CFO of the Year Awards: An Interview with our Past Honorees
The 2018 Nonprofit CFO of the Year Awards is taking place on October 11th and is quickly approaching. This event was created to recognize the nonprofit finance community and shed light on the incredibly important role these leaders play in the nonprofit world.
Guy Sheetz is the Chief Financial and Administrative Officer for the Futures Industry Association and was 2017’s Nonprofit CFO of the Year.
Allison Ingram is the Director of Operations for the Society of American Military Engineers and the 2017 Philanthropic Organizations CFO of the Year.
As we excitedly await this year’s event, Association TRENDS decided to take a walk down memory lane with some of our past winners and discuss CFO’s, the nonprofit community, and what this event means to them.
1. It’s no secret that Nonprofit CFO’s wear many hats. If you could give yourself a second job title, what would it be?
Guy Sheetz: Chief Planning and Efficiency Officer. New ideas are great but can blossom into operational and financial monsters if planning processes are missing.
Allison Ingram: Chief of “Everything Else.” In my role, I literally deal with things from the basement is flooding to assisting with the strategic plan. Each of my tasks requires different types of thinking. So, to carry the hat analogy a little further, the hats must be quickly accessible and easily changed.
2. Nonprofits are mission-driven organizations with clear goals in mind. How is being a CFO in the nonprofit world different than in the for-profit world?
Guy Sheetz: In a for-profit environment the “bottom line” is a driving force to ensure efficiency amongst staff. In a non-profit environment “desirable outcome” can clash with financial reality.
Allison Ingram: In the for-profit world, many decisions are made based on profitability. In the non-profit world, we make decisions based on benefit and value to our members, rather than bottom line impact.
3. What is one financial accomplishment you’ve seen either at your organization or another that excited you this year?
Guy Sheetz: It is always a victory when a trade association can develop a new line of revenue to improve the experience for the members and improve the Association’s financial condition. We (Futures Industry Association) have moved into some specific industry-wide training programs that we hope can become a profitable endeavor for FIA and be a valuable program for our membership.
Allison Ingram: We (SAME) have developed some new non-dues revenue streams that are proving to be fruitful. I am a huge fan of revenue diversification and am pleased the association is beginning to experiment with new revenue streams.
4. What, in your opinion, is the number one challenge facing Nonprofit CFOs today?
Guy Sheetz: The #1 challenge every day is keeping the membership happy with the financial structure (dues!). It can be easier in good times and devilish in less good times.
Allison Ingram: My answer could go so many different directions. I am constantly pulled in a multitude of different directions, which reduces the time I have available for solely CFO duties and innovation in our financial processes.
5. The Nonprofit CFO of the Year awards is quickly approaching. Could you tell us a little bit about what the awards mean to you and why you think they are important?
Guy Sheetz: In many organizations, the board members sweep in for meetings 2 – 4 times per year and allocate a small percentage of their time to the association governance. All our board members have full-time jobs and turnover of the Board will never end. Having a tangible award earned by the staff is an easy way to give the Board a feel that you are doing excellent work and are recognized by your peers.
Allison Ingram: The award had personal and organizational impacts. Personally, it was all about validation. A CFO is often behind the scenes, with limited exposure to the members and programs. So, the award acknowledged that what I do is important and noticed. Organizationally, it gave us credibility with our Board and our members that we are being good financial stewards of their association.
Join Associaiton TRENDS at this year’s 2018 Nonprofit CFO Awards on October 11th in Washington, D.C. Register today!
