There are many challenges with hiring volunteer treasurers although knowing some of the issues will go a long way to overcoming any adversity that may occur.

In a recent survey conducted between 23 February and 24 April 2015, important insights came to light in the not-for-profit sector. It provided an interesting snapshot of the financial challenges that NFPs can face particularly regarding its volunteer treasurers.

The survey said, “More than half (53%) of survey respondents said their organisation had difficulty recruiting a suitably qualified and skilled treasurer with small organisations worst affected.”

Difficulty in retaining new treasurers

Regardless of the size of the organisation, recruiting and retaining good treasurers can be problematic. It is difficult to find a qualified person to manage the financial affairs of the organisation and many treasurers seem to have relatively short placements. The survey showed that around 45% of current treasurers had been in their current role for less than two years.

Should payment be involved?

There is no denying that a volunteer treasurer’s role can be demanding and many NFPs may feel the pressure to pay someone to fill the position. However, with restricted budgets, small non-profits may struggle to retain quality staff and compete with the larger charities.

Gender inequality

55% of volunteer treasurers working in smaller sized NFPs are women. As the size of the organisation increases, the split reverses and most positions are upheld by men.

Inexperienced treasurers

With more than one in five treasurers holding a position of volunteer treasurer for less than one year, that means that there are a lot of inexperienced treasurers working in the role. Of course, many volunteer treasurers may have been working in a different organisation before their current role. Smaller sized NFPs are the most likely to have problems hiring a qualified treasurer (57%) while larger sized NFPs are the most likely to have no difficulties in this area at all (58%).

To attract qualified staff, NFPs may need to offer remuneration to their volunteer treasurers to seek the skill set they require to run the company effectively. 5% of organisation admit to paying their volunteer treasurer a salary. Many NFPs are even moving away from the volunteer position and hiring professional managers; this is more prominent in larger sized NFPs.

There is no doubt that the face and responsibility of the volunteer treasurer is changing. Is your business managing to keep up with the times?