“We need an audit.” I hear these four little words quite often when I receive phone calls from various churches and other ministries looking for some financial guidance. Sometimes, after talking through their specific situation, we mutually come to the conclusion that they really do not need or want an audit. Instead, they would rather engage with us to provide some assistance in another capacity, such as improving their bookkeeping and financial reporting, or strengthening their internal controls. That’s great and we are happy to do that. However, there certainly are instances where it is determined that an audit is appropriate. When might that be the case?
I know, the word “audit” doesn’t exactly conjure up positive thoughts for most people. I get that, and that’s why I tell people we are “good auditors” – we want to help you improve, not slap your wrist for things that you did wrong. There really are many times when conducting an audit is fitting. Perhaps your organization has had significant turnover in the financial staff. Perhaps you have concerns about the financial staff’s abilities, or about the honesty of an employee involved with the finances. Maybe you’ve experience significant growth recently and need some guidance. Or maybe you are one of the many ministries that chooses to have an annual (or periodic) audit performed because you feel it is important to have that third party perspective, and it can give your members and donors a level of financial reassurance. These might all be situations to have an audit, but there is one specific time – which is often overlooked – where I feel that all ministries should strongly consider having an audit: when the organization is getting ready to launch a capital campaign.
I recently took a call from an administrator at a Christian church and school in the planning stages of embarking on a capital campaign, and we discussed why it was a well-timed call and why they should consider doing an audit.
As with many things in life, it is good to be proactive. As such, I feel doing an audit at the front-end of the capital campaign is a wise decision. That said, doing an audit at the end of the campaign (or during!) to make sure all the funds are accounted for accurately is never a bad idea either! Who knows? Maybe you’ll even come to really enjoy working with us auditors. A guy can dream anyway.
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