Owned by you
The audit-and-prevent layer, built into the transaction. TERN gates every gift, budget entry, fund allocation, and journal call before it posts to the ledger — verifying the standard, asking the judgement question, routing the close-out to the right human. Built by a CPA who fought for this function from inside the sector.
Internal control, redesigned for the sector that needs it most.
For most of the social-purpose sector, internal audit has never been an option — too expensive, too disruptive, too easily mistaken for the kind of audit that sits at the end of a year already gone wrong. Existing audits look at outputs: did the program serve the people, did the books reconcile, did the funder report tie out. They do not look at the inputs — the moment a donation is coded, a contract is signed, a property is recorded as expense instead of capitalised, a restricted fund quietly crosses its own line.
TERN is that input-side function, embedded. Every transaction passes through a control before it posts. Where the answer is structural — sales receipt, not journal entry; capital, not expense; fund 4 restricted, not unrestricted — TERN gates and posts. Where the answer is judgement, TERN walks the user through the question and routes anything ambiguous to the accountant or strategic partner who already knows the file.
Where the controls live
At the input
Inside the workflow, before the transaction posts — not in a finding letter three months later.
What gets gated
Every entry
Type, fund coding, restriction, capital-vs-expense, approval. Structural answers gate; judgement calls route.
Who shows up
Nobody
No audit team. No two-to-four weeks of staff disruption. The control is the system.
For treasurers and finance committees: this is what internal audit and internal control look like, redesigned for our sector. Based on a real national non-profit client. Low-code predecessor built with Microsoft Power Automate and Teams (2025).
The conversation as it actually happens.
A real judgement call — capital acquisition or operating expense — resolved at the source, before the entry posts. The reasoning is logged to the audit trail.
The judgement call resolved at the source — and the reasoning logged to the audit trail.
- You: Hey TERN — posting a $4,200 invoice from Western Surveying. Survey work for Riverbend Trail.
- TERN: One quick check before I post. Riverbend Trail — is that a property the organisation already owns, or one we're in the process of acquiring?
- You: We're in the process. Closing scheduled for next month.
- TERN: Got it. Pre-acquisition due diligence on a property we're about to close on — that capitalises to the asset rather than expensing in the period. I'll code it as a capital addition to "Riverbend Trail (in acquisition)", not a survey expense to programs. Sound right?
- You: Yes, post it.
- TERN: Done. Posted as a capital addition to "Riverbend Trail (in acquisition)". I've logged the question I asked and your answer to the audit trail — your finance team will see the reasoning. I'll flag this entry to the close team to verify the closing date once it actually happens.
Three financial domains. The architecture extends past them.
TERN's first build is financial — the place we have the deepest expertise. The same control architecture extends naturally into procurement, contract management, service-statistics reporting, and the PIPEDA and PHIPA controls a sector this regulated should already have. Those are on the roadmap. Today's product is the financial layer.
Connects with the platforms you already run
TERN capability
TERN capability detail
Use the AI you have. Or let us bring it.
TERN works with your existing technology setup. You choose the deployment that fits your organisation — the guardrails are the same either way.
You already have an AI subscription.
If your organisation uses Claude Pro, Microsoft 365 Copilot, or OpenAI for Business — licence TERN connectors and run them through the AI you already pay for. Lower cost. Your AI, our guardrails.
No AI subscription required.
We deploy a purpose-built chat agent in your existing workspace — Teams, Google Chat, or Slack. Your team interacts with TERN in tools they already use. No new software. No new logins. We handle the infrastructure.
Want to know how this works technically? Our FAQ explains it in plain language.
Arctic Tern — longest migration of any animal on Earth
Precision built for the distance.
The Arctic Tern makes the longest migration of any animal on Earth — from the Arctic to the Antarctic and back, covering over 90,000 kilometres each year. It navigates with precision that defies its size, arrives exactly where it needs to be, and does it all on remarkably little.
That is the operating reality of every non-profit we work with. Long missions. Chronic under-resourcing. Financial systems that were never designed for fund accounting, grant compliance, and restricted revenue management — yet somehow navigated anyway, year after year.
TERN is named for that quality of navigation: purposeful, precise, built for the distance. The sector has never been able to afford the function it most needs. “Built by the sector. Owned by you.” is the design constraint that comes from that observation — the function arrives without the optics, stigma, or staffing burden the sector was never going to absorb.
Have questions about the TERN Suite?
Browse our knowledge base for answers — or reach out directly and we'll respond personally.
Your back office should run. Not manage you.
TERN is in active development. The fastest path to early access is through the Mission Multiplier Program — where you build the operational fluency and AI skills to get the most from it.
Not ready for MMP? Join the waitlist. We'll reach out as capabilities roll out — no commitment, no pitch.