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MOST PROGRAM MANAGERS, principal investigators, division
leaders, and department chairs are bright, capable, and competent
persons in their field of expertise. However, when appointments are made
to administrative posts in higher education, new academic managers often
come to their positions without much experience in fiscal management
and administration. Prior to their appointment, the personal interactions
of new academic managers with the fiscal management of the institution
have primarily related to individual issues regarding salaries, benefits, and
grants. An administrative role, however, carries with it expectations for
effective management of the fiscal resources of the department or unit.
Questions that must be answered are varied and will be asked of the new
budget manager very quickly. Can a new piece of equipment be purchased?
Is it possible to immediately hire a new support staff person for the unit?
Will the department provide travel support for a faculty member to attend
a conference and present a paper? The list of questions could go on and
on. It is no wonder that a new budget manager can feel a bit overwhelmed.
Where can you, as a new budget manager, find the answers to questions
that you and others have, and how can you sort out the real fiscal issues
within your unit?
This volume is designed to provide initial assistance to new budget
managers. In order to become effective as a budget manager you must
first understand the context for decision making within the institution.
Chapter One lays the foundation for understanding budgeting and fiscal
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Preface
management. It defines terms, discusses the role of the unit budget in detail,
and provides a discussion of the fiscal context of higher education. In
addition, Chapter One focuses on the sources of financial support for higher
education and the differences between public and private (independent)
institutions. Understanding the broad fiscal context faced by the institution
contributes to academic managers’ mastery of their specific role and
function within the institution.
Chapter Two discusses the purposes of budgets and the elements of a
budget. Chapter Three discusses in detail the budget cycles that must be
dealt with by a unit budget manager. It presents the steps of the budget
process from initial budget development through analysis of fiscal performance.
It also discusses the operating budget, the capital budget, and
auxiliary budgets.
Chapter Four describes the pitfalls and problems faced by unit budget
managers and suggests how to avoid such problems. This compilation
of problems and strategies is the result of interviews with fiscal managers
at several kinds of institutions.
Although loss of resources is never easy, it can occur. Chapter Five
focuses on the unique issues related to budget reductions and presents
strategies to deal with such issues. Each chapter provides guided questions
to relate the material to the specific setting faced by the new academic budget
manager. The volume includes a glossary of useful terms related to
budgeting and fiscal management. Finally, the book provides a list of suggested
readings.