MIP eMagazine: Best Software

MIP Fund Accounting

Effectively Utilizing MIP Fund Accounting's Forecasting Options

Nonprofits face many budget challenges during their business cycle. Not only must they prepare a budget for their upcoming year but they are also confronted by the reality of changes to that budget throughout the year. MIP Fund Accounting v6.0 provides several powerful forecasting tools to assist the nonprofit professional with these tasks. Depending on the forecasting need, MIP Fund Accounting provides three tools for budget and recasting analysis: Budget, Forecasting Report and Custom Columns.

Budget
Version 6.0 provides the ability to prepare budget worksheets for preliminary budget analysis based on historical actual or budget data. The worksheet is a flexible tool which allows program managers to participate in the forecasting of the budget while retaining control within the finance department. Program Managers may utilize the budget worksheet comparative data to create a “projected actual” budget version based on actual to date data and their projected expenditures for the remaining periods. The budget worksheet coupled with MIP Fund Accounting’s ability to accommodate unlimited budget versions allows users to build “what if” scenarios to recast possible ending financial positions.

Forecast Report
The Forecast tab is another tool available that allows the user to forecast future periods based on budget amounts or prior actual amounts. For additional flexibility the forecast tool also offers the ability to apply a multiplier to the forecasted periods. The feature is available in both the Budget Worksheet report and the Statement of Revenues and Expenditures by Period report. This easy to use tool permits for quick reporting of possible ending budget position to prevent any possible over-budget situations.

Custom Columns
This tool can be used to create and apply formulas based on any column available within the selected report. The powerful custom column tool is used to create user defined reporting columns. You can create a custom column with a date range that is different than the report date range or you may create a custom column utilizing the formula editor. To add more flexibility, previously created custom columns are also available to use in the formula editor. This tool not only allow you to forecast budget and/or financial position, but also provides the ability to report any desired variance or trend analysis for internal purposes.

In summary, MIP Fund Accounting version 6.0 includes a powerful toolset for your organization to recast budget or forecast ending financial position based on your unique reporting needs. To learn more about these and other features contact your Business Partner or check out the training options available on our website at www.mip.com.