4 things every small business needs to know at EOFY

The start of the year for entrepreneurs has a lot of promise. We all come out of the summer period feeling good, with big plans to change things in our business - and then reality hits and we’re straight back into the maelstrom. Sound familiar?

To execute on the big, transformational things in your business, you need to pull yourself out of the day-to-day, and look at the bigger picture.

For most small business owners I know, they only find a chance to get up and get an overview of their business when the end of the financial year rolls around (when they’re forced to). While that’s still a little while away, it pays to at least start thinking now about what you can do to get ahead when the end of financial year period arrives.

So, here’s a few things to keep in mind…

Digitisation

Look I love paper, but it’s great for clarifying thoughts, and less so for managing your records. That’s why I always ask for an electronic receipt or take a photo of any physical copies. If you get into that habit, it just makes things that much easier come tax time.

Back when I chaired the Federal Government’s Small Business Digital Taskforce in 2018, the big theme then, and it remains now, are the opportunities for growth for small businesses when they embrace digitisation - not only in receipts, but across the board.

For example, there’s still businesses I come across who aren’t using digital tools to organise their invoicing and accounting. When I first met my mate Mickey down in Redfern, who runs a fruit & vegetable retail and wholesale business, he had a whole room full of physical invoices & receipts. Moving digital for him has been a lifesaver. It’s saved him time and more importantly stress (even if he’s only taken 4 days off in the last 18 years).

Delegation

For me, digitisation is really delegation in another form. We’re delegating our extra time to a tool. But, at all times in a business, it pays to delegate to expertise outside of your own. That’s especially important in the lead up to the end of financial year.

Unless you’re in the business of accounting or financial advice, it’s best to let others handle the numbers for you. Now that doesn’t mean you can’t understand what they mean. You’ve got to have a strong grasp of the information from your financials and what it means for your business, but it doesn’t mean you need to be down in the weeds doing all the paperwork. You’ve got to put yourself in the best position to reflect on the big picture of your business, and that means delegating the little things that’ll prevent you from doing that.

Set aside time to think

So, the big picture. Why and how should we be thinking about it?

I always say that business owners need to create regular, scheduled time to think and reflect. Ideally, you’d do this regularly, but if you can’t, then the end of financial year period is a great time to do it. Sit down and list out all the things going in your business. Look at your financial position, your inventory, your budget and your forecasts.

Try to think about ways to simplify things and cut down on the chaos. What financial goals do you want to achieve in the next financial year? Make the most of the time you do have to reflect on the business and make it work for you moving forward. The best way to do that is set targets and take action.

Review the status quo

When you sit down to think about what’s going on in your business, it should extend to all the external providers and suppliers that you interact with. You almost need to take a Marie Kondo approach to all the relationships and products that accumulate in and around your business.

Does your current supplier offer you the best balance of service or cost? Are the tools and systems your business is using - physical or otherwise - still the right fit for growing your business and achieving the new goals you’ve set?

You’ve got to look critically at these things. Because as nice as it might be, your business doesn’t and shouldn’t run on rails. You’ve got to take the wheel and make the decisions that drive the best outcomes.

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