Not-for-Profit Financial Management

It is of critical importance that directors (and officers) of Not-for-Profit organisations have a reasonable understanding of a company’s financial statements to effectively undertake their respective roles and meet their statutory and common law duties. The Not-for-Profit nature of an entity does not diminish the level of responsibility for those with governance responsibilities, compared with the governance responsibilities of for-profit entities.

The decision of the Federal Court of Australia in ASIC v Healey [2011] FCA 717 (the Centro case) reinforced the courts’ view that directors of listed companies have a statutory duty to maintain a reasonable level of financial literacy, in order to understand and present the true financial position of the company or group.

The aim of this course is to show how to analyse the performance of a company using its three financial statements.

The course objectives are to:

• outline the legal frameworks Not-for-Profit entities operate within
• outline the accounting concepts and principles upon which the preparation of financial statements is based
• recognise how accounting standards create some limitations in the preparation of financial statements
• understand links between the financial statements
• help you understand the context relevant to your own organisation.

Who should attend?

Not-for-Profit professionals such as:

• company secretaries
• officers, directors, financial managers and treasurers
• CEOs, CFOs, board and committee members
• general managers and governance professionals.