One question: Can your team agree on how many people you served last year?
I'm Mike Arthur. I help nonprofits and small startups get to one set of numbers everyone trusts, with one definition and one owner for each number your board, funders, or investors see. Text me which number is causing trouble and I'll tell you how I'd fix it.
Text me to learn how to fix itI run this as a part-time practice, so I work with a few clients at a time. Prices are listed. The first call is free.
Nonprofit offers and prices Startup offers and pricesCommon problems and the fix
Nonprofits
- Problem: The same person is in your systems three times, as a donor, a client, and a volunteer. Fix: A master record rule that says which record wins, and a merge process your staff runs on a schedule.
- Problem: "Clients served" is a different number in the grant report, the board report, and the annual report. Fix: One written definition and one owner for each metric, kept in a metric dictionary.
- Problem: Gift totals in your donor CRM don't match the general ledger. Fix: A monthly reconciliation step between Development and Finance, with Finance signing off.
Startups
- Problem: ARR is different in the board deck, the billing system, and the books. Fix: One ARR definition and an ARR bridge that ties billing to the general ledger every month.
- Problem: Nobody owns your key metrics, so due diligence questions sit unanswered. Fix: A decision ownership chart and a metric dictionary that names an owner for each board KPI.
- Problem: Your numbers depend on one person's spreadsheet. Fix: Written definitions, source systems, and refresh steps, so someone else can produce the same numbers.