With the 2024-25 financial year in the rearview mirror, now’s the time to turn your attention forward. Whether you're a small business owner or managing a larger enterprise, setting yourself up for a successful year starts with smart planning and clear priorities.
Here are the essential things to tick off as you prepare for 2025–26.
Lock in last year’s numbers
Before diving into new budgets or strategy sessions, make sure you close off your previous year’s data. Set end dates in your accounting and ERP systems to safeguard historical records. This helps prevent accidental edits and ensures you’re working from a solid, accurate foundation.
Revisit your pricing
A fresh financial year is the perfect excuse to review your pricing model. Have your costs gone up? Is your market positioning still right? Adjusting pricing based on current trends can help you stay competitive and protect your margins.
Review wage costs
Labour costs are often one of the biggest business expenses. Review your current staffing levels and cost structures, and consider whether there’s room for smarter rostering, better systems or strategic hiring to boost productivity and manage expenses.
Build meaningful budgets
Take the time to create detailed budgets by business unit or department. This granular approach gives you a clearer view of your financial forecast and allows each area of your business to work towards realistic, measurable goals.
Fine-tune your processes
Use the new year as an opportunity to review internal systems and processes. What’s slowing your team down? Are there bottlenecks or outdated practices that can be improved? Streamlining how you work can save time, reduce costs, and boost morale.
Set goals that drive growth
What do you want to achieve this year? Whether it's increasing revenue, entering a new market, or launching a new service, having well-defined, trackable goals will keep your team focused and motivated.
Tip: Sync your budgets with your systems
Make sure your 2025–26 budgets are properly entered across all your core business systems, not just Excel. This improves visibility, reporting accuracy and real-time decision-making.
Need Help this Financial Year?
At Cutcher & Neale, we’re here to help you move into the new financial year with confidence. If you need support reviewing your business systems, budgeting processes or financial plans, get in touch with our team.
Let’s make 2025–26 your strongest year yet.
Jace joined the firm in 2005 and has over 20 years' experience in the taxation and business services field. By immersing himself within the industry, he has developed a deep understanding of the financial and operational issues that face businesses and, as a result, provides tailored solutions to bring the best possible outcome to his clients.
Jace takes a holistic approach, allowing him to plan for all aspects of his clients personal finances including their practice / business, investments and superannuation.
