Being a business owner means constantly thinking ahead. When the new year rolls around, projections, budgeting, and market planning can feel like an overwhelming period. Even with proper scheduling and employee collaboration, preparing for the new year doesn’t have to be difficult. Here are some ways you can prepare your business for the upcoming new year.
Start Planning Early
If you haven’t already started planning for the upcoming year, the time is now. In the future, if you haven’t already done so, you should consider developing your business plans as soon as autumn rolls through. This is typically when your third-quarter results come in, allowing you to review the passing year and collaborate with your partners along with suppliers. If you don’t start planning around the beginning of fall, have everything ready to go before people start taking time off for holidays like Thanksgiving.
Develop a Budget
After you’ve determined your sales and expenses for the upcoming year, develop a master budget that includes the following information:
Your expense projections
A cash flow statement
Your income
Cash reserves
Debt service numbers
Credit availability
A balance sheet
A profit and loss statement
Upon evaluating all of this information, calculate an estimated year-end profit to figure out what financial decisions you need to make for your company. This will help you figure out if you need to lower costs, increase sales targets, or decrease your debt.
Point Out Areas of Growth
No business is perfect, and it’s perfectly okay if you encounter some obstacles. Thankfully, the new year comes with the perfect opportunity to evaluate these needs and figure out how you can improve them. Work alongside your team members to determine what professional development opportunities are to help your business grow. Is there anything your company is missing? Could you benefit from hiring more professionals? Is it possible for you and your team to participate in growth conferences?
Collaborate With Your Team Members
Speaking of collaboration with your team members, if you want your company to succeed continually, you’ll need to hear direct feedback from the people working for you. After all, team members will always be the lifeblood of your business. Conduct annual performance reviews to oversee your employees’ performance while allowing this to be a chance for them to share their idea as well. Instead of simply telling them everything they should be doing, make it a conversation by discussing what they do well, where they can grow, and how you can support them.
Set Your Goals for 2023
After taking all of the previously mentioned steps into consideration, start compiling all your gathered information together to establish your goals for 2023. Go through every major business category and define your goals for each section: customer service, marketing, revenue, culture goals, and operations. Once you’ve looked at the overall picture, continually break them down into direct actions by looking at each category individually. After you’ve prepared these goals, present them to your team members so everyone is on the same page.
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