International Young Professionals Foundation
◦ iypf.org ◦ iyps.org ◦ ◦
Po Box 494 ◦ Mt Gravatt Plaza ◦ Queensland 4122 ◦ Australia ◦
ABN: 69 098 340 124
IYPF FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT POLICY
Second Revision – 26 November 2006
Revision – 1 June 2005
Initial Version Effective 1 July 2004 – 30 April 2005
In order to facilitate efficient yet transparent action on the part of IYPF staff, officers and directors in the administration of Foundation operations and projects, the following rules and guidelines shall govern any and all disposition of IYPF financial resources whether they be in the form of cash, credit, or receivables:
I. Definitions
Financial Management Policy: a guidance document that says what money can be spent, by who, and what authority is needed for that expenditure (and when it is given).
II. Officers and Directors
The Chief Executive Officer remains sole signatory to the accounts, as per the internal financial management structure. Directors of the company residing in Australia will have the authority to carry out any decisions by the Board to modify, alter and change the IYPF's accounts as necessary, in general any action required by the bank apart from transactions.
In order to implement such a structure, the CEO and at least 2 Australian directors need to be the signatories on the accounts.
After each AGM: a minute needs to be passed at a Board meeting to authorize the CEO and 2 directors to be the signatories
• signatory forms need to be completed, with signatures from all 3 parties
• the signatory forms + minutes of the meeting where the new signatories were authorized, as well as a brief covering letter, should then be posted to Westpac for them to make the required changes
III. Duties and Responsibilities
At the minimum, tThe CEO will be responsible for putting forth a summary of material financial transactions on a monthly basis, and to provide the board of Directors with a complete profit and loss statements, monthly listing all transactions to the Board, on a quarterly basis. Ok yes I think I should continue to provide monthly reports, but there will be quarterly full accounts provided by our accountant including P&L, balance sheet, details of all disbursements (i.e. all money received and spent in the previous quarter). We can also get reports against overall annual budgets and job codes. This is relevant to the further information below (note C). The CEO will, when requested, respond to the questions of directors, either in meetings or via email, pertaining to the monthly financial updates.
The Directors have the responsibility to review these documents submitted, and formally approve their content, for approval by Directors during their Director meetings. Approval of these reports signifies approval of all income and expenditure transactions for audit purposes, and needs to be recorded in the minutes. The CEO will, when requested, respond to the questions of directors, either in meetings or via email, pertaining to the monthly financial reports.
IV. Consent and Approval
With appropriate approval, Tthe CEO will have authority to approve expenses up to $5001:
· The CEO has the freedom to spend up to 500$ on appropriate projects for the IYPF. .
· Between $500 and $2500, the CEO shall seek authority from the Treasurer or President prior to the expenditure.
· For any expenditure above $2500 the proposed expenditure must be brought before the Board for approval.
· In circumstances where there are a number of large known expenses coming up, the CEO can seek approval from the Board in advance with his or her financial report or project budget. This approval must be obtained in writing. Electronic (e-mail) submission of written approval is acceptable.
All spending should at a minimum be approved retrospectively by the Board of Directors (see note (B)), and all Board approvals need to be recorded in Board meetings or via e-mail. Projects that trigger multiple expenses need to be grouped to seek proper level of approval (see note (C)).
V. Credit Card
The IYPF credit card will only be used on a day-to-day basis for receiving the paypal.com monies. Any other use of the card will require prior consent from the Board. Following each AGM, the relevant credit card form will be completed to make at least two Australian directors the official contacts and personal guarantors for the IYPF's credit card, i.e. as required by the bank. This transfer of responsibility will also remove the previous directors (if different) who were the contacts and guarantors of the card from having any ongoing liability. We don’t need to do this now as we have a different type of company credit card.
Recognizing the international nature of the Board, and the shared responsibility of directors for IYPF financial matters and transactions, should a situation arise where the IYPF cannot pay the debts on its credit card, and those individual directors who are listed as the contacts and guarantors for the card are being pursued personally for credit card liabilities, all directors will be required to contribute an equal share to paying the debt.
VI. Special Notes to this policy
(A) Suggested Guidelines when funds run below 1000$:
If the total assets of the Foundation fall below $1000, the Chief Executive Officer will receive prior approval from the Treasurer or the President. Approval by a majority of the board of directors during regular board meetings would also be acceptable. The Board preference is to have the CEO present them with budgets for specific projects, and, where possible, annual or 6 monthly operational budgets, ahead of any expenditure.
(B) Retroactive Approval:
The board will give retrospective approval to amounts up to $500, and retrospective approval to amounts between $500 and $2500 providing approval was provided by Treasurer or President (done via accepting monthly financials presented.)
(C) Multiple expenses on single project:
All limits and level of authority stated in part IV apply for total annual spending in single projects. It is noted that if multiple transaction occur on the same project, proper level of authority should be soughtseeked according to the sum of these transactions. For unplanned multiple expenditure on a single project, the CEO should cause the establishment of a job code to track that expenditure and immediately bring the project to the attention of the Board, and in particular the Treasurer and President. Approval for new expenditure on that project, where the total for that project exceeds $500, must then be granted by the Treasurer or President, and then ratified by the Board as a whole at its next meeting.
If needed, when multiple transactions are expected in a single project, a project budget should be drawn up and pre-approved by the Board of Directors. The CEO or a designated project manager will then be responsible for ensuring reports on this project are prepared as part of quarterly financial reporting sending updates to the Board of Directors at least every second month, until the completion of the project.