When the “New Year, New You” season starts to roll around, agency owners can often be flooded with all the feels – gratitude, pride, maybe a little (lot?) of stress, about what the year will bring. Taking care of your total health, especially your mental health, should be a top priority. As such, we believe that confidence in the financial health of your business is a big part of this, and it’s why we do what we do – help ambitious owners have peace of mind while they pursue their dreams.
To help with this, we’re sharing a few key tasks to get in the best position to usher in a (financially) healthy new year. While we also have important checklists for closing up your books, in true Fiscally fashion, we are taking a total business advisory approach. We’ll touch on:
- Trends and Strategic Planning
- Profit analysis to help improved decision making
- Client Review
- Employee Engagement- Rewards Programs
- New Business Landscape
Before we get into it, let’s just have a moment for you being a brave entrepreneurial force and by virtue of you even being here, means you are already thinking about how you’re ready to take charge of your financial management to improve your business performance. Just remember, you don’t have to go it alone. More on that later.
Uncover Trends for Strategic Planning
Look beyond the surface and identify trends in your revenue, expenses, and profit for 2023. Understanding these trends provides valuable insights into setting priorities for the coming year.
Profit Analysis for Informed Decision-Making
Evaluate your profitability. If you were profitable, consider the next strategic investments. If profitability fell short, differentiate between revenue and expense issues. Resist the urge to solely cut costs; sometimes, the real focus should be on fostering revenue growth.
Client List Review for Profit Maximization
Examine your client list. Identify the most profitable clients or lines of business. Understand the economic dependence on specific clients and assess the risk. Armed with this knowledge, strategize to diversify offerings, focus efforts, or mitigate risks associated with client concentration.
Team Investment through Reward Programs
Investing in your team is paramount. Regularly review your reward program to ensure it aligns with your business goals. Ask whether you’re rewarding the right outcomes and adjust your program to motivate the desired results. Motivated and invested team members contribute significantly to your firm’s success.
Evaluate New Business Efforts for Growth
Assess your new business wins in 2023. Determine if growth was organic or net new. Use this insight to plan your focus for the upcoming year. A strategic approach to acquiring new business can fuel your growth agenda.
This thorough reflection on your year will not only gauge your firm’s performance but also set clear priorities for the next 12 months. Remember that measuring success should be an ongoing practice. While comparison is said to be the thief of joy, in our circles we believe winners keep score consistently and that means comparing your own performance against the potential we know you have.
If you’d like a partner who is on your level to help level up your financial management, we’d love to hear from you. From soup to nuts, we deliver a full accounting department including CFO-advisory all at a fraction of the cost (and heartache) you think it might take.