Financial Oversight Guidelines for Non-Financial Library Managers and Leaders

Sometimes leadership ends up rubber-stamping financial reports because they don’t feel they know enough to ask meaningful questions. Or, they are concerned that questioning financial issues might imply that they don’t trust their employees, which might result in hurt feelings and poor morale. Consequently, bigger problems fester until they blow up in public.

The answer? Require basic training in financial management for library management and leadership, regardless of their roles, and apply practices as recommended by the accounting profession, such as independent audits. This webinar is about what can be done before formal training.

Topics include what financial oversight means and the difference between oversight and micromanagement, expectations of the director’s financial competency, the different levels of money expertise needed to run a library–from policies to run a cash drawer at the circulation desk to budget projections for the next fiscal cycle, approving budgets, protocols for the purchasing department, the ethics of awarding contracts, policies to vet employees, and discouraging fraud.

Presenter

Pat Wagner is a trainer and consultant with 40 years of experience working for libraries, universities, local government, nonprofits, and small businesses. She supports the success of libraries with programs on personnel, supervision, management, leadership, marketing, strategic planning, project management, and communication. Pat has worked with libraries and library organizations throughout the United States, from the smallest rural storefronts to the largest academic and urban library institutions. Pat also is a frequent speaker at state and national conferences. She is known for her good-humored and practical presentations.