If you’re a nonprofit CFO, COO, or executive director trying to figure out whether your finance function is keeping pace with the rest of the sector, BTQ Financial’s 2026 Nonprofit Leaders Report has answers. BTQ’s Andrew Perumal and CPA.com’s Kate Serpe recently unpacked the findings in a live webinar, covering everything from cash flow pressure and board engagement to talent stabilization and the ongoing spreadsheet problem.
Nonprofits are no longer operating purely in survival mode. Boards are more engaged, finance teams are more stable, and more organizations are leaning on strategic partnerships than ever before. But the work isn’t finished — funding delays haven’t disappeared, and technology still has plenty of room to mature.
Here’s what the data shows, and what it means for your organization.
Cash Flow Pressure Still Defines the Nonprofit Finance Function
Timing, not funding levels alone, remains the biggest challenge for nonprofit finance teams. Nearly half of organizations had to dip into unrestricted reserves just to keep operations running, and a large majority have less than six months of unrestricted reserves to fall back on.
This isn’t a sign of poor management — it’s a structural mismatch between when the bills come due and when the funding arrives.
- Payroll, rent, vendors, and programs don’t wait for grant reimbursements
- A funding delay of just 60 to 90 days is enough to materially disrupt many organizations
- Chasing outstanding payments can consume close to half of a finance team’s time — time that isn’t spent on forecasting, analysis, or advising leadership
“It’s because you’ve got payroll, you’ve got rent, you’ve got vendors and programs that ultimately don’t wait for grant reimbursements.” — Kate Serpe, CPA.com
Boards Are Getting More Financially Engaged — And That’s a Good Thing
One of the most encouraging findings in the report is how much more involved nonprofit boards have become in day-to-day financial strategy. Boards adjusted budgets mid-year, requested more detailed financial information, and proactively initiated conversations about long-term sustainability at rates well above historical norms.
That shift changes what’s expected of finance leaders. Boards aren’t just asking how the organization performed last quarter — they want to know what happens next.
Engaged boards raise the bar for finance teams to have answers ready before the questions are asked.
“Today’s boards really want to understand what’s coming next… boards aren’t just asking how did we do? They’re asking what happens if funding changes.” — Kate Serpe, CPA.com
Finance and Accounting Partnerships Are Delivering Real Impact
A large majority of nonprofits surveyed now work with a finance and accounting (F&A) partner, and they’re not using them just for basic bookkeeping. Organizations are leaning on partners for audit preparation, revenue recognition, fund accounting, budgeting, and cash flow forecasting — work that sits squarely in the strategic realm of financial management.
The impact is showing up in the numbers:
- The majority of partnered organizations describe the impact as “significant” or “transformational”
- Nearly all report at least a moderate improvement from the partnership
- A large share say the partnership freed up leadership time to focus on mission-driven work instead of back-office fires
The organizations getting the most out of these partnerships treat them as a strategic extension of the finance function, not a stopgap.
“Finance isn’t just back office. It is mission critical.” — Andrew Perumal, BTQ Financial
Nonprofit Finance Teams Are Finally Stabilizing
After several years defined by turnover and vacancies, this year’s data tells a different story. A strong majority of organizations reported zero voluntary finance turnover over the past year — a sharp reversal from the talent crisis that shaped the sector not long ago.
Stable teams produce more consistent reporting, retain institutional knowledge of grant requirements, and spend less time training replacements and more time improving processes.
Contributors to that stability include:
- Better compensation and succession planning
- Strategic finance partnerships that reduce day-to-day workload
- Stronger knowledge transfer between tenured and newer staff
Once your people stabilize, your processes tend to follow — and that stability compounds over time.
“Stable teams ultimately create better organizations.” — Kate Serpe, CPA.com
The Spreadsheet Problem Hasn’t Gone Away
Nonprofit finance teams are closing their books faster than they used to, with most organizations now closing within 11 to 20 days. But the report points to a bigger opportunity than speed: better decision-making. Closing faster only matters if leadership gets timely, actionable information out of the process.
The sticking point is technology. A large majority of organizations still rely primarily on spreadsheets to run their finance function. While spreadsheets aren’t inherently bad, they become a liability as organizations grow.
- More grants, restrictions, and reporting requirements make manual processes harder to maintain
- Human error in a spreadsheet can have outsized consequences for financial accuracy and grant compliance
- Technology doesn’t replace good finance professionals — it frees them up to analyze the organization instead of assembling numbers
The challenge comes when spreadsheets become the system instead of supporting the system.
“The challenge comes when spreadsheets become the system instead of supporting the system.” — Kate Serpe, CPA.com
Four Strategic Priorities for the Year Ahead
Looking at where the sector is headed, the report points to four priorities finance leaders should focus on next:
- Proactive and predictive modeling: building the habit of scenario planning before disruption hits, not just responding fast once it does
- Protecting staff capacity: using automation and partner-led workflows to reduce the administrative burden of chasing payments
- Expanding the strategic use of partnerships: leaning on F&A partners for funding source identification, program expansion evaluation, and stress-testing assumptions, not just compliance
- Accelerating beyond spreadsheets: evaluating technology holistically, alongside people and process, rather than expecting a new system to fix everything on its own
These four priorities reinforce each other; progress on one tends to accelerate progress on the rest.
“Are we thinking proactively, or are we just ready to respond to disruption?” — Andrew Perumal, BTQ Financial
Growth Ambitions Are Outpacing Operational Capacity
Nonprofits are thinking bigger. A large majority of organizations are planning to expand programs, and an even larger share report increased demand for their services. At the same time, nearly half drew down reserves this year, and a significant share would face real disruption from a 60- to 90-day funding delay.
That combination is the central tension the report surfaces. The answer is to build the financial clarity needed to make confident decisions before problems become crises.
The organizations set up to lead over the next several years are the ones building that muscle now, not waiting for the next disruption to force it.
“The organizations that we think will lead over the next several years won’t just be reacting faster, but they’ll build finance organizations that are capable of helping leadership make confident decisions before problems become crises.” — Kate Serpe, CPA.com
Ready to Build a More Resilient Finance Function?
The 2026 Nonprofit Leaders Report makes clear that the nonprofits pulling ahead are the ones with the financial clarity and partnerships to navigate them proactively. Whether your organization is managing cash flow uncertainty, working through a talent gap, or ready to move beyond spreadsheets, BTQ Financial’s outsourced finance and accounting solutions are built specifically for mission-driven organizations like yours.
Request a consultation with BTQ Financial today to see how a dedicated finance and accounting partnership can free up your team’s time, strengthen your board reporting, and help your organization plan ahead with confidence — not just react.
