QuickBooks for NGO Accounting Training Course

Participants can design coding structures that support funds, projects, donors and functional expenditure analysis.

• Chart of accounts design using assets, liabilities, equity, income and expense groups
• Classes configured for programmes, projects, departments or geographical operating units
• Locations assigned where branch, field office or country reporting requires separation
• Account numbering conventions aligned with finance manuals and reporting templates
• Donor and project codes incorporated through customers, classes and custom fields
• Coding matrix defining mandatory dimensions for each transaction type
• Opening balances entered with reconciliation evidence and documented approval

Participants can record grant awards, receipts and restrictions while maintaining accurate fund balances.

• Grant agreement review identifies restrictions, deliverables, periods and eligible costs
• Donor advances recorded as liabilities before expenditure or earned-income recognition
• Restricted income recognition matched to approved expenditure and reporting conditions
• Accounts receivable used for earned grants awaiting donor reimbursement
• Customer records structured for bilateral donors, foundations and institutional funders
• Journal entries correct prior-period grant income, advances and classification errors
• Restricted fund balance reports reviewed against donor agreements and grant registers

Participants can process NGO expenditure with appropriate coding, evidence and approval controls.

• Supplier master data established with payment terms, tax treatment and documentation
• Purchase workflow links requisition, approval, purchase order, invoice and payment
• Bills coded by natural account, project, funder and functional activity
• Eligible-cost checks compare invoices against grant budgets and procurement rules
• Expense claims processed with receipts, approvers and project allocation evidence
• Batch payment controls separate payment preparation, approval and bank release
• Document attachments retained against transactions for audit and donor review

Participants can manage cash transactions and complete controlled bank reconciliations in QuickBooks.

• Bank accounts separated by currency, project requirements and operating purpose
• Bank feed rules reviewed before posting to prevent incorrect automated coding
• Cash receipt recording distinguishes donations, grant instalments, refunds and advances
• Bank reconciliation matches statements, deposits, payments and outstanding transactions
• Unreconciled items investigated using source documents, payee details and audit trail
• Petty cash imprest reconciled through vouchers, counts and replenishment journals
• Foreign-currency transactions assessed for exchange differences and reporting treatment

Participants can account for payroll, implementing-partner costs and shared services using defensible allocation methods.

• Payroll journals allocate salaries, benefits and taxes across projects
• Timesheet-based allocation distributes personnel costs by documented effort percentages
• Implementing-partner advances tracked separately from partner expenditure liquidation
• Shared costs allocated using headcount, floor space, usage or transaction drivers
• Indirect cost recovery calculated against approved donor rates and bases
• Recurring journal templates standardise monthly allocations and correction entries
• Allocation schedules retained with assumptions, calculations and management approval

Participants can monitor project financial performance against approved budgets and spending commitments.

• Approved grant budgets mapped to QuickBooks accounts, classes and reporting periods
• Budget-versus-actual reports filtered by project, donor, location and account
• Variance analysis distinguishes timing differences, overspend risks and coding errors
• Commitment tracking combines purchase orders, contracts and unbilled supplier obligations
• Burn-rate calculations compare cumulative expenditure with grant implementation timelines
• Forecast revisions documented against approved budget amendments and donor correspondence
• Programme-finance review packs combine expenditure, commitments, cash and variance commentary

Participants can customise QuickBooks reports and reconcile them to donor and management reporting formats.

• Custom profit and loss reports grouped by class, funder and project
• Statement of financial position reviewed for restricted funds and donor advances
• Report filters isolate grant periods, programme codes and funding sources
• Memorised reports scheduled for finance managers, programme leads and board committees
• Donor report mapping reconciles QuickBooks balances to approved budget lines
• Management dashboards present cash position, burn rate, receivables and payables
• Report review checks confirm consistency between general ledger and supporting schedules

Participants can run a controlled month-end close and correct common NGO accounting errors.

• Month-end close checklist sequences cut-off, reconciliations, journals and report review
• Cut-off testing identifies expenditure, income and liabilities recorded in wrong periods
• Balance sheet schedules support cash, receivables, payables, advances and fixed assets
• QuickBooks audit log reviews changes to transactions, settings and user access
• Error-correction journals preserve source evidence, approvals and explanatory narratives
• Document retention schedule links vouchers, contracts, reports and donor correspondence
• Audit query tracker assigns owners, due dates and evidence status

Participants can establish governance rules and a practical implementation plan for their QuickBooks environment.

• User access matrix applies segregation of duties to QuickBooks permissions
• COSO control activities adapted for transaction approval, review and documentation
• Master-data governance controls changes to accounts, classes, suppliers and customers
• Standard operating procedures define transaction coding, review and escalation rules
• Data backup and export procedures protect accounting records and reporting continuity
• Implementation priorities rank configuration gaps, control risks and reporting needs
• Ninety-day application plan assigns actions, owners, milestones and review dates