Forecasting Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts · Ask at least one question in response to an original peer post that you would like the author to explore further. CARMEN’S POST: Forecasting This week we are learning about forecasting and it is one of the most difficult part of budgeting. In my understanding to forecast I wanted to make sure I understood the difference of budget and forecasting to help me get a better understand of this concept. I will share what I have found on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmcc3rDgBXI (Links to an external site.) Budgeting                                                                                          Forecasting Is a financial plan prepared in advance                                   An estimate of future plans /                                                                                                    outcomes on past or present data.   Quantitative                                                                             Qualitive and Quantitative Financial expression of plan or target                                     Prediction of upcoming event Has a target date                                                                      No target dates Visited on an Annual basis                                                      By intervals Variance (budget can go up and down)                                  No Variance For the purpose of my budget introduction in relation to homelessness and mental health, the source of data I would focus on is unemployment rates. During this pandemic several individuals utilized unemployment. Unemployment rate prediction of a country is a crucial factor for the country's economic and financial growth planning and a challenging job for policymakers (Saraiva, 2020). We have seen the rate of unemployment increase as COVID cases increase. At CTSHealth which is the organization I am focusing my research, we seen an increase on clients and a need of staff. Staff have reported feeling overwhelmed and with bigger caseloads than usual. My predictions for the next 2+ years is that we will need to hire on new clinical staff as we continue to grow. I would utilize the quantitative method in utilizing for example the Bureau of labor statistics. According to Saraiva (2020) the prediction was that in July 2021 when there is a slight decrease of COVID-19 hiring rates will increase. During that period CTSHealth was able to hire 10 staff. My predictions for the next coming years is an increase on clients and staff. To prepare, my organization would provide monthly job fairs as individuals are seeking for employment and CTSHealth continues to have increase of clientele. Resources Dropkin, M., Halpin, J., & LaTouche, B. (2007). The budget-building book for nonprofits(2nded.). Jossey-Bass.  Saraiva, C. (2020). Unemployment Likely to Remain High Through 2021, Fed StudySays. Bloomberg.Com, N.PAG. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmcc3rDgBXI (Lin ...

1. Forecasting
Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts
· Ask at least one question in response to an original peer post
that you would like the author to explore further.
CARMEN’S POST:
Forecasting
This week we are learning about forecasting and it is one of the
most difficult part of budgeting. In my understanding to
forecast I wanted to make sure I understood the difference of
budget and forecasting to help me get a better understand of this
concept. I will share what I have found on
youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmcc3rDgBXI (Lin
ks to an external site.)
Budgeting
Forecasting
Is a financial plan prepared in
advance An estimate of future plans /
outcomes on past or present data.
Quantitative
Qualitive and Quantitative
Financial expression of plan or
target Prediction of upcoming event
Has a target
date No target
dates
Visited on an Annual basis
By intervals
Variance (budget can go up and down) No
Variance
For the purpose of my budget introduction in relation to
homelessness and mental health, the source of data I would
focus on is unemployment rates. During this pandemic several
individuals utilized unemployment. Unemployment rate

2. prediction of a country is a crucial factor for the country's
economic and financial growth planning and a challenging job
for policymakers (Saraiva, 2020). We have seen the rate of
unemployment increase as COVID cases increase. At
CTSHealth which is the organization I am focusing my research,
we seen an increase on clients and a need of staff. Staff have
reported feeling overwhelmed and with bigger caseloads than
usual. My predictions for the next 2+ years is that we will need
to hire on new clinical staff as we continue to grow. I would
utilize the quantitative method in utilizing for example the
Bureau of labor statistics. According to Saraiva (2020) the
prediction was that in July 2021 when there is a slight decrease
of COVID-19 hiring rates will increase. During that period
CTSHealth was able to hire 10 staff. My predictions for the next
coming years is an increase on clients and staff. To prepare, my
organization would provide monthly job fairs as individuals are
seeking for employment and CTSHealth continues to have
increase of clientele.
Resources
Dropkin, M., Halpin, J., & LaTouche, B. (2007). The budget-
building book for nonprofits(2nded.). Jossey-Bass.
Saraiva, C. (2020). Unemployment Likely to Remain High
Through 2021, Fed StudySays. Bloomberg.Com, N.PAG.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmcc3rDgBXI (Links to an
external site.)
LESLEY’S POST:
Discuss what sources of data (e.g., cost of living, inflation,
housing market changes, unemployment rates, federal loan
interest rates, gross domestic product changes, etc.) would you
use to help forecast budget changes for year 2+? Provide
rationale for your choice(s).
Nonprofits can develop a forecast by utilizing the estimated
annual rate of inflation, to allow for blanket coverage of rate
increases, though not entirely accurate for sources such as the
house markets, cost of living, inflations, etc. (Dropkin, Halpin,

3. and LaTouche, 2007). Forecasting for budget changes is quite
the task as each and every line item needs to be estimated for
the future based on past and future expenses and costs, as well
as only taking into account receivables that are in hand and
payables that are paid, out of hand. The direct relation to the
idea of one having physical cash in hand, paying for an item
with the physical currency. In order to somewhat accurately
forecast budget changes, organization historical data should be
included in the data analysis as this can point in the direction of
likely changes to occur in the future. As discussed by Enkel
(2021) most nonprofits will forecast for the next twelve-month
period and categorize each by month for analysis. Upon doing
so, the historic organization data can aid to provide the timing
of when to expect these changes in order to be properly
prepared when the time comes.
In order to forecast changes for year two within my
organization, I would begin with the estimated annual rate of
inflation, additionally accounting for the geographical location
(rural Texas) and applying this blanket increase across the
budget in anticipation of changes. Then I would follow the
suggestions of Enkel (2021) of breaking this twelve-month
projection down into months, review the year one accounts to
pinpoint deficits in attempts to proactively prevent or lessen
their effects over the upcoming year. I believe that by following
this process, the likelihood of positively anticipating changes
will have a smaller impact on the organization. For example, if
in year one, the organization saw a decline in donations between
March and May, in year two, more effort would be placed on
fundraising prior to and after this time period, while at the same
time, considering any options for less expense if optional.
Reference
A guide to cash flow forecasts for nonprofit organizations.
Enkel. (2021). Retrieved from https://www.enkel.ca/blog/not-
for-profit/guide-to-cash-flow-forecasts-for-nonprofits/.

4. Dropkin, M., Halpin, J., & LaTouche, B. (2007). The budget-
building book for nonprofits (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass.
Monitoring Budget Goals
Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts
· Ask at least one question in response to an original peer post
that you would like the author to explore further.
JO’S POST:
If a quarterly budget goal is off (less than 20%) of its’ intended
target, modifications and corrective action is generally needed.
Discuss what modifications and corrective action you would
make if your budget was 20% less than projected for quarter 2
of a fiscal year.
Monitoring a budget should be maintained regularly to assess
any changes that may have occurred. Dragone (2021) refers to
this as re-forecasting this is done to ensure that your plans for
the organization are resulting in the income and expenses that
your original budget has set forth. The continuous monitoring
allows for any problems to be identified early enough that it
does not cause any major financial setbacks.
If my quarterly budget was off by 20% I would want to look at
where this is taken place and assess what needs to be done to
modify the change in the budget. In my budget, I have looked at
the changes that COVID has brought to the organization and
would assess the current program needs and adjust accordingly.
The proposed changes are to add meals back to the program to
gain more of the lost clients back. If I realize that it is due to
low clients then I would look at getting the word out through
free sources within the community that we have implemented
this service. On the other hand, if the concern is that we have
implemented and the concern is with staff then I would look at
training aspects and possible. I would look at the expenses and
possibly make some cuts on items that could be later
implemented or excluded altogether.

5. References
Dragone, Salvatore, CPM,A.R.M., C.C.I.M. (2021). Invaluable
predictions. Journal of Property Management, 86(4), 12-17.
Retrieved from https://www-proquest-com.proxy-
library.ashford.edu/trade-journals/invaluable-
predictions/docview/2553579019/se-2?accountid=32521 (Links
to an external site.)
Dropkin, M., Halpin, J., & LaTouche, B. (2007). The budget-
building book for nonprofits (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass.
TIFFANY’S POST:
Monitoring Budget Goals
As we previously have been learning budgets are utilized by
corporations and others and are an important component of
making sure that a business runs efficiently. Budgeting help to
ensure that you are on track to reach specific goals that you
have put into place for your organization. Budgeting will also
give you insight into what may or may not be working within
your organization. When a budget is put into place, and it
doesn’t do as expected it changes are needed and that’s where
budget modification comes into place. Budget modification may
be needed if the current budget diverges from what was original
expected or the current budget expectation. There are different
reasons that may cause for a budget to be revise including
increase or decreases of funds that were allocated.
As mentioned in Dropkin and LaTouche (2007), no budget can
accurately predict all the circumstances that may affect a
nonprofit (p. 128). That is why it is important to develop and
document policies and procedures for modifying the approved
budget. If a quarterly budget is off (less than 20%) of it’s
intended target modification and corrective actions will be
needed. Keeping in line with the fact that budget modifications
are not centered on explaining what happened but are instead
focused on plans to manage future experiences based on new
data or experiences. To begin with I would ensure that may

6. budget and forecasting were flexible. Ridge and constrain
budget do not allow for any mishaps and with budgeting
unexpected things occur and that wiggle room is needed. It also
a good idea to continuously review your budget based on
current results. In the case where your budget is off target you
would want to communicate this information as soon as possible
to your team. It also a suggestion to include them so that you
are better able to determine the areas that needs to be changed
and the best method for accomplishing this. Goal setting is
important if you do not know your overall goals then it makes it
hard to determine what is needed and not needed when you must
go back and make modification.
You can't plan for everything, but you can have an idea of some
of the obstacles that could affect you when budgeting.
Dropkin, M., Halpin, J., & LaTouche, B. (2007). The budget-
building book for nonprofits (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass.