Strategic Finance for Nonprofit Leaders

Taught by Professor James Honan and adapted from the Harvard Kennedy School classroom, the course is built for professionals who do not come from a finance background but need to understand how money shapes the decisions being made in their organization.

This course introduces a practical strategic finance framework—Ask, Locate, Decide, Assess—to help learners interpret financial information, ask the right questions, and connect financial choices to mission, sustainability, and impact. Along the way, learners will build skills in reading nonprofit financial statements, budgeting, resource allocation, cost containment, and planning.

Featuring case studies from organizations including City Year and Steppenwolf Theater Company, the course brings strategic finance to life through real-world examples, tools, and frameworks such as stakeholder mapping, logic models, and the strategic triangle. By the end of the course, learners will be prepared to communicate more effectively with boards, donors, and funders—and will create a strategic finance action plan tailored to their own organization or leadership context.