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  • Module 4: Policies

    At its inception each program has policies, guidelines, budget formats and regulations which are set in line with program goals and objectives. In addition programs also set priorities. All this should be used to guide program managers in the budgeting process.

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  • Maria and the other members of the senior management team, especially the finance manager should provides guidelines for all the program staff, an even percentage in all the necessary expenditures and incomes should be provided for them, should properly explain and break down the policies guiding the budget preparation.

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  • It is good to have policies in place which are aligned with the program objectives to act as a guide for the program staff

  • It is good to have policies in place which are aligned with the program objectives to act as a guide for the program staff

  • There is a need of a specific guidelines which can be used by program managers for setting up their budget. The purpose is to improve uniformity and understanding.

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  • Have guidelines and policies in place. The should be timely meetings to discuss the budget issues - policies and guidelines so that the organization adopts a standard unified approach. There should be templates in place.

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  • It is important that Maria shares financial guidelines (including an inflation rate) and provide specific feedback to programme budget, while making sure that the managers understand both, the guidelines and the feedback. This is particularly relevant to avoid having several drafts on the same programme budgets.

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  • Yes there is a policy that she can use to to deal with this. In her brief, the should give standard rates with which to work. It should state a uniform increase or decrease depending on the anticipated inflationary rates. In her position, i would work out the averages of the respective costs between the two managers.

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  • I would create policies which will guide cost estimates for example an inflation rate of only 2 percent should be adhered to and the budget should not exceed or go below a certain amount.

  • At the beginning of each budget year, guidelines should be in place that directs the process. These guidelines will ensure that all budgets are prepared similar and all information is regulated.

  • Maria must seek information on field about costs and give financial guidelines to finance staff.

  • It is good to have policy or clear guidelines to standardize when a problem arise or there is huge different among each units.

  • It is good to have policy or clear guidelines to standardize when a problem arise or there is huge different among each units.

  • I would create a guideline for them to follow

  • Since there are policies on ground that guides the budget process Maria should have use the policies to achieve her objective on the budget provision. The issue here is Maria requires a capital budget to finance some of her projects and the bottom-up approach will not favour her so the only alternative is for her to strickly follow the laid down policies of the organization.

  • Clear policy guidelines and budgeting templates would standardize the budgeting process across departments. For capital purchases, there is need for guidelines for procurement process to ensure cost optimization.

  • Maria should explain the budgetary policies related to purchases and equipment.
    To solve the problem posed, Maria should ask the manager to work with the budgets of last year, to approach the logistics team to estimate the different costs afterwards he should make proposals with lower margins. or above last year's forecasts and also work to compare the budgets proposed by each manager during a team meeting

  • Now policies should be set for budgeting for each department. If I were to be in that position I'll make sure the policies work.

  • Maria along with the senior management team, particularly the finance manager should work on proper guidelines to be consulted with the program staff members. This inclusive team should set up clear guidelines of tentative distribution of budget sector wise- preferably in percentile distribution of the total fund ( both incomes and expenditures). However, the program mangers should be advised to alter, revise and meet the effective budgeting with their discretionary approaches. If Maria takes up this approach she would be more likely to come up with functional budgeting.

  • Provide guidelines and policies for budgeting purposes.

  • In our organization, the program manager will need the budget to see how much funds are available to them throughout the year.

  • In this situation, we can all management refer to policies when creating budgets to ensure all programs are allocated fair amount of funds.

  • There is a need of a specific guidelines which can be used by program managers for setting up their budget. The purpose is to improve uniformity and understanding

  • At its inception each program has policies, guidelines, budget formats and regulations which are set in line with program goals and objectives. In addition programs also set priorities. All this should be used to guide program managers in the budgeting process.

  • Maria should set guideline and in place policy in drafting the budget. Those involve in drafting the budget shall be briefed on the policy and guideline before they start to do the estimation. It is good if there is a standard budget template for everybody to use on drafting their budget.

  • Maria should give guidelines to program managers specifying the percentage increase or decrease for each activity.

  • Maria should set up a policy/ guideline in writing the program budget. having these policy will help program manager plan the activities for their program

  • Maria should provide each program manager with salary increment, income/expenditure estimates, goals for every program and departments and contents and formats of the draft budget. then she asks them kindly to go and rewrite the budget with percentage increment/decrease in expenditure.
    i will give them the above guidelines and asks them to redo/ make adjustment where necessary

  • If I was there on her place in the management. I will be prioritizing the departments as per there needs and operations effectiveness. I will not allow the department heads to make budget estimates freely. I will with my finance managers work on drafts and set the limits. If any policy or limit needs some modifications, I would be asking the department heads to come up with the logical reason.

  • The top management should make policies instead of guidelines.

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  • Maria should provide guidelines ,policies and rules that would help the program managers of the kind of budget estimated the organisation require. This would further integrate guidelines for salary increment, about two or three drafts with the same, slightly higher and slightly lower total budget estimates.
    These guidelines would help them to prepare an accepted and clearer budget

  • Maria could have a team look into possible costs increases in the area and then set a strategic goal for each program and create financial guidelines with clear instructions on salary increases and the rate of inflation to use for all drafts. MAria could also set a limit to the amount of expenditures based on last year's budget with a specific increment.

  • Maria should sit and discuss together with the team just to have proper and standardize guidelines and policies. Only with that, her organisation budget planning will be in good place.

  • There should be timely meetings to discuss the budget issue: policies and guidelines for the organization to adopt a united approach with better standards. Template updates must exist.

  • They need to set guidelines for expenditures and incomes also to be clear and especific about the numbers that they use on it.
    also I think 3 tempts to draft the budget will be okay so they can have a better idea about what they are asking for

  • In such issue of Maria,she have to Obstimestic by how she to deal with situation of it appropriate cost, how to estimate the percentage for it due supeciously for the low cost she intended to adjust with her program managers despite it be inflating expenditure of have a large budget.
    Because Maria may Aims is to have a fair budget allocation that to make her policy to be as exact which should be effect the Budgeting when it come for it adjustment of the budget percentage toof the budget with her program managers.

  • In such issue of Maria,she have to Obstimestic by how she to deal with situation of it appropriate cost, how to estimate the percentage for it due supeciously for the low cost she intended to adjust with her program managers despite it be inflating expenditure of have a large budget.
    Because Maria may Aims is to have a fair budget allocation that to make her policy to be as exact which should be effect the Budgeting when it come for it adjustment of the budget percentage toof the budget with her program managers.

  • I think that there should always be some quotations backing up the expenditure costs and a short explanation of the costs

  • There most be policies and guide line put in place before commencement of any budget or operation with in the system. She should give each team equal percentage and amount to plan with.

  • To avoid inefficiencies and misunderstanding in much of the formal budgeting process, a few well-written and explained policies could help. A team needs good guidelines for increases and the organization should carefully consider what types of raises it will award this year. For instance, how the inflation and goals for programs departments will apply. There are always certain targets that each department should seek to meet but at a certain cost level. Is crucial to define what format and contents should be inclusive and if expectation to list expenditures and income. Many versions of the budget is not a good result. Whichever policies the organization decide on, they should have been documented in clear simple language.

  • To avoid these inflations, I think the Director should come up with guidelines and policies that each one of the program staff should use. An incremental budget can also be used to avoid these misunderstanding. She too as the head can sit down with the Finance manager and discuss the budget using the previous method.

  • To avoid these inflations, I think clear policies and guidelines should be used. An incremental budget should also be used as only the previous budget will be slightly changed. She can also sit with the finance manager to come up with the budget using the incremental one

  • As Maria, I would commission a market survey on unit prices. This way, both Paolo and Francisca will have the same source of information thus making their budgets more aligned.

  • I believe that setting a limit policy is the step to take, for both. On one hand we need Paolo to understand that things may not be as cheap as they seem, so, with that same intention have him do a full research and have him include this report and construct his budget around the previous research. With Francisca, set a limit for the income that will be offered to her department, and even lowering it down, that way she can sort out her priorities and have her see what she's in true need of and have her turn in two different drafts.

  • Maria in collaboration with the top management should set guidelines in order to give program manager frameworks within which to develop their budgets, with allocated funds for all programs

  • i agree with that!

  • She should implement zero based budgeting whereby everyone comes onboard and start planning from the scratch till they reach the top.

  • Maria needs a policy that guides the budgeting process. What the expenditure should be for each program manager. Ideally a formal training would do for all program managers to align them to the policy, strategic and financial guidelines of he organization that they need to follow as they draft budgets for their programs.

  • they is need to have rules and polices .

  • Policies are governance documents. Governance over budgeting activity is necessary to ensure transparency and accountability.
    Maria should prepare written policies that will guide the update of the income and expenditure estimates in the budget. In addition, expenditure caps can be set to eliminate budget slags. The policies should be discussed with the program managers to ascertain that they understand the expectations. In addition to the policies, a template will be designed for use by each program which make comparison of similar line items in the different budgets easy.

  • If you have a small team running a top-down process, you can probably make due with very few official policies. Four or five managers meeting in person can work together smoothly without much of a formal process.

    As your organization grows, however, you will find that the potential for inefficiencies and misunderstanding grows as well. This can be particularly difficult if you are using a bottom-up budgeting method that involves many stakeholders.

    Let’s imagine a scenario at a mid-sized organization using a bottom-up budgeting method:

    The finance director asks each of the three program managers to produce a draft budget for their program. One month later, they submit their drafts.

    The manager of the professional development program has taken an incremental approach. She used the exact same template as last year, updating the line items where costs have changed.

    The manager of the health program, on the other hand, saw this as an opportunity to pitch a bold new vision. Her budget includes line items for hiring a new M&E manager, renovations to the mobile clinic, and consultations with a healthcare design firm. She proposes paying for these new expenditures with a large grant which has not even been applied to yet.

    No one is quite sure what the manager of the advocacy program has proposed because, unlike her two colleagues, she has not used an income-expenditure budget template. Her annual program budget is written as a three-page narrative.

    If you were the finance manager of the organization above, how would you respond? Would you be able to integrate these three program budgets into a single coherent organizational budget? Or would you ask your program managers to revise their budgets and submit them again a month later?

    A few well-written and explained policies could have helped this manager avoid these issues.

    Here are a few areas that you may consider writing policies for:

    Guidelines for salary increases
    As mentioned in module 3, salaries typically make up the largest part of any budget. So, your team should carefully consider what types of raises it will award this year.

    Updating income/expenditures estimates
    If your organization is using an incremental budgeting strategy, this year’s budget will be built on last year's. How would you like your team to update their income and expenditures estimates? Will you expect managers to apply a general rate of inflation to all of their expenditures? To get new quotes from vendors?

    Income and expenditures goals for programs and departments
    Are there certain targets that each department should seek to meet? For example, would you like to cap expenditures at a certain level?

    Contents and format of the draft budgets
    What type of information should each person include in their draft budgets? Do you, like MHT, only expect program managers to list expenditures? Or would you like both expenditures and income recorded? If so, should likely income be included, or only income that is confirmed? Is there a specific format that needs to be used with your accounting system? We will discuss these questions more on the next page, where we will explore templates and instructional materials.

    Number of draft budgets
    How many drafts of the program budgets do you expect to receive? Some organizations ask each program to present more than one version of their budget. This gives the management team a better idea of the range of choices. For example, you might ask each team to produce a budget draft with the same total expenditures as last year, a draft that has a 5% cut in expenditures, and a draft that has 5% greater expenditures.

    Whichever policies you decide on, make sure that they are documented in clear simple language. Include the full set of policies in the package of materials that you provide your team during the budgeting kick-off meeting.

  • In the first place, there should be a policy, directive or procedure related to budget preparation, that every manager should adhere to and use it as guideline. Every manager must pursue this guideline for preparing the draft.

  • Maria should provide clear policy guidelines and budget content and formats that would standardize the budgeting process.And have income and expenditure goals for programs.

  • Maria has observed that the program managers on her team provide very different types of cost estimates. Paolo, she has observed, provides cost estimates that strike her as suspiciously low

  • I will provide a guideline that all program mangers within the organization giving their budget must use an incremental budgeting strategy. In addition, all cost estimates for the current budget being drafted this year will be built on last year's. I will expect all the program managers to apply a general rate of inflation to all of their expenditures

  • The program manager should follow both strategic guidelines and financial guidelines set out by the management team. According to me, I would review the budget to ensure that the set guidelines are adhered to.

  • With a calendar, a set of tasks and a set of roles and responsibilities in hand, you are almost ready to start creating an annual operating budget. However, unless you are using a completely bottom-up method, you will probably need to produce a few common tools, policies and templates before you ask your team to get started.

    Common tools, templates and policies ensure that everyone understands the rules, parameters and expectations of the budgeting process. They ensure that every team member’s work uses the same format and terminology. This makes processes more efficient

  • It is important that Maria shares financial guidelines (including an inflation rate) and provide specific feedback to programme budget, while making sure that the managers understand both, the guidelines and the feedback. This is particularly relevant to avoid having several drafts on the same programme budgets

  • From the scenario above, the organization does not have a clear policy to guide the program team in preparing a draft budget. Going forward, the management team need to design a policy guideline for the organization to guide various departments during budget preparation process.

  • the problem in this situation is improper guidelines on the budgeting process. the managers where asked to build a budget without being given the right policies and guidelines on the expenditure patterns expected from each project manager. first thing to do is to have an in depth orientation on expectations of budgeting information, calculations and patterns of drafts of expenditure, including a cohesive attachment of similar expenses as solicited form vendors. this will solve the dissonance present in the presented budget, because the managers understand what to include.

  • I use the policy to allocate budget for each program . Moreover, I tried to set activity according to the priority area.

  • Yes, there is a policy / process to follow that will serve as a guideline that Maria can use to deal with the issue.
    If I am in her position, I will provide the program Managers with all the necessary budgeting material (i.e common tools, policies and templates) that will serve as a guideline for the operating budget process. For example, if they are using an incremental budgeting strategy, this year’s budget will be built on last year’s. I might ask each Program manager to produce a budget draft with the same total expenditures as last year, a draft that has a 5% cut in expenditures, and a draft that has 5% greater expenditures. I will properly explain and break down the policies guiding the budget preparation to them.

  • Maria should issue these departments with income and expenditure goals. She should also accomodate the fact that different departments have different needs and through this, equity of distribution of resources will be achieved.

  • It is good to have policies in place which are aligned with the program objectives to act as a guide for the program staff. Maria and the finance manager should provide guidelines for all the program staff, an even percentage in all the necessary expenditures and incomes as well, properly explained and with the guiding polices of budget preparation.

  • First of all maria can express their opinion about cost estimates in order to draft budget accurately and second there should policy and process that she deal with that and in all type of budget employee have right of involvement.

  • Very perfect for an answer

  • There are policies and guideline to be followed during the budget drafting which guide every department to like salary raise percentage, guidelines estimated cost and income ,capital expenditure and cost increase for supplies .

  • Maria should create a cost benchmark to which expenditures are expected to lie so as to reduce the divergence that may occur

  • There are policies and guideline to be followed during the budget drafting which guide every department to like salary raise percentage, guidelines estimated cost and income ,capital expenditure and cost increase for supplies .

  • She should set clear guidelines for income/expenditure increases that should be shared before the teams start working on the budgets.

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