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In order to serve people in need when money is tight, nonprofits have to make sure every dollar is used to its fullest potential. Financial staff, including Controllers like me, have a huge part to play in this task – but financial and nonfinancial personnel speak different languages when looking at programmatic and financial information. This means that the role of the Controller is not just making sure financial information is correct and compiling financial statements.  It involves working with, and understanding the programs to stretch those much-needed dollars. So the biggest asset that makes for a good Controller, besides technical accounting skills, is the ability to communicate to nonfinancial personnel.

In my experience as Controller, there are a few simple methods that can be used to help colleagues better understand their budgets.

• Use visuals.  Using charts and graphs gives colleagues a better visual of how the programs are performing compared to certain benchmarks (i.e. Budget vs. Actual).  This also adds some color to the usually black and red world of finance.
• Speak in terms of percentages.  This gives colleagues a more baseline approach to comparing certain benchmarks in the program and a way to compare various programs within the agency.  This also helps alleviate the confusion of too many numbers.
• Supplement the financials with a narrative.  Eliminating a majority of the numbers and explaining finances in nontechnical terms is the best approach when working with nonfinancial colleagues.

It’s important to acknowledge that each person processes information differently, and that not everyone will be well-versed in business finances. Overall, the best way to present information to a colleague is to discover their individual learning process – this will hopefully motivate them to become more educated about financials.