funders will require an independent annual audit of your finances. Therefore, you should plan to put the cost of this audit in your second-year budget.

Note: It is a good idea to hire your auditing firm right away.

Keep Board Minutes

The records of every formal board meeting – or minutes – are an important operational and management tool. The minutes should include a list of all persons present and note every formal action taken by the board (motions, seconds, and votes). The minutes should be circulated to all board members within one or two weeks after your meeting. Each board meeting generally begins with a review of the minutes of the previous meeting, followed by questions and discussions or corrections and a vote to accept the minutes and include it as a record of your proceedings. Board minutes become an important corporate document and must be kept in a special place.

The planning of all of the aspects to successfully organize, manage and operate a CDC to enhance your community is very important to achieving the goals and objectives the community and its residents will agree upon in the future. Your CDC will need a solid management information system to track outcomes, performances and projects; strong financial data systems to provide monthly operating reports on activities undertaken on behalf of the organization; consolidated financial statements; yearly audits and payroll data; and reports on the projects that receives financial investment from your funders and stakeholders. In addition, it is recommended that careful consideration should be given to the organization’s technology infrastructure and that training and professional development be completed for staff on a regularly-scheduled basis.

Technology Infrastructure

Technology has become the competitive tool for non-profit entities to secure funds from both public and private donors. Without this investment, the capacity for the CDC communicate effectively both internally and externally could be compromised by limiting your CDC’s ability to share timely information with stakeholders, members of your board, your staff, and the community at large.

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