Alumni to collegiate chapter finances

[Alumni President]

Hi guys,

I had a few thoughts that I wanted to run by this group and get your input on. I'd like to formalize some processes between the chapters, as well as how to handle the alumni chapter budget.

• Tracking requests, reimbursements, and transfers between alumni & collegiate accounts
• Can we define a process (google form?) to capture and record any requests for money transfers between our accounts? I'd like to track this out of email, as well as notify this committee of the requests and approvals. I'd also like a written SOP so we can point to it for people. What do you think?
  
  
• We've discussed the alumni covering some of the infrastructure / operational costs (software like Zoom or Google Workspace) for example. The Chapter is currently being charged for some of these items. Where should these costs live?
• Should they be managed through the chapter and reimbursed by the alumni every month?
• Or should we charge our alumni accounts or set up an alumni credit card?
• Does something else make sense?

Let me know if you have any questions!

Nick

[Brendan Fisher]

Nick,

I won't be able to make it tonight but Eddie can cover for me. See my thoughts below in blue. Happy to talk further, as needed.

Best,

Brendan

On Wed, Sep 13, 2023 at 5:24 PM Alumni President <alumni.p...@sigmanudavis.com> wrote:

Hi guys,

I had a few thoughts that I wanted to run by this group and get your input on. I'd like to formalize some processes between the chapters, as well as how to handle the alumni chapter budget.

• Tracking requests, reimbursements, and transfers between alumni & collegiate accounts
• Can we define a process (google form?) to capture and record any requests for money transfers between our accounts? I'd like to track this out of email, as well as notify this committee of the requests and approvals. I'd also like a written SOP so we can point to it for people. What do you think?
  

If I recall correctly (Eddie, keep me honest), we already use Google Forms for chapter reimbursements, so I think an extension of that system for alumni-collegiate transfers seems reasonable. Even if we're using a different system for chapter reimbursements, I still think Google Forms would be the best option considering the compatibility with our workspaces & the paper trail that is left by form submissions.

• 
  
• We've discussed the alumni covering some of the infrastructure / operational costs (software like Zoom or Google Workspace) for example. The Chapter is currently being charged for some of these items. Where should these costs live?
• Should they be managed through the chapter and reimbursed by the alumni every month?
• Or should we charge our alumni accounts or set up an alumni credit card?
• Does something else make sense?

I think it's reasonable to have the chapter cover a portion of these expenses; is it possible to get a breakdown of each line item? Ideally, we have the chapter pay for / contribute to expenses that the chapter will directly benefit from or use, such as the Google Workspace. That said, I think these costs should live with the alumni who then charge the chapter for its portion. 

From my experience, I think we should err on the side of fewer physical credit / debit cards, so to the extent we can directly charge accounts, I think that approach is better. 

[Alumni President]

Thanks for the feedback Brendan! Agree with what you're suggesting. Anyone else have feedback?

I've built a form a long time ago for the Alumni Chapter (edits welcome!) that feeds into a budget document I'm making for the Alumni Chapter. We need to have a planned budget, so I've put one together"

• Alumni Chapter Reimbursement Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScr9P2OZlZjr0lFBlnmJ0mPi6bZn7RZlm86yQ3EckDYyFcZIQ/viewform
• Alumni Chapter Planned Budget: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1X-mSzfXASF6fFvaDEn0fow7wWWNMRoIBSI3zJOfYP0E/edit?usp=sharing

The planned budget right now takes any capital expense and puts it on the Alumni to front the bill. While I generally would agree that we should charge the active brothers for their usage, our goal is to subsidize their dues in the end so it feels not worth it to start, but open for discussion.

Based on my current proposed budget, I'm suggesting that the alumni take on a yearly budget of $2,205 ($183.75/month):

• Capital expenditures (those we need to manage the business): $1,455 for the year or $120/month
• Operational expenditures (budget for programs, activities, etc.): $750 per year or $62.50/month

Squarespace and Website Domain is $0 but should be closer to $20/year.

NOTE: This does not include any additional scholarships or supplemental help to the chapter.

Thanks,

Nick