What are the treasurer duties for a club or community organization?  I have been the treasurer/bookkeeper for four different civic and community organizations.  In short, I know my way around other people’s money.  I understand that fiduciary responsibility.  Even if you are not a treasurer.  You are probably a member of an organization that has a treasurer.   Recall The Money Skinny™ mission is to save you time and money.   Let’s review treasurer duties and criteria to ensure an organization’s financial health.

Treasurer Duties for a Club

Treasurer duties include transacting in an expedient and appropriate manner.  Transparency is also part of the fiduciary role of treasurer.  The volunteer treasurer does the job because he/she enjoys the work.  Getting satisfaction helping the organization.  Reluctance or defensiveness to an info request can be a red flag.  A financial review should be welcomed.  It validates that someone cares.  Often there is no treasurer job description.  Here is a sample of treasurer duties called What Every Treasurer Should Know from PTOToday.com.

Treasurer Duties Include Online Banking

Treasurers need to use online banking.  Hand-written checks are unprofessional.  Like BetsyRossingIt with a needle and thread instead of using a sewing machine.  I’m not meeting in some parking lot to pass off a hand-scrawled check.  Additionally, a manual check register can disguise inappropriate payments.  Online banking is readily available.  Often free.  It’s incumbent upon the treasurer to use online banking.

Additional Treasurer Duties

Another part of the treasurer’s role is to make sure whomever is in charge understands the financials.  Someone separate from the treasurer.  That person can respond to queries at any time.  Splitting the treasurer from the director role reduces the likelihood of embezzlement.

Hold the Rotten Tomatoes

No one likes quizzing or criticizing a volunteer.  The treasurer invests a lot of time and effort.  Perhaps while the beneficiary community throws rotten tomatoes.  No.  That’s not how it is.  The reality is that the treasurer wears an open kimono for any constituent to have a look-see.  At any time.  It’s not personal.  It’s for the protection of both the treasurer and the organization which he/she serves.

Criteria to Ensure the Financial Health of Civic and Community Organizations

• Do the math.  Suppose 200 participants that each pay a $100 entry fee for youth baseball.  That’s $20,000 flowing through that treasury.  Does $20k pass the sniff test?  The league provides playing fields, umpires and a t-shirt.  Where is the other $50 per player?  Should be no problem to provide high level expense numbers.
• Ask questions and review the organization’s financial documents.  The treasurer answers to someone.  Maybe a director or CEO.  An income and expense statement has already been prepared.  Even a simple cash inflows and outflows.  Emailing info to a constituent takes five seconds.
• Review the payables.  The payables listing is easy to generate with online banking.  The treasurer should prepare an annual payables list.  Making note of any payments that aren’t obvious.  Total the annual amount of checks paid.  In the baseball example, they raised $20k but only paid out $10k.  Where is the remaining $10k?  Should the player fees be adjusted?  Those are high-level questions to ask when reviewing financial information.
• Careful with cash.  Use a buddy system.  One person counts the money and signs a receipt.  Then a second person re-counts and signs.  That receipt validates the cash deposit amount.  Standard practice is to have signed receipts by two people each time cash leaves the premises.  The buddy system doesn’t guard against a small $20 slipped-in-the-pocket pilfer before a count.  It does protect the organization from larger financial hits.  Revenue generated is verified against the deposit made.
• Limit treasurer tenure.  The treasurer job should turnover every one to three years.  The longer one person has the treasurer position, the more risk to the organization.  From a “I’ve invested so much time so I am owed” viewpoint.  Also, increased ability to understand and exploit vulnerabilities in the money tracking system.

Speak Up When Treasurer Duties seem unfulfilled

Whatever your role is in an organization – member, parent of a member, volunteer, head honcho.  Trust but verify that there is an appropriate use of funds.  A sniff test can alert a problem.  In summary, the proper financial controls are not in place when embezzlement occurs.

• Queries about finances should be welcomed by the treasurer and director/CEO.
• A high level, wide-spread understanding of an organization’s finances, cash controls and limiting treasurer tenure reduce the likelihood of embezzlement.