Article

How Empowering Nonprofit Staffers Can Boost Efficiency

nonprofitstaffers.jpg

Your nonprofit organization survives on the give-to-get philosophy. People contribute to your cause because they believe you can make a difference. But if they aren’t provided with the proper means, they won’t be able to do much good. Creating a corporate culture where employees are given the tools to do their jobs better and more efficiently contributes to the momentum of the cause, which is especially important in the nonprofit sector.

Enabling Employees to Achieve 
Some of your employees and volunteers might have plenty of disposable cash, but most don't. Small expenses add up – having to rely on personal finances to travel, buy supplies, or entertain potential donors could add significant, unnecessary strain. In fact, in can stand of the way employees and volunteers doing their best work. There is the potential for corners to be cut simply because they cannot afford to front the money. Employees become frustrated that they can’t do their job well, employers are irritated by lackluster performance, and the organization as a whole suffers.

The financial managers of global nonprofits have a particular need for a streamlined expense reporting system. Executives are required to court potential donors, travel to give presentations, and host benefits to do their jobs effectively, but these expenses are susceptible to waste and mismanagement. “In the field” volunteers need access to funds to purchase supplies and other incidentals that are necessary, sometimes in remote countries. A web based platform offers the organization a central place to monitor, approve, and authorize expenses on a large scale.

Anticipate Organization Spend
Financial managers are much more than bean counters—they have the ability to save the organization money while offering recommendations on how to spend wisely for sustainability and growth. 

Relying on paper receipts and reimbursements as part of an expense program—especially in large nonprofits- means that time is being taken up by an outdated reporting process. Instead of analyzing where money is being spent and identifying where cost saving opportunities exist, they are being consumed by what is essentially data entry.

A prepaid card solution that integrates with expense reporting software generates reports that take a fraction of the time. Not only are volunteers and employees given the funds needed to do their jobs better, but administrators are able to forecast spend and establish a budget with better precision.

Where the Real Value is
Most likely, your volunteers and employees not there for the paycheck, but for the reward of supporting the organization. Easing anxiety over expenses contributes to retention of loyal, hard-working people.

Eliminating the employee pain point of fronting personal money to execute tasks has another benefit. Building trust in the people who have dedicated their time encourages loyalty and initiative. Offering an employee governance over an allocated budget that can be accessed at any time means the employee isn’t getting hung up on approvals. Work is able to be done seamlessly, deadlines are able to be met, and employees feel satisfied that they were able to contribute to the cause.

Devoting More Time to the Mission
It’s not uncommon for nonprofit employees and volunteers to travel. When a nonprofit deploys employees to manage a crisis or go on a fundraising tour, they want to know that they can cover their expenses and focus their energy on what matters. Meals, lodging and company expenditures shouldn’t be a burden on employees or their wallets. Because some employees travel frequently on behalf of the organization, there is a real concern over waiting 4-6 weeks for the reimbursement.

Empowering employees within a nonprofit organization can be as simple as investing in a tool that allows them to focus on their passion instead of an exhausting merry go round of expenses. They eliminate tremendous man hours for the financial teams that have to work with cumbersome expense reporting processes. What’s left is more time and energy to put towards productivity and a job well done.
 

To learn more about PEX as an expense management solution for nonprofit organizations, please download our Nonprofit Fact Sheet

The PEX Visa Prepaid Card is issued by The Bancorp Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa debit cards are accepted. The Bancorp Bank; Member FDIC.
 

Partnership - Linkedin Post - Traditional Minimal (1)

PEX Partners with SAP Concur for Real-time Spend Visibility and Greater Productivity

Yes, target met for the day!

Now Available: AI-Based Receipt Matching, Advanced Approval Processes, and More

High angle view of three people with helmets, female architect, foreman and engineer on a construction site, looking down on a blueprint, copy space.

5 Ways ServPro Franchises Boost Profits with QuickBooks and PEX

Stay up to date on the latest PEX news!

Opinions, advice, services, or other information or content expressed or contributed here by customers, users, or others, are those of the respective author(s) or contributor(s) and do not necessarily state or reflect those of The Bancorp Bank, N.A. (“Bank”). Bank is not responsible for the accuracy of any content provided by author(s) or contributor(s).