Looking for a man in finance?
Is your nonprofit, like the viral TikTok video, “Looking for a Man in Finance?”
While I definitely want to steer clear of giving romantic advice, when it comes to your organization’s financial management I hope you’ll take a different approach.
Successful nonprofits have very different criteria when it comes to finding the right person to help them keep their accounting and related functions running smoothly.
Gender shouldn’t matter
In my experience, the gender of your nonprofit’s finance leader doesn’t matter. Not even a little bit.
What else doesn’t matter
Let go of details like their height and personal fortune. While they may make for a catchy TikTok tune, and maybe that video even aligns with what you seek in a romantic partner, those sorts of criteria rarely help you find the right professional help.
Also let go of age as a criteria: not just because age discrimination is illegal but also because it really can’t tell you if someone is a good match.
Keep in mind that letters, like CPA or CMA, don’t matter nearly as much as some people think they do. When it comes to the financial management of a small or mid-sized nonprofit, I’ve encountered people with those letters who were completely incompetent and have also worked with extraordinarily talented professionals without them. This kind of credential should represent, at most, a “nice to have” for most nonprofits with budgets under $10 million.
So, what should you look for, then?
Whether you’re looking to fill a staff or consulting position, look instead of these sorts of criteria:
Financial Management Experience – Basically, do they have relevant experience? Don’t just take the candidate’s word for it: make sure someone with relevant experience interviews them to confirm they actually have the experience they say they have.
Nonprofit Experience – Leading in a typical small or mid-sized nonprofit without nonprofit employment experience can be a big challenge. Organizations and individuals who don’t keep the potential for culture clashes in mind risk painful, costly mistakes.
Ongoing professional development – How is the person keeping up on trends in their field of expertise? If you’re hiring someone for a long-term leadership role who doesn’t invest seriously in their professional development, they might not be familiar with such things as the best technology, changes in regulations, and the like. That ignorance could end up costing them and your organization dearly.
Criminal Background Checks – Always run a background check on people who will handle money for your organization. But remember that only some results should disqualify a candidate. A conviction for possession of a small amount of marijuana 20 years ago has no relevancy for a financial management job while a fraud conviction from two months ago should almost certainly disqualify the candidate.
Then set things up for success!
Even though you’ve hired a great candidate, you still have work to do. This kind of relationship, not unlike a marriage, has the best chances for success when you treat it like a long-term investment.
That includes:
Good tools – a good computer, the right accounting software, and the right workspace can pay for themselves many times over through stronger performance and retention.
Work-Life Balance – The lack of work-life balance is one of the top reasons that increasing numbers of talented people leave the field every year and fewer people choose the career. When you create the conditions for a healthy balance, you can expect to retain great people much longer.
So, although TikTokker Megan Boni found a formula for viral video success, please use a different recipe for your nonprofit’s financial management success. Talent for the job, rather than relying on good looks or stereotypes, will deliver much better mission impact!