1. A Clear Religious Message

• The vitality of our religious community - our capacity to serve effectively as a catalyst for personal and social renewal - is a precondition to financial health. It is the fundamental reason we attract funds.
• The leading indicator of our value is the existence of financially strong congregations. Such congregations are the second essential precondition to the UUA's financial health.

2. A Continental Program Worthy of Support

• Congregations and individuals will give, and increase giving, only to programs that respond effectively to their deepest needs and aspirations.
• Congregations and individuals will give, and increase giving, only when they are confident their gifts will be used prudently.

3. Strategic Planning

• Spiritual, membership, and financial growth represents an opportunity to target our energies on the most important goals - if we are clear about what those goals are.
• The UUA should identify and pursue the opportunities for growth.
• The UUA needs
• objectives grand enough to motivate giving, and
• priorities specific enough to guide decisions about resource allocation.

4. Expanding Resources

• The UUA leadership must place continued emphasis on the message that living a life committed to UU values requires generosity and compassion for others. UU's live in abundance and need to learn to increase their gifts to the religious community at all levels (local and denominational).
• Capital giving must remain a high priority for the UUA leadership, even after the capital campaign formally ends.
• Congregations should be motivated to fully support the Annual Program Fund.
• Financial return on existing assets, especially endowment (see below), should be maximized.

5. Strong Endowment Performance

• Because the UUA relies heavily on its endowment, investment performance must be a high priority.
• The investment approach should be stable, consistent, and long term - not subject to fads or changes in investor mood.
• The investment objective should be total return - income plus capital appreciation over the long term.
• Asset allocation should be heavily weighted toward equities - which have historically had the best long term return.
• Endowment performance should, at a minimum, be equivalent to the average endowment performance of other non-profit organizations. After meeting that modest goal, the next, achievable objective should be performance equivalent to the market indices.
• Spending from the endowment should be low enough to preserve the inflation-adjusted value of the endowment (excluding new gifts or other additions).

6. Conservative Budget Management

• The budget should reflect the strategic plan.
• The central question should not be "can we do this cheaper?" but rather "can we do this better?"
• Revenue should be budgeted conservatively, not optimistically.
• Less predictable expenses, such an employee fringe benefits, should be budgeted with a "cushion for error" to accommodate unanticipated short-term cost increases.
• Periodic projections of revenue and expense, based on timely and reliable information, should identify problems early enough to be remedied before deficits occur.
• The budget should include a contingency plan for addressing issues raised by a projected deficit.
• The proposed budget should be accompanied by projected budgets for the following two years.
• Each budgetary activity (for both revenue and expense) should have an administrator clearly accountable for its performance relative to budget.

7. Creative Use of Assets

• Systems for cash management must be in place to assure adequate working capital and a good return on that capital.
• Investments for congregational building should be encouraged. Additional capital should be obtained if needed.

8. Explicit Policies Consistently Applied

• All fiscal policies, including those related to investments, insurance, risk management, contracts, transfers and inter-fund borrowings, and fund raising, should be clearly stated in writing and consistently implemented.

9. Risk Avoidance

• Procedures must be in place to prevent conflict of interest, employee theft , losses from catastrophe, or contracts that inadequately protect the UUA..
• Procedures must be in place to assure compliance with law (including tax laws as they apply to nonprofit organizations), health and safety regulations, and good accounting practices.
• The external auditor should be encouraged to identify real or potential problems with respect to financial reporting and internal controls.
• Fund balances or reserves must be sufficient to absorb unanticipated financial setbacks.

10. Low Overhead

• Direct program expenditures are the top priority in resource allocation. Overhead services should be made as efficient and simple as possible.
• There should be no duplication of services.

11. Quality Financial Information

• The UUA should develop a "financial monitor" that provides clear, simple measures or indicators of the Association's financial well being over time.
• The annual, audited financial statements of the UUA must show the true position of the UUA without compromise, including the proper valuing of inventories and funding of obligations and liabilities.
• The UUA should know the full and incremental costs of its programs.

12. Skilled and Knowledgeable People

• The Financial Advisor should assist the Committee on Committees in recruiting bright and knowledgeable individuals to serve on the key financial committees of the UUA.
• In hiring professional financial staff, the UUA will be well served by appointing highly trained and experienced professionals. The premium in salary will be modest relative to the benefits and risk avoidance of such appointments.
• High priority should be given to the continuing education and professional development of the financial staff.

13. Don't Forget Beacon Press!

• Since profits and losses of Beacon Press accrue to the UUA, the Financial Advisor must pay as much attention to the Press as to the UUA itself.

 Information: info@uua.org