Businesses are constantly looking for ways to increase their financial performance.
As the end of financial year nears and the planning for the next year begins, this is a theme that often comes up.
Here are five tips I recommend for achieving financial goals before the end fiscal year, and setting up the next twelve months successfully.
Review Your Financial Performance
You should start by reviewing income, expenses, and your current cash flow to understand your financial situation. You can then identify areas for cost-cutting, revenue growth, and efficiency improvements. Review your financial statements including your income and balance sheets to determine the health of your company. You can then develop a financial strategy that is aligned with your future growth goals.
Set Clear Financial Goals
After you’ve got your ducks in order, you can move forward with setting clear financial goals. You need to set goals that are specific, measurable, and achievable. They should also align with your business strategy. Examples of goals include ‘increase revenues by 20%’, “reduce costs 10%” and “improve cashflow by implementing more effective payment processes”. Setting clear goals will help you create a roadmap that you can follow over time.
Manage your cash flow (more) effectively
Cash flow management is essential to any business’ success, particularly in today’s economic climate. It’s crucial to monitor and forecast your cash flow to identify opportunities to improve it. It may be necessary to negotiate better payment terms with your suppliers, streamline your invoicing process and system, or offer incentives for early payments.
You can increase your growth opportunities by managing your cash flow efficiently.
You should also be aware of the fact that if you owe money to the Australian Tax Office you need to have a plan for payment in place. This could negatively impact your ability to obtain financing, and jeopardize your current financial situation and any financial arrangements that you may have. You’ll want to pay off your debts and review any ATO obligations in order to reduce the risk.
Don’t forget, too, to contact customers who have outstanding invoices. If you are eligible, you may be required to claim tax deductions.
Invest in Your Business
Even today, business owners tend to overlook the importance of investing in their business. This can be as simple and straightforward as investing in equipment, training and technology, or as complex as researching and developing new products and services. It is important to take a unbiased look at your company’s strengths, weaknesses and opportunities as well as threats and challenges in your industry.
To ensure the financial impact of your investments, you need to develop a financial strategy that is aligned with your goals and strategies for growth. Strategic investments in your business will improve your competitive edge, increase your customer base and position you for long-term business success.
Outsource Financial Services
It is possible to gain valuable experience and skills by outsourcing C-suite functions. This can be done without having to pay the full-time salary of an employee. You can accelerate your business growth by focusing your time and resources on the expansion of your company.
Outsourcing your bookkeeping, compliance and management accounting to professionals is a good idea. Outsourcing these services ensures that your financial records will be accurate, current, and in compliance with regulatory requirements. You can also access experienced financial professionals to help develop a strategy aligned with your growth goals and monitor your financial performance in order to identify further opportunities for growth and investment.
Understanding your past performance is crucial to positioning your business for long-term growth and success.
The long-term sustainability and success of any business depends on the ability to make investments and take advantage of opportunities. This is why it’s important to hire expert financial services. These experts can provide more support, advice, and growth than an internal accountant or financial manager.
