Why reviewing your goals and financials can keep you on the right track
If you take a wrong turn partway through a race, you may not reach the finish line.
If you’re chugging along with your business, great! But as mid-year approaches, are all your ducks lined up to hit your goals this year?
Checking in on your progress to goal, financial details, and other performance metrics might help you catch something veering off course and correct it before it gets too far along. It’s always easier for you or your accountant to clean up the books partway through a year than at the end of it!
The Purpose
A mid-year review can:
- Monitor business performance
- Guide management and leadership
- Help you communicate with your team
- Uncover if you should be reallocating recourses
- Let you clean up invoicing to bring in more revenue
- Enable you to take strong corrective actions, if needed
- Bring focus to you and your business team
All this and more can be the positive effects of a mid-year financial review. Day-to-day operations can become overwhelming, and it’s easy to get bogged down in getting through each day, each client conversation, and each task. But taking a moment to find the gaps in your processes, clean up your financials, and make sure you’re on the right path to meet your goals this year can help you cross that finish line. If you want to really stay the course and keep your business moving forward, carve out some time for a mid-year review.
What to Review
- Your goals: Have you made progress toward them? Do you need to work on a system or change your reporting to make sure you’re tracking the right information to keep steering straight? Should they be adjusted or reframed, depending on how the first six months have gone?
- Your financials: Where do your year-to-date sales figures stand against projections? How is your income vs. expenses, and do you need to adjust? Are your revenue and expense tracking details cleaned up and in order? An accountant can help you with ensuring everything is in tip-top shape.
- Your taxes: We know, tax season just ended! But making sure you have tax details well in hand is key early in the year. If you pay estimated quarterly taxes, it’s important to keep track of your revenue if it has increased to avoid underpayment penalties. And if your revenue has decreased slightly, you can adjust the payment downward and invest your funds wisely in something else that may help you change that trend. You can also discuss with an accountant how to manage your taxes for the next several months to make sure your business is going strong.
- Your insurance: How long has it been since you reviewed the type and amount of insurance you have? Is it still enough to cover your needsif you should you place a claim? If you’ve grown your staff, moved locations, increased your equipment or fleet, or added services or products, it’s good to check that your insurance is updated correctly.
If you’ve covered all these details in depth, perfect. You’ve analyzed what needs to change, put in place some updates, and maybe have some further recommendations as well.
Now, if you’re planning to share the results of a review with your team for discussion, ideas, and any changes you might be making, it’s good to treat this intentionally. Some tips for planning a review meeting are:
- Spend enough time planning out your agenda and the key points you want to hit on
- Share the agenda in advance so no one is broadsided by a topic
- Make the meeting long enough to have robust discussion about key issues and changes
- Start with your company’s successes and accomplishments to keep everyone motivated
- Ask for feedback and be open and transparent about changes or updates
Conducting a mid-year review can ensure your finances are clean and you’re on your way to meeting your business goals. It can result in updated processes and overcoming challenges, and even streamlining some operations. Sharing the improvements can also keep you and your team motivated!
For help with a mid-year review or more ideas on how to keep your business going strong, schedule an appointment with us today!
