Society Treasurer: Role and Responsibilities
The role of treasurer in housing society is essential to realizing financial stability but also the well-being of the community. The treasurer is primarily responsible for managing society funds; however, the functions of treasurer are much broader than bookkeeping. The treasurer’s role allows for compliance, budgeting, investment planning and ensuring the community thrives.
This blog entry will discuss the strategic contributions and duties associated with the role of treasurer in housing society, the difference between trustee and treasurer, and how the right choice can produce healthy finances for a society.
Who is a Treasurer?
A treasurer is the architect of fiscal stability and community prosperity. He assumes a multifaceted role that goes beyond managing funds. Let’s delve into the functions of treasurer that define the work of a treasurer:
Purposeful Leadership
The role of treasurer in housing oversees the financial landscape of housing societies. His role involves a commitment to steering the society’s finances. He makes informed choices and strategic financial maneuvers to carve a path of stability and prosperity for all.
Guardian of Compliance
They guarantee that all financial practices adhere to legislation and regulation, and frequently clarify the difference between trustee and treasurer. Trustees may provide general oversight, while treasurers are often involved in the daily financial activities of the organization.
Assets and Liabilities
Among the key functions of treasurer is the management of assets and liabilities. They resolve the complexities of the society’s financial portfolio with sufficient strategic acumen.
Philosophy of Oversight
The treasurer scrutinizes financial transactions and contemplates their broader impact on society’s well-being and future sustainability. He brings financial resilience with his strategic foresight, ensuring that society sails confidently into a prosperous future.
Also Read: 13 Benefits of Society Management App
Choosing the Right Treasurer for Your Housing Society
Choosing the correct person is important. The following are the characteristics of an ideal treasurer forged by reflecting on the difference between trustee and treasurer in practice:
| Key Qualities | Why It Matters |
| Financially literate | It’s vital for performing all the functions of treasurer correctly. |
| System builder | Requires the ordnung sound financial and accounting systems. |
| Attention to detail | Precise and accurate record keeping is essential to sound compliance and transparency. |
| Ethically strong | Tied to expectations in that a good ethical stance is what separates the trustee from the treasurer in practice. |
| Strong Communicator | The role of treasurer in housing society includes engaging clearly with members. |
Also Read: Society Management Committee Roles & Responsibilities
The Treasurer’s Role
Model bylaws explicitly assign the functions of the treasurer of the cooperative housing society. Several legal clauses reinforce the Treasurer’s pivotal role by highlighting these designated financial responsibilities.
The role of treasurer in society involves multifaceted contributions—it is a confluence of legal nuances, dynamic planning and effective communication. By developing a more nuanced perspective of the treasurer’s responsibilities, we pave the way for a harmonious collaboration between administrative and financial facets within the housing society.
A Treasurer’s Responsibilities: Financial Guardianship
1. Financial Governance
Custodianship of Funds: The treasurer will receive and hold all funds for the society in a safe manner, and will manage the funds appropriately and judiciously.
Keeping track of Contributions made by Members: The treasurer maintains records of payments made by members.
Payments to Vendors: The treasurer pays vendors in a reasonable timeframe and only after confirming they have provided service(s) in accordance with agreements or social events.
Weekly/Monthly Ledger Reconciliation: The treasurer reconciles the society ledgers and ensures all society books are accurate on a regular basis (weekly, monthly etc).
Charges Calculation: The treasurer will calculate and revise (add) charges such as maintenance charges and parking charges.
These responsibilities clearly distinguish the duties of the treasurer from the larger role of trustee, as they clarify the difference between trustee and treasurer.
2. Budgeting
Annual Financial Plan: Create an annual budget that describes the society’s financial picture for the year ahead. Research modern budgeting strategies, making sure they lead to a well-rounded and progressive financial plan.
Activity Based Financial Plans: Prepare budgets that are specific for each activity such as, festivals, repairs, or renovations. Investigate and use activity based budgets, using financial plans to meet the activity’s specific needs.
Budgeting for the Future: Release forecasts by creating a new proposal based on actual project expenditures or year-to-date spending. Use internet-driven analytics to alter the forecasting, to create a realistic perspective on planning, and to foster an adaptable planning approach.
Budgeting for the Community: Develop a community-based budget culture that acknowledges the wealth of needs and aspirations in the society.Use internet forums and discussions to encourage community and group approaches to budgeting, to ensure a more democratic process for financial planning.
Budgeting leads the way for cooperative societies. It is an iterative, transparent and community based process that ensures the financial plan supports the collective vision and values of the society.
Also Read: Housing Society Secretary Roles & Responsibilities
3. Banking and Transactions
Fund Custody: Protect the society’s funds by managing and monitoring bank accounts. Understand security updates and secure banking practices to protect and safeguard the funds entrusted.
Transaction Manager: Ensure money moves smoothly between various methods. Use online tools to streamline transactions and to be aware of new transaction technology.
Deposit Discipline: Develop discipline in making deposits and placing funds in the correct account and identifying when to do so. Look at some best practices related to bank deposits and consider aligning your accounts to banking best practices.
Security Supervisor: Protect financial assets from bad actors. Review reports on bank security and cybersecurity and take preventative measures to better secure the society’s financial assets.
Financial transactions illustrate the cooperative society’s emphasis on integrity and efficiency. By exposing the society’s treasury to banking technology trends, the treasurer is developing a more dynamic financial transaction.
4. Accounting/Book-keeping
Transaction Chronicle: Chronicle every financial transaction with detailed accuracy, creating a genuine and transparent depiction of the society’s financial journey. Utilise the most recent standards of financial accounting reports, taking the society’s financial records into the present accounting-age.
Cash Flow Specialist: Timely entry into all account books, cash, securities, vouchers, and finance documentation. Using multiple accounting tools to help pave a more efficient time management of cash flow, thereby allowing for better documentation of financial records.
Petty Cash Guardian: Maintaining proper petty cash management limits of Rs 5000 and cheques for payments more than Rs 1500. Bringing budgetary discipline of a better approach for proper petty cash management.
Audit Response Person: Ensure audit response accuracy, keeping audit memos and assembling corrected responses for auditors. Using the best practice in auditing for an effective and professional working relationship with each audit firm.
Financial Statement Engineer: Design monthly and yearly account controls, build a profit-loss balance sheet with simplicity of understanding to all users of financial documentation.
Utilising new accounting methods, the treasurer can verify financial records are accurate and society’s promise to be good custodians remains paramount.
5. Wealth Management/Investment
Asset Catalog: Keeping an accurate record, cataloging fixed and moveable assets owned by the Society. Use Asset Management tools to create a systematic inventory process so that you have a thorough and up-to-date understanding of your Society’s assets.
Financial Wellness Records: Ensure the upkeep of financial maintenance and restoration records for all movable and Occasion Black Grocer assets. Good record-keeping will be aligned with best practices to facilitate financial wellness in the Society.
Insurance Keeper: Calculate insurance on society assets and confirm that the premiums remain paid. Utilize online tools, and adopt technology to improve efficiency in the cooperative societies insurance process.
Investment Planner: Design investment guidelines and policies aligned to the cooperative culture’s values, value, and the future financial prosperity of the Society. Evaluate and understand risk, financial capacity, understand ROI in order to lead the Managing Committee to responsible invested decisions.
Foresight, Safety Fund: Put plans in place for some financial safety nets to protect the Society against unforeseen circumstances. Participate in best genuine contingency fund management to ensure continuing financial security in the face of adversity.
As stewards of cooperative wealth resources, as Treasurer you continue the source of wealth in the Society. You have a tremendous responsibility and obligation in every investment decision made, as you are now acting in a position of responsibility that can contribute to the continued financial prosperity of the Society.
6. Fundraising
Strategic Fundraising: Intentional strategic fundraising that supports the goals of the cooperative society. Identify new opportunities and new methods of fundraising, including creative ways of raising funds.
Utilisation Compliance: Provide guidance about the use of funds and give input for the Managing Committee. Ensure that funds are used in accordance with policies and plans. Use compliance tools and frameworks to create an environment of compliance to financial policy.
Transparency is a Value: Provide all stakeholders with information about the uses of funds. Investigate different communication strategies to create transparency and trust among society members and increase engagement.
The treasurer makes fundraising community-oriented, transparent, and empowering, which supports the sustainable development and well-being of the society.
7. Compliance
Institutional Compliance: Following regulations enacted by the financial institutions, including co-operatives, nationalised banks and the RBI. Ensure that the cooperative society abides by the regulatory framework.
Legal and Contractual Compliance: Continuing to review and follow regulations, compliances and the many covenants of the builder or anyone else who can apply restrictions on society funds, financial management in relation to housing projects. Always be aware of how regulations change in compliance and documentation.
Bye-Laws: Develop a culture of legal literacy in the cooperative society. Gain a thorough understanding of the society’s bye-laws and follow all the internal and external regulations involving financial transactions.
Sub-Committees: Appoint a sub-committee of accountants or financial professionals, that you can supervise, but they need to report to you. They will work together as a prosecutor, which will be more acceptable than feuding with each other.
Accountability Culture: Mutual accountability includes compliance. There are web-based tools for accountability with open reporting and communication, that are used among all.
Legal Literacy: Funding and financial management require an informed community as the facility for reporting and compliance. Material on the laws governing cooperatives and financial governance, allows society members to gain the information they need to assist their cooperative adhere to the rules.
The treasurer uses his web tools to make compliance a process for stakeholders, and the cooperative society to develop a culture of trust, transparency and improvement.
Society Management System by NoBrokerHood
NoBrokerHood’s Society Management System empowers society treasurers by automating maintenance billing, tracking payment due dates, and displaying a real-time financial dashboard for better financial decision making. By ensuring digital vendors payment solutions, society treasurer can maintain secure digital record maintenance, use digital expenses approval and validation and more! Society treasurers can use budget planning to help councils plan future growth strategies, within the Society Management System, members can be designated different functions such as expense and budget monitoring, operating system, ‘transparent’ communication, and polls to make decisions for future society goals. Society Management System simplifies financial operations, reduces manual functions as and when necessary and compliance, thereby improving the treasury position and making the treasurer more accountable!
Also Check out these pages for detailed understanding
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What responsibilities does a Treasurer have in a housing society?
The Treasurer is responsible for managing financial and legal aspects, overseeing assets, and liabilities, and ensuring accurate financial transactions in a housing society.
2. Who holds the title of treasurer in a society?
The title of treasurer is held by an elected office bearer in a housing society, chosen to manage financial affairs.
3. Is the role of treasurer considered a leadership position?
Yes, the treasurer holds a pivotal leadership position, guiding the society’s financial landscape and making strategic decisions.
4. Is it possible for a treasurer to resign from the society?
The Secretary or Treasurer can step down from their role by submitting a resignation letter to the society’s Chairman.
5. What makes a treasurer effective in their role?
An effective treasurer possesses financial literacy, meticulous record-keeping habits, ethical values, and strong communication skills to ensure transparent and efficient financial management within the society.