What can you do to prepare for the upcoming end of financial year?
It’s that time again, the end of FY18 is upon us. Every year we all say that it rolls around so quickly, and then the next is March 31 is here again! Now is a time to look back in the last financial year, assess how far your business has come and look forward to what’s in store for the next financial year.
That may mean revising your current business goals, or it could mean setting some new ones. The end of financial year is a great time to make a clean start and drive your business forward, it’s also a time to tie up loose ends in your finances and really get your business on track.
At Villa, we love this time of year. It’s bustling with activity and it is great to see clients reflect on their past year and work on new goals and for the next. Here is a quick list of the top things your business should be doing this end of financial year, and no they’re not all bean counting and number crunching!
Look back – take some time to review the goals you set for FY18. Did you stay on track and knock them over, or did your business priorities change and you made other achievements? If you didn’t set goals for FY18, have a think about the things you and your business achieved this year. The “wins” don’t have to be financial (although that’s always great!), it could be getting a new product to market, launching a website, employing more staff and much more! Whatever it is, write it down!
Look forward – when you’ve finished looking back at the year that was, look forward for FY19. Do you see your business meeting certain goals or achievements this year? These could be extensions or carry-over goals from FY18, or simply things you just didn’t get done this year. Again, write them down, you’ll need these this year.
Set SMART goals – if you came up with some good direction and goals for FY19, make sure they are SMART.
S = Specific. A good goal needs to be specific, if it’s too vague you’ll have trouble ticking it off the list once you do achieve it.
M = Measurable. A measurable goal enables you to easily measure your progress against it. An example may be to earn a certain amount of revenue or profit in FY19. You can easily measure this goal each month as you work your way through FY19.
A = Achievable. There really is no point in setting unachievable goals. We aren’t saying don’t stretch yourself, stretching is good for business in many cases, just don’t try to stretch so far you break or don’t get to where you want to be.
R = Relevant. Make sure your business goals are relevant to your business. A goal of creating a new website will allow you to expand your target market and improve your revenue, these may also be other goals in your list this year.
T = Time-Based. Set goals that you want to achieve this financial year, it’s also a good idea to set larger, broader goals for longer time periods. This includes a long term business plan, or perhaps it is planning your exit from your business or your retirement.
If you’re growing, get your marketing sorted – Marketing moves quickly, and we don’t all have time to stay ahead of the game. The way we interact and connect with our customers and clients is moving from face-to-face (although that’s still very important) to the digital space of online sales and social media. Traditional marketing activity like sponsorship, media, public relations and communication is also extremely important for a growing business. So if your goals are to grow, get your marketing sorted and get the push in the right direction you need.
Tackle the hard stuff – Procrastination is a hard thing to avoid sometimes. Tasks like working through that restructure you’ve been meaning to tackle, or re-working your financials can sometimes take a back-seat to day-to-day priorities. Don’t start your FY19 with procrastination, get to work on the things you’ve been meaning to start – starting is half the battle!
Plan some downtime – This may sound counter-productive, but planning some time where you aren’t thinking about your business 24/7 is a great way to reset. It gives you something to look forward to and enables you to come back rearing to go and continue on your path of achieving your FY19 goals. We aren’t suggesting take a luxurious island holiday (but if you want to, go for it!), even just a few scheduled days without your phone and laptop can be enough to set you back on the right path.
At Villa Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors, we love planning your business success alongside you as part of your team. If you’re interested in making a fresh start with your accounting for FY19, or getting stuck into some new business goals, get in touch today!
