RESEARCH FINANCE
Financial Infrastructure Built for Research Organizations
Financial statements tell you what happened.
Pennies Count helps you understand what it means and what to do next.
Pennies Count provides fractional CFO or controller services to designed for research organizations that need strategic financial leadership without immediately hiring a full-time CFO.
Not sure where your reasearch organization stand financially? Take our FREE Assessment. Or explore our Research Finance Review.
Connecting the Financial Pieces
THE RESEARCH FINANCE FRAME
Research finance isn't just about recording transactions. It's about connecting funding, research activity, accounting, reporting, and oversight so the financial information tells the complete story.
AWARDS & CONTRACTS
PROGRAMS & PIs
Understand funding terms, budgets, financial requirements, and reporting considerations.
Connect financial activity to research programs and Principal Investigators.
ACCOUNTING & ALLOCATIONS
BUDGET VS. ACTUAL
Create financial information that supports organizational and funding-related reporting requirements.
Give leadership the visibility needed to understand financial performance, identify risks, and make informed decisions.
Monitor financial performance against approved budgets and identify significant variances.
Record, classify, and allocate financial activity consistently and appropriately.
LEADERSHIP & OVERSIGHT
REPORTING & COMPLIANCE
When the financial pieces connect, leadership can see the bigger picture.
YOUR ORGANIZATION MAY BE FACING...
Research finance can become difficult to manage when financial information isn't structured around how the organization actually operates.
You may be experiencing:
Limited visibility into individual research programs
Difficulty tracking grant and contract activity
Inconsistent PI-level reporting
Complex revenue or cost allocation
Funding restrictions that are difficult to monitor
Budget vs. actual reporting that doesn't provide enough detail
Multiple reporting requirements across awards
Accounting systems that were not designed for research operations
HOW PENNIES COUNT HELPS
Pennies Count helps research organizations create financial structures that connect accounting activity to the programs, awards, contracts, and funding sources driving the organization.
Our forensic-minded approach looks beyond the general ledger to understand how financial information flows through the organization and whether leadership has the visibility needed to manage it.
The goal is financial information that works for the research organization, not just the accounting system
WHAT WE DO
GRANT & CONTRACT ACCOUNTING
Develop and strengthen accounting structures for organizations managing grants, contracts, and multiple funding sources.
PI-LEVEL REPORTING
Create meaningful financial reporting that provides Principal Investigators and leadership with visibility into program activity.
BUDGET VS. ACTUAL
Analyze research program and award activity against approved budgets to identify variances and potential issues.
REVENUE & COST ALLOCATION
Review the structure supporting revenue recognition, expense allocation, and financial reporting.
RESEARCH FINANCIAL REPORTING
Develop reporting structures that support organizational, program, PI, grant, contract, and compliance needs.
WHO THIS IS FOR
Research Finance services may be a good fit for:
Research foundations
Medical research organizations
Scientific research organizations
Healthcare-related research nonprofits
Organizations managing multiple Principal Investigators
Organizations managing complex grants and contracts
Organizations supporting federally funded research
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
VISIBILITY
Better understanding of financial activity by program, PI, grant, or contract.
STRUCTURE
Financial systems designed around the organization's research operations.
ACCOUNTABILITY
Clearer connection between funding, expenditures, budgets, and reporting.
CONFIDENCE
Greater confidence in the financial information supporting research programs and organizational decisions.
LET'S TALK ABOUT YOUR RESEARCH FINANCE FUNCTION
Research finance shouldn't require leadership to piece together information from multiple reports and spreadsheets.
Let's discuss your organization's financial structure and where greater visibility or control could make a difference.