Business 101 - Happy 'New' Year and Taking Stock.

Last night, I attended a local networking mixer and listened to the substituted-at-the-last-minute speaker.  The mixer, at a local synagogue, is supported by the Rabbi, who, frankly, provided one of the best business lectures I've listened to over the past several years.  Here is a synopsis of what I heard last night and my take on it:

For those in the know, we celebrate  more than one new year in the world; there is the modern New Year (January 1st); but there are also cultural/religious New Years based on different calendars.  The Jewish New Year, or Rosh Hashanah, is based on the Gregorian calendar, and began year 5771 on September 8th at sundown. As the Rabbi explained last night, before we end the prior year, many of us "take stock" of our lives and give resolutions as to how we hope to improve our respective lives as we proceed through the next year, making it "new" for our souls.

Businesses and other organizations do very similar things - at the end of its fiscal year, a business looks at its books to determine whether it was a "profitable" year or not.  True, businesses tend to "take stock" multiple times throughout the year (and should), but it is at the end of the fiscal year, and the beginning of its new fiscal year that a business evaluates its business practices to determine what worked and what didn't, so a new plan of attack can be created to make the next fiscal year better than the last.

Making time to "take stock" is critical for a business's survival.  From a legal context, it is a great time to review the business entity structure - is it working? Is the tax appropriate? Are the legal requirements being maintained?  At the same time, is the employee handbook up-to-date? Have any new laws been enacted that would impact the business? Are contracts working? Have there been any customer relation issues? Employment concerns? Vendor issues? Is a merger, sale, or purchase possible that could benefit the owners and the business? Would outsourcing be beneficial or not? Are prices set accordingly? Is marketing working? Are advertisements appropriate?

And, although it is customary to review these items at the close of the fiscal year (or calendar year or whatever year you follow), the better practice is to always be taking stock of the different aspects that make up your business.  Take a few minutes to set aside a time in the near future, and "Take Stock".  Happy New Year!

Have A Great Day!