Financial planning is a process that is conducted as an element of other planning processes (e.g. strategic planning, business planning) or
as a stand-alone process (e.g. consolidated annual budget) based on other planning processes for programs, projects, functions etc.
Financial planning involves:
- Determining how long-term financial goals and objectives (e.g. becoming financially viable) can be achieved
- Identifying how much money will have to be spent and to be raised
- Establishing whether there will be sufficient cash available at a specific point in time
- Determining whether the organization will be profitable or make a loss
- Analyzing whether something (e.g. a business idea) is feasible
Guide to further reading (available online)
T.Lewis, Practical Financial Management for NGOs, 2009, at: http://www.mango.org.uk/guide/resources/manual.aspx
- The book covers financial planning in chapter 3. It discusses the planning process itself as well as different forms of budgets.
National Minority Aids Council, Fiscal Management, at: http://www.nmac.org/index/oes-english
- The guide covers financial planning in unit 2. It describes the linkage between strategic planning and financial planning as well as process itself as well as budgeting.
J.Shapiro, Budgeting, at: http://www.civicus.org/news-and-resources/toolkits/269-budgeting-in-two-parts
- The toolkit explains how to develop and monitor a budget.