{"id":6301,"date":"2026-04-11T16:21:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T15:21:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T21:44:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T20:44:27","slug":"finanzierung","status":"publish","type":"ht_kb","link":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/knowledge-base\/finanzierung\/","title":{"rendered":"Funding"},"content":{"rendered":"

\ud83d\udcaa Impact-funded - and proud of it!<\/strong>

We receive a contribution towards expenses for each laptop handed in. These contributions to expenses account for over 90% of our income, which we use to cover our expenses for staff, rent, replacement materials and everything else.

We therefore work very differently from conventional aid organisations, which usually depend substantially on financial donations.

Our organisation does not currently receive a penny of funding. This is one of the reasons why we are growing slowly, but healthily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

How does the contribution towards expenses work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\ud83d\udcca Central pillar of our financing<\/strong>

As the majority of our income comes from contributions towards expenses, it is essential that this is appropriate and allows us to cover our costs.

In our case, covering costs means that we also have to think about growth. As a relatively young club, this is easier said than done: for us as a club, how quickly we can grow does not depend on how much investor money we can drum up, but on how well we manage our finances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\ud83d\udcd6 Did you know?<\/strong>

As an association, we reinvest 100% of the money we raise back into our work. Our equity serves as a reserve and security. Unlike many conventional start-ups, we have absolutely no borrowed capital (money that does not belong to us).
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How does this calculation work out?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The contribution margin per device is small and varies. We therefore have to pay very close attention to how we spend our money. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The largest expense items for us are as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\ud83e\uddd1\u200d\ud83e\uddb0Personalaufw\u00e4nde<\/strong> (approx. 60%)<\/span><\/div>
As in any other organisation, a large proportion of our expenses are for salaries and social insurance.

Although we are an aid organisation, we do so much work that it would not be sustainable on a purely voluntary basis. And nobody can live on thanks alone.

Our salaries are lower than in the IT industry itself. In return, every member of the operational team gets to help other people every day. This is worth standing up for!

More info<\/strong><\/a>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\ud83d\udcbb Laptop purchases<\/strong> (approx. 15%)<\/span><\/div>
Even though we receive many devices from donations, it is usually not quite enough. Approximately 5-10% of our devices are purchased.

Here we clearly focus on laptops that otherwise have no significant value: For example, where components are missing or repairs need to be carried out.

This allows us to get hold of a basic framework for relatively little money, which we can then transform into a perspective with a lot of passion and replacement material (or at least always try to do so).<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\ud83d\udee0\ufe0f Device outputs (approx. 15%)<\/span><\/div>
This includes all expenses that are required to distribute our laptops: For example, replacement material, but also postage costs and our own tools.

The main cost drivers here are the replacement components for laptops. We buy batteries, hard drives and additional RAM on a fairly regular basis.

To make our daily work easier, we also invest a lot in tools that simplify our work. We have countless adapters, charging cables and other technical accessories with which we can get a lot out of our work.
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\ud83d\udcca Other<\/span><\/div>
We also have to pay rent, but we also have to pay insurance and sometimes also spend money on marketing and memberships.

One of the largest items here is the rent we have to pay for our locations. Our organisation does not have any properties of its own that can be used to develop our work. However, we are doing well at all of our locations and are happy to be able to keep working space.
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

What does the financial planning look like?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

\ud83d\udee1\ufe0f Defensive, as no other option<\/strong>

The financial planning for each year provides for clearly foreseeable expenses to be paid as early as possible: For example, social security benefits and pension fund contributions for employees.

This means that money tends to be tight at the beginning of the year. This is not a disadvantage, but means that we know very early on what \u00abbaseline\u00bb we can start the year with.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The typical course of a club year can be divided into four quarters:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jan - Mar: Start of operations<\/strong><\/span><\/div>
\ud83d\udee0\ufe0fOperativ<\/strong>

At the start of the year, we take on projects that we know will take a lot of time. This includes large software projects, for example, which are usually handled on a cross-divisional basis.

The entire budgeting process also belongs here. Together, the operational team looks at where investments should be made in the coming year and where investments can be made in line with the budget.

\ud83d\udcb5 Financial<\/strong>

Large bills are paid at the beginning of the year. From the end of February, expenditure slowly decreases again.
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
Apr - June: Preparation peak season<\/strong><\/span><\/div>
\ud83d\udee0\ufe0fOperativ<\/strong>

Stock up, take quality measures and make personnel preparations: Summer is just around the corner.

The second quarter is usually the test for the following summer. Are our processes right and do we have enough staff to cope with the big rush? These are the key questions we ask ourselves here.

\ud83d\udcb5 Financial<\/strong>

During these months, we procure what we will need in the coming months. Accordingly, expenditure is higher than usual.<\/div><\/div><\/div>
July - Sept: High season<\/strong><\/span><\/div>
\ud83d\udee0\ufe0fOperativ<\/strong>

The time when apprenticeships start and the starting signal for many school careers: Summer is the busiest time for us. So it can easily be the case that we send out over 250 per week for several weeks.

There is rarely time for projects, as the effective work of our organisation takes centre stage during these months. Everyone pitches in here, as our new interns usually start their time with us at the same time.

\ud83d\udcb5 Financial<\/strong>

This is where the majority of our income is generated. Expenditure is disproportionately high only because we distribute more devices.<\/div><\/div><\/div>
Oct - Dec: Tidying up and locking up<\/span><\/div>
\ud83d\udee0\ufe0fOperativ<\/strong>

Stocktaking and review: What went well and what needs to be improved?

The years pass quickly at wLw. This makes it all the more important that we also take time to process what has happened. The first preparations are already underway these months to tackle the next year.

And yes: between Christmas and New Year, even our team enjoys two weeks' holiday. Because this is almost impossible during the year.

\ud83d\udcb5 Financial<\/strong>

Large expenses again (13th month's wages and final invoices)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n

More information<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

All invoices and budgets from previous years can be found in the Wiki section of the association's annual reports - for anyone who wants to take a closer look! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\ud83d\udcd6 The association years<\/strong><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wie funktioniert der Unkostenbeitrag? Wie geht diese Rechnung auf? Der Deckungsbeitrag pro Ger\u00e4t ist klein und verschieden. Somit m\u00fcssen wir ganz genau darauf achten, wie wir unser Geld ausgeben. Die gr\u00f6ssten Aufwandposten sind bei uns folgende: Wie sieht die Finanzplanung aus? Der typische Jahresverlauf eines Vereinsjahres l\u00e4sst sich in vier Quartale unterteilen: Mehr Informationen Im…<\/p>","protected":false},"author":6,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":3,"footnotes":""},"ht-kb-category":[51],"ht-kb-tag":[],"class_list":["post-6301","ht_kb","type-ht_kb","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","ht_kb_category-unsere-arbeit"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ht-kb\/6301","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ht-kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/ht_kb"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6301"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ht-kb\/6301\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"ht_kb_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ht-kb-category?post=6301"},{"taxonomy":"ht_kb_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wir-lernen-weiter.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ht-kb-tag?post=6301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}