Finish 2025 with momentum, not baggage

Why FY26 started slow for so many Australian businesses and how to get it back on track.

For many Australian businesses, this year has been rougher than expected. The year began with Trump’s tariff circus leaving everyone guessing each morning about what wild call he’d made overnight and what impact it might have on the global and local economy.

At the same time, AI began to flood our feeds and our discussions — from the boardroom to Sunday barbecues. We were all trying to figure out where solid ground stood, so we could play a corporate and personal version of the floor is lava.

While we experienced some relief in interest rates and consumer sentiment became a little less head-shy, the best our GDP could offer was some stabilisation and a small bump.

So with all of the head and side winds coming out of COVID considered, Australian businesses have been doing the Aussie thing of punching above their weight to stay in the game. But in reality, many have been running to stand still and missing out on the dopamine hit of real progress.

The hidden cost of distraction

While all of these factors make for a big sandwich to swallow, the rules of capitalism remain grounded in the rules of nature: survival of the fittest. As a result, we’ve seen a number of businesses not make it through.

The hard fact is this: if we spend all our time distracted by the constant change of the pitch, we never work out and execute a game plan. While I know of many organisations that have been conservative in their strategy planning, I also know many have struggled to execute on their strategies due to three things: capability, capacity and confidence.

The capability, capacity and confidence gap

It’s a hard sell to say be brave and drive strategic change in this climate, but a lack of progress or decline is harder yet. When your organisation design is lean and each resource is justified against BAU, it’s even harder to put down buckets and fix the ship because you’re not sure if you really have the skills or time to do so.

While there’s great talent out there and an unemployment rate to back it, adding strategic personnel to your P&L right now isn’t the answer for many businesses. Just ask your CFO.

The opportunity ahead: finishing 2025 strong

Don’t worry, this article isn’t all doom and gloom. If you’ve made it this far, here’s your reward.

There’s still time to get FY26 back on track and build solid momentum before we call it a day on this year and roll into the next. The next 90 days present an opportunity to re-prioritise and re-energise as we head into Q3 — and it’s all about being properly strategic.

In the words of Michael Porter:

“The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.”

So do just that. Be strategic with your strategy so you focus on what’s truly important.

Practical steps for gaining momentum

1 - Reconfirm the FY26 strategic priorities worth doubling down on.

Clear out stalled projects or low-value BAU that consume headspace.

2 - Simplify the roadmap to focus on two or three initiatives that actually move the dial.

Like a tight budget, put the candy back and focus on what will really deliver impact.

3 - Reconnect functions around shared goals, not silos.

Some people like to say culture eats strategy for breakfast as a negative. But when you align your teams around what’s strategically important and what you’re trying to achieve, your culture will eat up the strategy and deliver the outcomes you need.

4 - Reset governance, reporting and cadence to ensure momentum carries into Q3 and Q4 of FY26.

Simplify your reporting and meetings to focus on measuring what’s most important, and use some of the time you gain back to unblock pathways for your team to progress.

5 - Rent the capability, capacity and confidence you need right now.

Bring in trusted support to help you define your priorities and drive your initiatives. Someone who can think like your leadership team, own the burden of project management, and be the cross-functional glue that holds your projects together through to successful delivery — all while helping to build a culture of momentum within your team.

Where do I get this outside support?

This is a blatant plug for me. This is what I do. I help leaders define their strategy and then implement it with the teams they have.

I embed within the leadership team to design, coordinate and drive programs that free others to focus on running the business. I build cross-functional engagement to gain buy-in and traction to get the work done.

I pick up the bits that people don’t want or don’t have the capability to do to keep the ball rolling in the right direction.

To use a football analogy, I’m part coach, part captain and part player, operating like a mid-season loan signing who helps the team get to achieve their goals for the season.

And the good news is that, at the time of writing, I’ve got some availability to help one or two companies out right now.

So if you want to finish 2025 with momentum rather than baggage, I’ve got capacity through November and December to help you reset FY26 and move forward with clarity.