While this is mostly written for new treasurers, it's something I'd encourage everyone to save a copy of. Technical issues aside, one of the most difficult things we run into are new treasurers who are doing their best to keep up with the books, but are doing so without having been told much about what they need to do other than to enter deposits each month, and make some reports show up at the appointed time. What I've got here isn't super detailed, but it can be used as a starting point for making sure that things get done from month to month, and year to year as time goes by.

On top of just the text that's listed below, here are some links that I would feel remiss if I didn't pass around:

Investment club webinars, for learning the ins and outs of keeping up with a club:
http://www.iclub.com/webinars/webinar_iclub.asp.

The Desktop Accounting Manual:http://www.iclub.com/support/download.aspx?file=Club_Accounting_3_Manual.pdf
The Online Accounting Manual:http://www.iclub.com/support/download.aspx?file=CAO_Manual.pdf

MONTHLY TASKS:

Most clubs meet once a month. Some meet more or less often. The tasks listed below, however, apply to your club’s regular meetings. Regular monthly tasks include:

Depositing monthly club meeting payments, and any fees (used for penalties), in the appropriate financial institution, then entering same in Club Accounting.

Entering valuations at least once a month, even if your club meets less frequently than once a month, to create a valuation statement as to the club's value on a specific date.

Backing up the club information;

Printing the current following reports immediately before each meeting and distributing them to each member:
Valuation Statement
Members Status Report

Depending on your club’s situation, monthly tasks can also include:

Writing checks for operating expenses, account maintenance expenses, software expenses, etc. and entering Cash Account expense transactions for these expenses;

Depositing money in your club’s accounts for cash received on securities (interest, dividends, capital gain, return of capital) and entering the corresponding transactions;

Entering reinvested distribution transactions (interest, dividends, capital gain, return of capital, where the club receives additional shares rather than cash);

Entering transactions for interest, dividends, received on the club’s cash accounts;

Deleting and re-entering member, security, and cash account transactions if you made a mistake when you first entered them.

OCCASIONAL TASKS:

Some events occur relatively infrequently, such as a member withdrawing from the club, or buying or selling a security.

In addition to the Monthly Tasks, Occasional Tasks include:

Entering member profiles and identification information for new members and securities;

Entering purchases or sales of shares of securities;

Handling member withdrawals: This includes entering the Withdrawal, printing the Withdrawal Distribution Report, writing a check and/or transferring shares to the withdrawing member;

Printing the following reports as needed and using them or distributing them as appropriate:

• Withdrawal Distribution Report
• Individual Valuation Units Ledger
• Individual Investment Histories Report
• Members Cash Contributions Report
• Cash Journal Listing
• Complete Journal/Ledger Listing
• Transactions Summary

YEAR-END TASKS:

Important: You may need to wait until the end of February to perform the year-end tasks because it may take that long for the financial institution with which the club does business to get all year-end information to you.

After the end of the year, you must provide income tax and other information to each member for his or her personal records. In addition to the Monthly Tasks and Occasional Tasks, end-of-distribution-period tasks include:

Making certain the database is in good order and that it reflect the paper records you have received from the various institutions with which your club does business;

Purchasing the Annual Tax Printer, which automatically prepares all federal club taxes, from Better Investing;

Entering the information from Form 1099 and other information you receive after the end of the year, if not already entered from statements received earlier;

Distributing tax liabilities on earnings to the members who are still active at the end of the year.

Printing the following reports and distributing them to each member as soon as possible after the last day of the distribution period:
Distribution of Earnings Statement
Income and Expense Statement and Balance Sheet

Providing the IRS with a filled-in Form 1065 and a copy of each member’s K-1 Schedule;

Providing each current member and any member who completely withdrew during the year with a completed K-1 Schedule;

Making certain that each member understands what he or she needs to know to file his or her income tax return information correctly.

It may sound a little silly, but if you get a chance, bookmark this, or make a note somewhere in the club documents. If if it saves even one person from having to find out the hard way that they need to go back and enter a year's worth of valuations, or re-enter a host of member deposits, then it'll be worth the time.