Financial Sustainability Assessment & Recommendations

We’re seeking a skilled finance professional to help us assess the financial health of You Matter 2 and develop a plan that will move us toward long-term financial sustainability.

Over the past fiscal year, we’ve faced significant financial challenges, including the loss of our largest funder and the difficult decision to eliminate a staff position. As a result, we’ve been in a constant cycle of “money chasing” to keep programs afloat and staff paid. We want to break this pattern.

With a Taproot volunteer, we’d like to complete the following key tasks:

Review and analyze our current and previous budgets, income statements, and cash flow trends

Identify current and projected funding gaps

Develop a cash flow management tool or dashboard that allows us to better anticipate and navigate financial shortfalls

Provide recommendations for building reserves, improving budget planning, and strengthening financial forecasting practices

Help us understand how to align our finances with our programming and staffing structure

Deliver a clear action plan that outlines immediate and long-term steps to become financially stable and proactive, rather than reactive

Ultimately, we want to walk away with both clarity and tools: clarity on our financial position and a simple framework for making smarter, more strategic financial decisions in real time.

You Matter 2 exists to empower South Suburban youth through leadership development, academic enrichment, and community engagement. Each year, we serve over 200 middle and high school students through programs that help them grow personally, succeed academically, and become confident leaders in their communities.

But to continue delivering these high-impact programs—and to grow our reach—we must have a strong financial foundation. This project is critical to ensuring we can sustain our work, pay our staff, plan ahead, and stop operating in survival mode.

By helping us understand our financial health, manage cash flow, and build sustainable systems, you’ll be directly contributing to the longevity of programs that provide mentorship, mental health support, college and career preparation, and cultural empowerment to youth who need it most. Your expertise won’t just impact our spreadsheets—it will impact the lives of students who rely on You Matter 2 to feel seen, supported, and equipped to shape their futures.

When you help stabilize our finances, you help us keep our doors open, our programs running, and our youth thriving.

We’re fully committed to making this project a success and have already taken several steps to ensure we’re ready to hit the ground running. Our leadership team is aligned and eager to gain financial clarity and implement sustainable systems. We’ve secured internal buy-in from our board, who understands the urgency of this work and is ready to support the implementation of recommendations.

In preparation, we’ve gathered key financial documents including our current FY25 budget, income and expense reports, past-year financials, and our strategic plan. We’ve also been working closely with a contract grant writer and fundraising consultant, which means the recommendations from this project will directly inform our broader development strategy.

We plan to implement the outcomes of this project immediately. Whether it's improving cash flow tracking, creating a financial dashboard, or making structural budget changes, our Founder & CEO will incorporate these tools into our monthly review process and board meetings. We’re not just looking for a plan—we’re committed to taking action and ensuring this work has a lasting impact on the organization.