Examining Nonprofit Financial Health through the IRS Form 990

The use of nonprofit tax form the 990 to evaluate nonprofits' finances is becoming more and more widespread. Available easily through http://www.guidestar.org/ and other websites, a quick look through a 990 seems like a great way to look closely at grant applicants' finances and operations.

But then a quick look yields hundreds of lines, three columns, attachments and statements and all those accounting terms we never can remember! How do we find on what is important and not be overwhelmed by tax language?

At this skill building workshop, Nancy Hall, of 501c Solutions will guide us through the 990 addressing the nuts and bolts of the form and questions such as:

• What can we tell from the form about financial health?
• What can't we learn from the form?
• What can learn about governance issues and staffing levels and salaries? 
• What guidelines can we use to evaluate program vs. management expenses? 
• How do you evaluate form data for different types of nonprofits?

If you look at nonprofit financials everyday or only a few times a year, this workshop is for you.

About Nancy Hall: Nancy retired from the Maryland Maryland Philanthropy Network of Nonprofit Organizations after seventeen years. However, she did not retire from the nonprofit sector and now consults and trains on a wide range of topics including finance, marketing, and planning. Nancy is adjunct faculty at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland system teaching nonprofit management. She has an MBA from Harvard Business School. Plus, she's the proud mother of Lara A. Hall, Senior Program Officer, Blaustein Philanthropic Group.