Ringing Out the Old
With the calendar year-end fast approaching, now is the ideal time to consider a handful of business planning items to finish 2022 strong and get a jump start on 2023.
- Review Financial Goals
- Reviewing financial goals on a quarterly basis is admirable; reviewing financial goals on an annual basis is vitally necessary. For instance, evaluate how you allocated cash during the year and how it may have impacted your business. Build in useful enhancements as necessary for 2023 that work for your business.
- Wind Down Inactive Business Entities
- Busy entrepreneurs and business owners will frequently have inactive and outdated business legal entities that should be wound down. By the end of the year, aim to officially close down any inactive business. If you have outdated companies for which there is no future business purpose, consider liquidating them and filing the necessary paperwork to wind up these unnecessary business entities.
- Consider Year-End Tax Planning
- Take a look at business income and expenses and consider thoughtful advice from your tax and accounting advisors to lower taxable income and improve your tax position before year end, including delaying billing clients until early in the new year.
- Establish Future Staffing Needs
- Evaluate your current staffing and consider what you will need in 2023. That may entail staffing up . . . or perhaps making necessary but painful adjustments in headcount.
- Compare Prior Year Goals
- Set aside time to reflect on last year’s financial goals and compare how the year turned out. Did you set ambitious goals that got lost in translation over the year or perhaps you aimed to low and could have been more proactive in your business goal setting? The fourth quarter of 2022 is the time to take a sanity check about annual goal setting.
- Review Financial Statements and Cash Flow Statements
- Set aside the time to review your financial statements to understand where your business stands at present. These basic reports include your income statement (profit and loss statement), balance sheet and statement of cash flow. You should also consider how your cash flow statements can be improved to forecast cash flow and strategic planning in 2023.
- Assess Leadership and Management Style
- Engage in some self-reflection in Q4 to assess where your leadership and management styles sync and where they diverge. For instance, effective time management, business acumen and communication will be pillars for the successful entrepreneur executive in 2023.