There are only one and half months left before we close the year. This is the time when businesses bustle and are inactive production to achieve the target gross annual income and to outdo their performance for the last year. However, as business owners, you may get too occupied with the growth and forget other substantial things to finish the year meaningfully. Thus, here is a checklist to be your guide.

Perform an audit

It is important to review your profit and loss statements to assess where your business currently stands. The year-end audit can be made by your own accounting personnel but an external auditor is suggested to take a different perspective on your financial statements. Auditors carefully examined the accounting book which could point a potential fraud and anomalies that your company wasn’t aware of and negligent on. This could also keep safe your shareholders and business associates to have their trust intact with your company.

Take an inventory

Look at the list of your resources and regulate your overstock and out-of-stock goods. Inventory management is an integral part of your balance sheets which helps your company reach optimal profitability and performance. The inadequate supply comprises your customer service for having not enough product in storage, and oversupply could either risk company budget for over investing in goods or induce product waste and spoilage in the long run. Thus, for a harmonious relationship of customer satisfaction and company profit, review your balance sheet. Bring out the stocks which need to be clear before the year ends to make room for the new and popular products.

Store the important files and data

At the end of the year, you probably collect tons of business transactions and receipts. Throwing, deleting, and paper shredding is not how you should manage these junks but rather you need to sort, categorize, and properly file or dispose of these documents. Proper filing of documents could make you easily go back to the records when needed while proper disposal of documents avoids unconscious dissemination of information and protect personal and sensitive data. Remember, you always need to secure your business documents, either electronic or paper-based, as they have a chance to get lost, damaged, and stolen.

Get ready for the holidays

There are two stakeholders that you need to give attention to this coming holiday. The first one is your customers. This is the time of the year when the market demands peak. You need to make promotional events and boost your marketing to sell and gain new customers. The second is your employees. As there would be plenty of work and tasks to do, seasonal workers should be considered to give help. Bonuses, gifts, Christmas/year-end parties, and vacation policies must be given a thought to keep your employees engaged and have a high spirit even in the last quarter of the year.

Finish the year with a goal

Before the year ends, a new goal must be devised to keep everyone in the business to have something to look forward to as you end another chapter. This will give a preview to the employees on what they should focus on and showcase where the company is heading. Thus, review what happened for the last three quarters and take note of the matters that need amendment and upgrade. Even if you fall short of your target and objectives for the year, you will still be able to wrap it up on a positive notion with a goal you have.

It’s not yet too late to make your fourth quarter worthwhile. Check all those boxes that you have accomplished and start doing other items on our list. For assistance on how you could easily finish them, tap us at BuenoSchonig Consulting to make sure you are doing it all right. Hurry up because there are only a few days left before we conclude the year!

References:

Haskins, J. (2017, September 21). 5 ways to prepare your business for the holidays. Legalzoom.Com. https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/5-ways-to-prepare-your-business-for-the-holidays

How to prepare for the year-end audit. (2020, November 25). FloQast. https://floqast.com/blog/how-to-prepare-for-the-year-end-audit/

Meine, H. H. M. (2021, September 9). Accelerate your business for the last quarter of the year. Calendar. https://www.calendar.com/blog/accelerate-your-business-for-the-last-quarter-of-the-year/

The importance of document management and storage. (2020, August 13). Vital Records Control. https://vitalrecordscontrol.com/importance-of-document-management-and-storage/

Why is Inventory Management Important? (2017, April 18). DSD Business Systems. https://www.dsdinc.com/2017/04/18/why-is-inventory-management-important/