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There's a better use of this time of year, and that’s to look at how the business is running, so next year starts from something solid instead of picking up where this one left off.

That means looking past the sales targets and the client deliverables, and at the operational layer underneath them: the systems, the team, the processes that either supported the business well this year or held it back. We often review revenue at year-end and skip this part entirely, which is exactly why the same problems, bottlenecks and that feeling of heaviness show up again in January.

The targets and KPIs will tell you how the year went, but they won't tell you why, or what's likely to repeat if nothing changes.

These five areas are where that story lives. The parts of the business that carried the weight this year, and the parts that may be running out of room to keep doing that into the next one.

Where the team spent their time. Not what was planned, but what happened. If core people kept getting pulled into things outside their role, that's not always a resourcing problem to solve with a new hire. It's usually a sign that something is missing, an unclear process, a poor handover, or a decision needed but with no one to make it.

What broke under pressure. Every business has a moment during the year where something cracked. A launch that went sideways, a client handled badly, a deadline that slipped because two people assumed the other had it. Those things can usually be sorted out, they point directly at the gap that you need to pay attention to, so it doesn’t happen next year.

What's still running on effort rather than process. Some things get done well simply because someone worked hard to make them happen, not because there's a reliable way of doing them. That's fine occasionally but it’s not a foundation for growth. The parts of the business you're proudest of this year are worth a good review. Are they repeatable, or did they happen because someone pushed through?

Where growth outpaced your business operations. Every new client, service or offer added this year brought its own complexity. The question is whether the systems and team structure kept pace with that growth, or whether everything is now held together by extra effort that won't scale into next year.

What support looks like for next year. This isn't only about adding more people. Sometimes what's missing is a clearer structure, a second-in-command who can hold the operational threads, or a system that replaces a habit that's stopped serving the business. Growth rarely gets solved by adding more people to a business that has no infrastructure to integrate them.

If you're heading into planning season, perhaps add a some or all of these topics to your review, hopefully they will help you plan for a stronger start to 2027.

Katie Macdonald is a business operations manager, strategist and Fractional COO, and the founder of Virtually Does It, supporting founders, CEOs and growing teams. If the ops side of your business need attention, she can help you figure out where to start and build something you can rely on. Get in touch here: [email protected]