How WWF-Australia Brought Budgeting and Reporting for 300+ Projects Together

The Situation

After the 2019–2020 bushfires, WWF-Australia faced a much larger and more complex operating environment. More than 300 projects, including activity supported by purpose-specific funding, increased the demands on budgeting and financial reporting.

Microsoft Dynamics GP remained its ERP. The organisation needed additional reporting and planning capability around it.

What Was at Stake

Donors and auditors needed accountability. Finance needed to distinguish restricted and unrestricted funds, track project activity and allocate overheads consistently. Separate spreadsheets made collaboration and version control harder.

The Turning Point

WWF-Australia chose Solver as a shared budgeting and reporting platform. The design reflected its departments, projects, subcodes and activity codes, rather than forcing its funding structure into a simple summary.

How the Reporting Environment Was Built

Customised templates supported budget input from more than 40 departments. Web access gave teams current information, while drill-down supported transparency and forecasting. Overhead allocation became part of the reporting structure, and approval processes retained flexibility.

The Result

The finance lead reported that tasks which once took days could be completed in minutes. The published story describes self-service reporting, clearer access to financial data and streamlined budgeting across hundreds of projects.

What They Can Do Now

• Budget across projects and departments within one environment.
• Track restricted and unrestricted funding.
• Allocate overhead costs through defined reporting logic.
• Explore underlying information without managing competing spreadsheet versions.

Why It Worked

The organisation began with core budgeting and reporting, then expanded. Customisation, technical support and a budget for ongoing consultancy helped the finance team keep the environment useful as requirements evolved.

What This Means for Charities in Ireland

Irish charities with multiple programmes and funding streams can use this story to frame an evaluation around allocation rules, contributor inputs and stakeholder reporting. The key question is whether the finance structure reflects how the organisation is funded and managed.

Local funding obligations need their own design and validation. This Australian project illustrates a reporting approach, without establishing compliance with Irish requirements.