Fall is here—which means it’s budget season. For many businesses, this process can feel like pulling teeth: stressful meetings, endless spreadsheets, and a plan that rarely lives up to expectations.
But here’s the thing—your budget doesn’t have to be a burden. Done right, it’s one of the most powerful tools to fuel growth, spark innovation, and keep your business ahead of the curve.
Ready to flip the script? Here are five fresh ways to build a budget that actually works for you—not against you.
1. Optimize data
It’s not uncommon for a business to create its budget by applying an across-the-board percentage increase to the previous year’s actual results. However, this approach may be too simplistic in today’s uncertain economy and ever-changing marketplace.
That’s not to say historical results aren’t a good starting point. But keep in mind that some costs are fixed rather than variable. And certain assets, such as equipment and employees, have capacity limitations. What troubles many companies is the presence of confusing or conflicting information, which eventually hampers their budget’s efficacy.
The solution is data optimization. This is the process of refining how data is collected, stored, managed and applied to maximize efficiency and value. In the context of budgeting, data optimization involves steps such as removing duplicate entries, correcting errors and applying a standard format to strengthen accuracy.
2. Involve the entire organization
Traditionally, many businesses rely only on their accounting departments to devise a budget. However, this approach often “puts blinders” on a company, leaving it at a disadvantage. When creating your budget, seek input from the entire organization.
For example, your sales department may be in the best position to help you accurately estimate future revenue. Meanwhile, your operations or production managers can offer insights into potential staffing adjustments and expenses related to equipment maintenance or replacement.
Soliciting broad participation also gives departments a greater sense of involvement in the budgeting process. In turn, this can help enhance employee engagement and improve your odds of achieving budgeted results.
3. “Sell” it to staff
Good budgets encourage the hard work needed to grow revenue and cut costs. But targets must be attainable. Employees will likely become discouraged if they view a budget as unattainable or out of touch with current market trends — or reality in general. After years of failed attempts to meet budgets, workers may start to ignore them altogether.
If this has been an issue for your business, you might need to “sell” your budget to staff. Doing so centers on devising and executing a communication strategy that clearly explains each budget’s rationale and objectives. Tying annual bonuses to achieving specific targets may encourage greater buy-in as well.
4. Monitor cash flow
Even if expected revenue is forecast to cover expenses for the year, unexpected fluctuations in production costs can lead to temporary cash shortages. Slow-paying customers and uncollectible accounts may also inhibit cash flow.
The truth is, any unanticipated cash shortfall can seriously derail your budget. So, once yours is set, monitor all your cash flows weekly or monthly. Then, create a plan for managing any major shortfalls that may occur.
For instance, you and other owners may need to contribute extra capital. Or you might need to apply for a line of credit at your current bank or another one. Additionally, you might consider:
- Buying materials on consignment,
- Delaying payments to vendors (as long as you don’t incur penalties), or
- Tightening terms with slow-paying customers.
Bottom line: Don’t put a budget in place and expect it to run on autopilot. Keep a close eye on cash flow and make adjustments as necessary.
5. Get an objective opinion
Many companies’ budgets suffer from the old “because we’ve always done it that way” mentality. Our team at Rudler can give you a fresh perspective and an objective opinion on your budgeting process. We can help your business strengthen its budget by showing you how to better analyze historical financial data, forecast future performance, identify cost-saving opportunities, integrate tax planning and more.
RUDLER, PSC CPAs and Business Advisors
This week's Rudler Review is presented by Allie Giordano, Staff Accountant and Evan Kandra, CPA.
If you would like to discuss your particular situation, contact Allie or Evan at 859-331-1717.
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