The budget balancing act that starts in March

As we head towards the end of March, you may find yourself “knee-deep” in the preparation for next year’s budget. The start of the new budget year is only 3 months away.

OR

You may be looking for an opportunity to reset your forecast for the rest of the year. Budget assumptions are no longer relevant, and you don’t want to be explaining the difference for the next 9 months.

Both situations require budget owners and finance teams to balance between compliance and commitment.

Compliance might sound like this…

“We can’t show that we will be over budget. Let’s adjust the numbers in Q4.”

Commitment might sound like this…

“If things continue like this, what will the gap to budget look like? Let’s identify the risks (to manage) and opportunities (to chase)?

While we can make someone comply, a better way might be if they choose to commit.

Robert

P.S. Whenever you're ready, there are a couple of ways I can help:

1. Come to your site and run a Finance for Non-Finance Managers workshop. These workshops are designed to help your people understand what’s behind the numbers so that they can have greater impact.

2. Mentor your Finance team. The forecast is the most powerful tool in a Finance professionals tool bag. Book me in for a chat about how I can help add a couple of dimensions to this skill set, and see how your Finance team can become the trusted advisor at all levels in your organisation.