Budget Office Overview

The Budget Office budgets and plans the college's financial resources on both an annual and five-year basis in order to capture and prioritize existing and new programs to ensure that resources are utilized in concert with the five-year strategic goals of the institution. This process involves financial modeling, benchmark studies, enrollment projections, debt capacity and investment strategy analysis, understanding fundraising expectations, inflationary conditions and capital project needs, and the implementation of new initiative planning driven by the institution’s strategic goals.

Contacts

Jeff Dubois, Budget Director, duboisj@babson.edu, x4048

Teresa Pitaro, Finance & Operations Analyst, tpitaro@babson.edu, x4452

Garo Stone-DerHagopian, Sr. Budget Analyst, gstonederhagopian@babson.edu, x5848

Budget Office FAQ’s

Accounts/Activities/Setup:

How do I view my budget? (gaining access to AccountView)

I need to be able to view an account in AccountView… & How do I get authority to charge some expenses to an account…

I think I may need a new account/activity…

Funding:

I just received a check for one of my budgets…

I want to move budget money from one account to another…

Existing expenses are going to increase faster than what is budgeted…

I want to create a new program/project/initiative and I need money to do it…

Spending:

I've overspent (will overspend) one of my budget lines (i.e. Travel)…

I'm not going to spend my entire budget?

Positions/Salaries:

I want to increase/decrease a new hire’s pay…

Projections:

What is the projection process and timeline?

Fiscal Year and Quarters:

What is Babson’s fiscal year and quarters…

Accounts/Activities/Setup:

How do I view my budget? (gaining access to AccountView)

Budgets are available online through https://finance.babson.edu/ and accessed by entering your Babson Network Username and Password (same as your email). Once logged in, you must select the timing of the report: Last Accounting Close, Realtime (now), or Historical. The predominant use is Realtime, as it reflects the most up-to-date data in the accounting system (GreatPlains). Within each of these, you may select Babson Active Accounts, Babson Active Accounts with Balance Sheet, or Babson Active Accounts with Net. The predominant use is Babson Active Accounts, however you may occasionally find the Babson Active Accounts with Balance Sheet to be informative as it also displays any deferred revenue and capital asset postings to the account. Once you’ve clicked on your selection, a listing of all account numbers you have access to will become available. Clicking on the account number will run a Budget Status Report for that account. Running a report on a group of accounts is also available through the menus.

For additional AccountView training, please contact someone from the Budget Office.

I need to be able to view an account in AccountView / How do I get authority to charge some expenses to an account:

In general, view access and/or expense permission to existing accounts is obtained by having the person responsible for the account(s) fill out the AccountView Authorization form and send it through email to Carol Leahy (leahy@babson.edu) with a cc to Barbara Burke (bburke@babson.edu) and Garo Stone-DerHagopian containing the account number(s) s/he wishes you to have access to. Upon receipt of this request, your AccountView permissions will be adjusted in a business day and you will be able to use AccountView to view the budget and any expenses that have posted to it. If approved to charge expenses, your name will be added to the list of authorized names for the account(s).

I think I may need a new account/activity…

Oftentimes the need may just be for an object code (i.e. Travel) to be added to an existing account. To assist in your decision with this, please contact Garo Stone-DerHagopian to discuss if the planned activity would fit in an existing account or if a new account is warranted. Once this determination is made, the Budget Office will handle the creation of the new object code or account and either transfer funds from another account of yours or setup the revenue codes if it will be generating funds to pay for itself.

Funding:

I just received a check for one of my budgets…

If the payment is for an existing activity, program or grant, send it to Pamela Driscoll (pdriscoll@babson.edu) with a completed Cash Receipt Voucher http://www3.babson.edu/offices/financial_services/general_accounting.cfm

If the payment is for a grant, contact Wendy Silverman of Corporate, Government and Foundation Relations (silverman@babson.edu) with information about the grant and payment. She will begin the documentation and account creation/update process for grant funds.

I want to move budget funds from one account to another…

If you have responsibility for all the accounts in question, you may send an email to Garo Stone-DerHagopian with your request. If you do not have full responsibility, please have the person responsible send the email.

Existing expenses are going to increase faster than what is budgeted, so…

Predictable and Contractual increases are items that we currently have in our base budget but are anticipated to increase at a rate greater than our current planning model for the next Fiscal Year. This could include things like fuel costs, insurance rates, contracted items etc., and expenses related to serving a larger student body. To request additional funding to support these types of increased expenses, please contact Garo Stone-DerHagopian for a copy of the "Funding Request" form.

I want to create a new program/project/initiative and I need money to do it…

New Initiatives include any items which we are currently not doing and are unfunded within the existing budget but would like to fund in the next Fiscal Year. These items should be in alignment with the overall College Strategic Goals. When filling out the “Funding Request” form (available by contacting Garo Stone-DerHagopian) Cabinet Members should be very detailed and specific in describing the nature of the initiative, how it fits in with the College’s Strategic Goals as well as noting how success of the initiative will be measured. Once again, it is important to note that financial resources are limited and we stress that you should be diligent in identifying potential revenue streams or reallocation possibilities to fund the initiative.

Both Predictables/Contractuals and New Initiatives have specific due dates that are determined on an annual basis and communicated appropriately. However, generally speaking, both types of requests are due to the Budget Office in September/October for consideration at the November Cabinet Meeting, or by March/April for consideration at the May Cabinet Meeting.

Spending:

I’ve overspent (will overspend) one of my budget lines (i.e. Travel)…

For college-funded accounts, spending is primarily monitored at the bottom line. For instance, overspending Travel by $1,000 and underspending Office Supplies by $1,000 would not create a situation that needed to be immediately addressed. If it turns out to be a trend, you may want to consider requesting a budget adjustment by sending an email to Garo Stone-DerHagopian.

For grant accounts, spending is often limited to specific amounts in specific lines. For these accounts the budget represents the agreement, and any deviation from that spending must be compared to allowable tolerances. Lopsided spending must be addressed through budget revision requests that are approved or disapproved by the funder.

I’m not going to spend my entire budget?

Not spending the entire budget may or may not be a good thing. For college-funded accounts, positive balances offset the college’s use of funds in other accounts. For grant-funded accounts, it may mean having to give funds back to the funder. In general, budgets should reflect the costs of the activity(s) to be accomplished, and if the budget is larger, consider making a request for a reduction or reallocation. If the balance in your account is a result of the timing of a certain expense, you may want to consider requesting a carryforward of the balance into next fiscal years budget by contacting Garo Stone-DerHagopian and asking for a "Carryforward Request" form.

Positions/Salaries:

I want to increase/decrease a new hire’s pay…

Salary ranges are determined by Human Resources, and HR also has some funds available to align salaries with the current “market”. However, the primary source for pay increases must come from “permanent” funding sources, like the non-salary expense portion of one of your departmental budgets. The use of “vacancy savings” is generally prohibited as it is not a permanent source of funding, and is only to be used for coverage during maternity leave or if multiple critical positions in the same department are vacant as determined in consultation with Human Resources.

Projections:

What is the projection process and timeline?

Budget projections are performed during the 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarters of the fiscal year. An electronic Excel-based file containing all accounts by Cabinet Member is distributed from the Budget Office. The Cabinet Members distribute the file(s) to the appropriate Directors, Managers, and Administrators of specific accounts. These end-users update the projection of expenses and revenues through the end of the fiscal year and then return them for review. The returned projections are analyzed for variances to allow the departments and college to make any adjustments in spending that may be necessary for the fiscal year and future years.

Fiscal Year:

Babson’s Fiscal Year (FY) begins July 1st and ends June 30th.

The quarters are:

Q1: Jul 1 – Sep 30

Q2: Oct 1 – Dec 31

Q3: Jan 1 – Mar 31

Q4: Apr 1 – Jun 30