Shine Together Needed an Outsourced Finance Team Able to Adapt to Where the Organization is Today and Where It Hopes to Go

At A Glance

Company Type: Nonprofit

Solution Area: Outsourced Finance and Accounting, Fixed Fee Fractional Finance & Accounting Services

About The Client

Based in California, Shine Together guides and supports mothers in their teens and twenties as they pursue their high school degree or postsecondary education. Shine provides these young moms with life, career, and parenting skills so they can build a stronger future for themselves and their young family.

Challenge

Around the time of its 10-year anniversary, Shine (formerly known as Teen Success) hit a transitional phase. Acclimating to both a big rebranding and new leadership, the organization sought expertise for its future direction and better insights into its financial situation. All it had to go on was outdated information from a bookkeeping firm.

So, Shine sought a clearer view of its finances and occasional help with navigating its future as its mission grew to include more young mothers. Still, like any nonprofit that relies on the generosity of donors and the availability of grants, every penny counts. Shine needed its new accounting firm to be open to working within its budget constraints and to improve its reporting capabilities as Shine expanded its income streams beyond individual unrestricted donors.

Solution

ZRG introduced Shine to finance and accounting best practices, leadership advice as needed, along with marketing expertise to support the organization through its transitional phase. We work closely with Shine’s leadership to provide the following services:

• Streamline financial operations, cut out duplicative efforts, and consistently close the books every month
• Cost-effective, tailored strategic expertise that can be dialed up or down depending on the organization’s budget
• Ideas and guidance for board interactions as needed
• A flexible business partner willing and able to scale its services

Results

• Full visibility into the nonprofit’s financial situation, including status of grants, pledges and donations from key supporters
• Ability to proactively and quickly adjust budgets and plans
• Timelier and more accurate reporting
• Predictable monthly expense for outsourced finance and accounting work
• A trusted business partner that will evolve its services with the organization

“ZRG stepped in to support the finance operations and the rebrand with attentiveness and commitment. Today ZRG manages all functions of Shine’s finances and continues to increase quality improvement and efficiencies.”

- Sara Reyes, Executive Director, Shine Together

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