Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

Discuss questions around local unit policies for budgeting, reconciling, etc. This forum should not contain specific financial or membership information.
drepouille
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#11

Post by drepouille »

Our assistant area auditor often trains our audit committee and the auditors prior to each audit, but I can't remember him training the stake presidency.
Dana Repouille, Plattsmouth, Nebraska
simonawright
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#12

Post by simonawright »

Our stake presidency have had annual training for the past couple of years and the assistant area auditor has also offered to do a session with the bishoprics. We have found his visits to be very helpful.
idjeeper2
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#13

Post by idjeeper2 »

One of our monthly stake bishopric meetings included Ward Clerks and Finance Clerks. The Area Auditor presented a discussion about the auditing process and gave a lot of tips about doing finances the "right" way. It was very good. I have been doing finances for years and learned a lot. Especially some of the reasons we do things the way we do.

One thing stood out to me in particular. He said that everything we do in the Church has witnesses to verify that it was done and done correctly. Clerks are the second witness to the bishop that the handling of donations and expenditures conforms to Church policies and procedures.

That shouldn't be a surprise - I had just never thought about it in that way before. And as Ward Clerk, my responsibility as a witness extends to ordinances, callings, reports, etc. A bit overwhelming to think about sometimes but points out how vital clerks are.
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johnshaw
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#14

Post by johnshaw »

Glad I'm hearing this discussion, my experience was that Leadership didn't place much stock in this type of training as it wasn't deemed 'spiritual' - In 5 years serving as a stake clerk I never once addressed our Bishopric training meetings (not for want of asking, nor showing in the handbook that I'm invited to those meetings), and it was a source of constant frustration for me about the miserable finances in our wards and branches. The Stake President seemed to think it was my responsibility to fix it when it went bad (which it always did).

Auditors were made up of former bishopric members or clerks so there wasn't much of a help there either... I found that as long as the BATCHES were ok - the other account, balances, etc.. just didn't matter.

I can testify to you that if a Bishop/Branch President doesn't lead out in financial responsibilities no clerk - no matter what kind of brother that is - can overcome the minutia of a Bishop/Branch President that just doesn't see finances as a priority.

I trained our clerks quarterly and for 5 years that training remained consistent on handling budgets, other, missionary accounts, etc.. but the same problems crept up time and time again, all avoidable if they used the training they received. Rather, they did what the 'Bishop told them to do' - and I was in the office 6 months later trying to figure out how to repair the damage...

Glad to see it work well in areas.
“A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom.”
― Thomas Paine, Common Sense
drepouille
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#15

Post by drepouille »

idjeeper2 wrote:One of our monthly stake bishopric meetings
When the 2010 Handbooks were published, we changed from monthly bishopric training to quarterly, as stated in Handbook 2, section 18: "One to four times a year as needed".

We also changed from monthly stake council meetings to quarterly: "Two to four times a year as needed".
Dana Repouille, Plattsmouth, Nebraska
lajackson
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#16

Post by lajackson »

johnshaw wrote:In 5 years serving as a stake clerk I never once addressed our Bishopric training meetings . . .
Our stake clerk gets three minutes in every bishopric training meeting, and may request (and will usually receive) more time as needed.

With only two to four meetings a year, however, we are not able to train on everything the Church asks us to train on, let alone the things we need to train on in our particular stake. (So we leave out most of the Church stuff.)

In our stake, the chairman of the audit committee takes about seven minutes once a year to hit the high points of financial training. Anything else has to happen outside of formal meetings.
drepouille
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#17

Post by drepouille »

A couple years after we changed to quarterly bishopric training, we expanded it from 90 minutes to 120 minutes, just to fit everything in that had accumulated on the agenda over the past quarter.
Dana Repouille, Plattsmouth, Nebraska
PamelaBonta
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#18

Post by PamelaBonta »

From information my mission supervisor posted. I haven't checked it myself as I do not have the proper permissions.

"The training videos to watch in compliance with the semi-annual audits is not really easy to find. The member of a bishopric or stake presidency, including clerks, must first sign in to 'My Account and Ward'. Then follow this path: Serve and Teach / Melchizedek Priesthood under callings / Record Keeping / Getting Started for Ward Clerks / then select the calling at the bottom of the screen to view the required videos."
lajackson
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#19

Post by lajackson »

PamelaBonta wrote:From information my mission supervisor posted. . . .
"The training videos to watch in compliance with the semi-annual audits is not really easy to find. . . ."
That's about right. As the stake audit committee chairman, I always sent them a direct link to the page with the videos.
Blaircam
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Re: Bishopric Yearly Financial Training

#20

Post by Blaircam »

Why is this training so hard to find...???
I kept going round and round trying to locate it.
Am I the only one who couldn't find it?
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