As you wind down the calendar year, now is an excellent time for a business checklist. Use this time to review your business goals and organize your business for the new year. So during the holiday lull, take some time to run through this year-end small business checklist to help start 2016 on the right foot:
Checklist
- Business agreements and contracts. When was the last time you reviewed and updated your agreements? Are you missing key agreements that could help protect your business moving forward? Look at this partial list of the business agreements you need to help you get started.
- Employee documents and hiring practices. As your business grows, hiring, contracting with, and retaining staff is vital. Now is an excellent time to review your hiring strategy and practices and your employee handbook, new-hire documents, employee non-disclosure agreements, and more.
- Intellectual property. Are your business assets and ideas protected to the full extent possible? Are you planning to enter global markets? Take a look at where and how your patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets protect your business.
- Growth strategy. If you have been humming along at a steady pace, you might not have had time to consider future avenues for growth. Tap into the creative minds of your staff and start brainstorming. They may have options for new product ideas, new markets, or strategies for expanding business with your current clients.
- Finances. As tax season looms just a few months away, now is an ideal time to organize your financial documents. If you are planning future growth, it is also a good time to review your revenue sources and identify future funding options.
- Operations. Are there outdated processes or systems not running as smoothly as you would like? Suss out snags in your operations that could be standing in the way of business growth and start developing a plan to address those issues in the new year.
Finally, if you are interested in learning more about protecting your small business and developing strategies for future business growth, contact EmergeCounsel today for business legal services.