The 30-Minute Year-End Client Review: An Agenda for Referral Partners

December fills up fast. Your clients are reviewing their books, chasing receivables, and planning ahead. A long meeting may not fit.

A focused 30-minute review helps clients assess 2026 so far, identify Q1 2027 needs, and agree on next steps. Bring more to the table with preparation.

Before the meeting: what to ask your clients to bring

Send this preparation list a few days ahead. It supports planning and is not a loan application checklist.

• A year-to-date profit and loss statement, or a rough summary of revenue and major costs
• A current snapshot of receivables and payables
• A list of existing loans, lines of credit, and leases, with payment amounts and maturity dates if handy
• Quotes or plans for upcoming purchases or hires
• Notes on decisions they have been putting off

Meet even if some information needs follow-up.

The agenda at a glance

Minutes 0-10: 2026 performance so far

Start with the past because it is concrete. Look at sales patterns, how quickly customers paid, which costs grew, and where the business felt pressure.

Ask about surprises. A slow-paying major customer or a jump in supplier prices often explains more than the year-to-date totals do.

Minutes 10-20: What Q1 2027 will ask of the business

Discuss first-quarter expenses, seasonal low points, postponed investments, and decision deadlines across these categories:

• Inventory: restocking or buying ahead of a busy season
• Equipment: repairs, replacements, or upgrades
• Staffing: new hires, seasonal help, or training
• Technology: software, systems, or security
• Marketing: campaigns tied to a launch or season
• Working capital: covering gaps between paying costs and collecting revenue

This is a good moment for one question: “What’s one decision you need to make before March that we haven’t had time to think through?” It surfaces the dated decisions that tend to slip.

Separate necessary investments, such as replacing a failing machine or filling confirmed orders, from optional projects that can wait or be scaled down.

Minutes 20-25: Does current financing still fit?

Review what is already in place. Financing fits when it matches the need on five points:

• Purpose: what the money actually pays for
• Timing: when funds are needed and when the need ends
• Payment schedule: whether payments line up with the business’s cash cycle
• Maturity: whether the repayment term fits the purpose, expected cash generation, and useful life of any asset being financed
• Total cost: interest, fees, and the full amount repaid over time

A lower payment is not the same as a lower cost. A longer term can shrink monthly payments while raising what the business pays overall. Refinancing helps in some situations and not in others, so it deserves a careful comparison, not an assumption.

Any new need should have a defined purpose and a credible repayment plan. “We need cash” is a starting point. “We need a specific amount for a specific purpose, and this revenue repays it by this date” is a plan.

Minutes 25-30: Next steps, owners, and a date

Agree on next steps, owners, and a follow-up date before the meeting ends.

When to bring in another advisor. If the discussion touches tax timing, depreciation, entity structure, or financial statements that need cleanup, involve the client’s accountant. If you are the accountant, loop in the right specialist when questions move beyond your role. Good next steps often involve more than one advisor.

When to introduce ARF. If the review uncovers a clear need with a defined purpose and repayment plan, that is the natural point to mention ARF Financial. ARF offers bank loans and lines of credit, and an ARF representative can talk through whether either fits. Keep it simple: “Based on what we discussed, a conversation with ARF might be worthwhile. Want me to set that up?”

Hypothetical example: a landscaping supply business

This example is hypothetical and for illustration only.

A bookkeeper meets with a client who runs a landscaping supply company. In the first ten minutes, they see that 2026 sales peaked from April through August and slowed sharply in winter. Two large contractor accounts took longer than usual to pay.

Looking ahead, the owner must place spring inventory orders in February, weeks before peak-season revenue arrives. A delivery truck repair was postponed and is now urgent. Reviewing current financing, they find no revolving credit in place. The owner has been covering gaps from personal savings.

The owner and bookkeeper will draft a Q1 cash forecast by December 12 to test whether expected spring collections can support repayment alongside other obligations. They will then explore the inventory need with an ARF representative and follow up December 19.

Post-meeting recap template

Send this within a day, while the conversation is fresh.

Bring more to the table

Thirty minutes will not solve every challenge your clients face in 2027. It can make sure the important ones get named, owned, and scheduled.

For a deeper framework, read the companion white paper, Bring More to the Table: Turning Year-End Client Reviews Into a 2027 Capital Plan: [WHITE PAPER 2 LINK]

When a review points to a financing need, contact your ARF representative to talk through whether a bank loan or line of credit is a good fit.