By JC Abusaid, CEO/President in Forbes Business Council
Key Takeaways
- A mid-year business review helps CEOs evaluate execution, not rewrite strategy. Reviewing progress midway through the year creates an opportunity to refine priorities before year-end.
- Strong execution is often more valuable than a new strategy. Focus on improving existing processes, reallocating resources where needed, and eliminating initiatives that no longer support business goals.
- Employee feedback improves decision-making. Honest conversations with the people closest to day-to-day operations provide valuable insights that help leaders make better strategic decisions.
- Recognition and alignment drive organizational performance. Celebrating progress, sharing successes, and reinforcing company priorities help keep employees engaged and focused on shared goals.
- The second half of the year is an opportunity to build momentum. Thoughtful adjustments, clear communication, and disciplined execution can help organizations finish the year stronger than they started.
Why Every CEO Needs a Mid-Year Business Review
At the beginning of every year, most organizations develop a business plan that contains end-of-year company goals. While creating a business plan is great, it’s only half the battle. Executing it successfully is what separates organizations that finish the year strong from those that fall short of their goals.
Many companies struggle with execution, with less than half of employees considering their organization “highly effective at assessing its ability to successfully execute strategy,” according to Gartner. That’s exactly why conducting a company-wide mid-year check is so important.
A mid-year review isn’t about making drastic corrections. It’s an opportunity to step back, take an honest look at how the business is doing, identify what’s working and what isn’t and make adjustments before the year is over.
Revisit your business plan and prioritize what matters most.
Every mid-year review should begin and end with one document: your business plan.
Look at the goals you established at the beginning of the year and honestly assess where you are now. My firm’s leadership team reviews our growth objectives alongside the behind-the-scenes projects designed to improve the business. Which initiatives are progressing as planned? Which needs to be reevaluated? Which are no longer producing results?
Resist the urge to overcorrect. If your planning process has been well thought out, dramatic changes shouldn’t be necessary. Focus on fine-tuning what’s already in motion and maximizing the tools, processes and resources you already have.
Firms that deliver results consistently know how important it is to follow disciplined processes. Strong execution is often more important than a new strategy.
Not every initiative deserves the same level of attention. Some are critical to the firm’s long-term success, while others may no longer be justified. If a project realistically can’t get back on track, leaders need to be willing to make the decision to stop pursuing it. Other initiatives may need to be delayed until the next quarter or even next year.
Take an honest look at progress and adapt thoughtfully.
One of the biggest mistakes leaders make during a mid-year review is allowing optimism to replace objectivity.
Before adjusting goals, take the time to understand why they were established in the first place and what’s preventing the organization from reaching them. Rather than making assumptions, collaborate with the people responsible for executing the work and understand their input before deciding what needs to change.
Leadership styles vary, but no CEO has all the answers. Some of the most valuable insights come from employees working on the day-to-day operations.
These conversations matter. Gallup found that “employees who strongly agree they get valuable feedback about their performance from the people they work with are five times as likely to be engaged.” Creating opportunities for honest dialogue doesn’t just improve engagement—it gives leaders better information to make decisions.
Just as importantly, be realistic. Ask yourself whether the business is behind because of circumstances outside your control or because execution is falling short. Leaders need to be objective in analyzing the situation and making appropriate changes.
If the business isn’t exactly where you hoped it would be at the halfway point, don’t panic. Making a series of sudden decisions or trying to force short-term results often creates even bigger problems later in the year. Instead, stay open to adjusting priorities where appropriate while keeping the long-term objectives in sight.
In some cases, you may need to shift resources. In others, it’s better to accept that you might miss a quarterly goal than to unnecessarily disrupt the entire organization just to hit a number.
The key is to make thoughtful judgments, not rash ones.
Refine where necessary, but don’t put a bandage on one problem if it creates another gap somewhere else. If the changes you’re considering would upset the organization, they’re probably not the right solution.
Use the mid-year check-in to align and energize the organization.
Our company-wide, mid-year meeting serves as an organizational report card. We review progress toward our annual goals, but we also celebrate accomplishments across every part of the firm. From transaction volumes and operational improvements to accounts opened, professional certifications earned, promotions and examples of exceptional client service, we look beyond revenue to measure success.
Recognizing those achievements matters. With just 31% of U.S. employees engaged at work, opportunities for recognition and meaningful feedback are more important than ever. According to Gallup, “Highly engaged teams consistently outperform their peers in key business outcomes.” Which means keeping employees connected to the firm’s mission is just as important as reviewing financial metrics.
These meetings also create an opportunity to share client success stories, introduce new employee benefits, gather feedback from employees across the organization and discuss how leadership can better support the firm’s priorities in the second half of the year.
Determine what leadership needs to do next.
If the organization is behind on its goals, the CEO may need to take a more active role in key initiatives to help remove obstacles and encourage progress. If the company is on track, the focus can begin shifting toward planning for next year while maintaining momentum through year-end.
The midpoint of the year isn’t about changing your strategy. It’s about evaluating your execution, making meaningful adjustments and aligning everyone around the goals that matter most.
