No matter where you stand on the political spectrum hopefully we can all look back on 2017 and agree to say “What A Year!” And no matter your views on tax reform, I can guarantee you that if you’re fortunate enough to be living in the United States and making decent money, you’re going to still be paying taxes in 2018 after the dust from the latest tax reform settles. Some of those tax dollars will be well spent and some wasted (just like in our own households).
As you look back on 2017 hopefully you’re saying “What a Year” about your business as well. While there is nothing particularly remarkable that happens to a business when the calendar changes from one year to the next, it is an obvious time for reflection.
Before you dive head first into next year, I’d recommend that you take some time to reflect on the year just past. What were the best moments of the year and how do you replicate them in 2018? Or better still, how do you improve upon them further? What were the dark spots of 2017 and what you learned from them? How can you avoid them in the future?
Below are a few of the high and low lights of 2017 for me and my client base.
- A doubling of profits over the prior year
- Seeing the results of a major acquisition play out according to plan
- Employees who dealt with serious health challenges with tremendous support from the company
- Deciding that a relationship wasn’t working and deciding to move on (I saw multiple of these during 2017)
- Missing profit goals for the first time in years but recognizing it was still a great year in the grand scheme of life and the company’s history
- A return to profitability after a year of restructuring
- On-going investment in a long term growth strategy
- Recognizing a potential shift in a business model and meeting those challenges head on
- Transition of long time employees and finding ways to turn that into an opportunity for improvement and staff growth
- Divesting ancillary activities which were a distraction to either the core business or personal time
- Renewing past relationships and finding opportunities for growth
- Taking charge of a business that had been adrift and seeing immediate results
I could go on but I hope that these examples give you some food for thought and that you take a moment to make a list of your own best and worst from 2017 and contemplate where you excelled, where you may have fallen short, and most importantly how will improve your business performance in 2018.
If your business could benefit from fractional CFO services, I would welcome the chance to speak with you. Please give me a call at (314) 863-6637 or send an email to [email protected]
The archive of these monthly newsletters is posted at the Resources section of homza.com
your cash is flowing. know where.®
Ken Homza
Copyright @ 2017 Homza Consulting, Inc.