REDUCING FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT RISK AND IMPROVING OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY

Jersey Cares is a nonprofit organization that leads volunteerism in New Jersey by engaging volunteers in projects that address community-identified needs. Through its successful Corporate Service Program, the organization customizes projects for corporate partners to engage their employees in volunteer initiatives. Given rapid revenue growth from this program, Jersey Cares enlisted a Capstone team to address concerns about financial management systems that can be time-consuming and prone to human error. The team designed and executed a four-phase project that entailed: 1) mapping existing revenue and expense management systems using evidence from staff interviews and organizational documents, 2) researching best practices in nonprofit financial management related to staffing, processes, and technology, 3) identifying and evaluating recommendations to improve operational efficiency and reduce risk, and 4) developing an implementation timeline informed by the client’s unique context and best practices in nonprofit change management.