Virginia Main Street

Through Virginia Main Street’s (VMS) Firm Principles, Flexible Paths series, the Center of Nonprofit Excellence (CNE) is diving into their 7 Actionable Principles (7APs) to strengthen nonprofits and their relationships with funders. The 7APs offer a common language around key and proven practices, infused with values of equity and growth. The second principle relates to strategic management of your financial position.

Actionable items included:

• We closely monitor, clearly communicate, and thoughtfully project our financial position and budget performance with financial health metrics that we identify; and

• Ensure our ability to responsively serve our community, deliver on our current goals, achieve our strategic priorities, mitigate risks, take advantage of future opportunities, and adopt to unforeseen scenarios.

“The amount of reserves I look for depends – how big is the organization, how old is it, how is it funded? If there are big, lumpy corporate gifts, then it is better to have a bigger runway. If there are small gifts throughout the year, a smaller basket is okay.”

Local funder representative

Bringing It Back to Main Street:

Effective financial management is essential for the overall health, growth, and impact of local Main Street programs everywhere, regardless of size. It serves as the bedrock for long-term sustainability and impact, helping organizations fulfill their mission of revitalizing downtown and supporting the local economy. Apart from just covering operational costs and allocating resources to strategy-driven projects, effective financial management builds trust and accountability with donors and community members, enabling ongoing support and the ability to successfully plan for the future.

Click through below to learn more about how effectively managing your financial position can help your program responsively serve the community, deliver on current goals, achieve strategic priorities, mitigate risks, take advantage of future opportunities, and adapt to unforeseen scenarios.

At CNE, our vision is equitable, thriving, and just communities powered by healthy nonprofits, and our mission is to be a champion, learning partner, and advisor for Virginia nonprofits.