Grand Street Settlement, a nonprofit dedicated to providing opportunities for low-income families, shares its story of financial transformation with BTQ Financial. 

Facing critical challenges, the organization embraced a strategic partnership that enabled it to overcome financial instability and achieve unprecedented growth, expanding its reach and community impact.

Resolving Financial Obstacles for Sustainable Growth

Ten years ago, Grand Street Settlement was at a crossroads, struggling with financial management and the ability to track receivables. This instability threatened the organization’s long-term sustainability and its capacity to grow and serve the community. 

The leadership recognized the urgent need to resolve these issues to ensure their future.

“The biggest financial obstacles for Grand Street Settlement 10 years ago was our ability to bring in receivables and we were breaking the two cardinal rules of nonprofit financial management: timely and accurate reporting,” said  Robert Cordero, Grand Street Settlement’s Chief Executive Officer.

“We really needed to resolve the financial situation. There was no way that we were going to be able to be sustainable, much less grow.”

The BTQ Partnership: Listening and Liberating

The turning point came when Grand Street Settlement partnered with BTQ for specialized nonprofit financial support. BTQ’s approach was not just about numbers; it was about understanding the organization’s mission and becoming a true partner. 

By taking on the finance function, BTQ enabled Grand Street’s leaders to focus on their core mission and strategy.

“BTQ’s mission is to help a nonprofit thrive in their mission,” says Sisil John, BTQ’s Senior Vice President of Finance.

“We meet with our program leaders and we make sure that we understand their overall mission, the big picture so that they don’t have to think about the financials, they just think about strategy and growth.”

Tangible Results and Expanded Reach

The partnership with BTQ led to a dramatic turnaround. Within the first year, BTQ’s team identified three-quarters of a million dollars in receivables that had been overlooked. 

Over the next decade, Grand Street Settlement’s operating budget skyrocketed from $20 million to nearly $65 million, allowing them to expand into new locations and increase the number of programs and participants.

The Power of Trust and Embracing Change

A key element of Grand Street Settlement’s success was the board’s willingness to embrace a new model of outsourcing finance. This decision, though initially met with unfamiliarity, built a new currency for the organization: trust and confidence. 

By treating BTQ as an integral part of the executive team, Grand Street Settlement’s leadership demonstrated a commitment to sound financial stewardship, which in turn attracted more resources and unlocked growth.

“If the board, if our funders, if our donors do not believe that we’re good financial stewards, we’re not going to bring in more resources,” said Cordero.

Unlocking Mission and Impact Through Financial Partnership

Grand Street Settlement’s remarkable journey is a testament to the power of strategic financial management and the courage to embrace innovative partnerships. 

By addressing its financial pain points head-on, the organization was able to stabilize its operations and unlock unprecedented growth, proving that sound financial practices are the foundation for a nonprofit’s ability to fulfill its mission and create lasting impact.

Is your nonprofit ready to unlock its full potential? Contact BTQ today to learn how a dedicated financial partnership can help you achieve sustainable growth and expand your mission.

Girls Who Code is an international nonprofit committed to closing the gender gap in technology. 

Feargus Legett, Chief Financial Officer of Girls Who Code, and Rosie Keegel-Idigbe, Grants and Contracts Manager, discuss the organization’s strategic partnership with BTQ Financial, a division of Consero Global, and how leveraging BTQ Financial’s expertise has allowed Girls Who Code to focus on its core mission.

Nonprofit Challenges

Nonprofits operate with limited budgets, directing most resources toward programming rather than overhead functions such as finance and accounting.

Other key challenges include:

• Budgetary constraints
• Attracting and retaining quality financial staffing
• Managing complex grants and government contracts

“Nonprofits have lean budgets… resources are constrained for things like finance and accounting that are part of overhead. From a financial management perspective, that presents a real challenge,” says Feargus.

Why Girls Who Code Chose BTQ Financial as a Finance & Accounting Partner

Girls Who Code’s partnership with BTQ Financial, now over three years strong, has provided expertise, technology, and scalable services tailored to their needs.

• Access to high-level financial talent
• Technology platforms enabling effective sharing of financial information across stakeholders
• Scalability of financial operations aligned with organizational growth and needs

“Our partnership with BTQ Financial has really allowed us to tap into talent. We’ve also been able to access technology and a platform that allows the sharing of financial information across the organization to all stakeholders,” noted Leggett.

Key to Success: Effective Communication

Leggett and Keegel-Idigbe emphasized the importance Girls Who Code and BTQ Financial place on effective, ongoing communication to ensure a successful partnership.

• Continuous engagement through Zoom, Slack, and weekly meetings
• Seamless integration, making BTQ Financial feel like part of GWC’s internal team
• Dedicated internal liaison managing the engagement

“I’ve been really impressed with how seamless the communication has been. We’re constantly on Zoom calls.”

“We slack each other all the time… and I found just that constant flow of communication to be really effective for our collaboration,” says Keegel-Idigbe.

Enhancing Decision-Making Through Data

Outsourcing financial functions to BTQ Financial has notably improved GWC’s decision-making capabilities through access to accurate and timely financial data.

• Availability of crucial metrics such as cost per student, overhead rates, and actual program costs
• Better budget stewardship thanks to transparent, up‑to‑date numbers

“BTQ’s Finance as a Service has really helped Girls Who Code enhance its decision-making through accurate data and timely data,” said Feargus.

Additional Tips for Successful Outsourcing

When outsourcing a critical function like finance & accounting, Legett advises that organizations don’t necessarily need extensive finance expertise, but they do require operational insight and internal advocacy.

• An operations-minded internal champion who deeply understands the organization’s operations, goals, and staff
• Ability to provide outsourced teams with necessary organizational context for successful integration and collaboration

“You don’t need to be a CFO… what you need to be is an operations-minded person that really knows the organization inside out,” offered Legett.

Why consider BTQ 

Girls Who Code’s three‑year partnership with BTQ Financial shows the power of outsourcing finance for mission‑driven organizations. 

“(BTQ) established relationships with key stakeholders here and they feel a lot like part of the organization as opposed to an external vendor,” said Legett.

BTQ was founded to serve nonprofits exclusively with grant compliance, donor transparency, and program‑centric reporting.

• Mission alignment: BTQ measures success by the social impact its clients deliver, not by billable hours.
• Nonprofit‑specific tool kit: Workflows, dashboards, and controls are pre‑configured for restricted funds, federal grants, and board‑level reporting.
• True partnership model: Dedicated teams embed with staff, speak the language of programs, and flex capacity up or down with the funding cycle.
• Freedom to focus: With back‑office complexity handled, executives can redirect time and dollars toward advancing core programs and advocacy.

Take the next step: If your nonprofit is juggling multiple grants, stretched finance staff, or delayed data, schedule a discovery call with BTQ Financial. A brief conversation could reveal how a mission‑driven finance partner can help you amplify impact.