Is Your Team Ready for the New Financial Year?

As the financial year-end approaches, managers across Australia are reviewing team performance and planning for FY2026-27. The blog is a guide covering two practical tools, viz., a training needs checklist to identify capability gaps before July and a framework for running effective mid-year performance conversations. The insights draw on CTO’s 28+ years of leadership training and management development experience across Australian organisations.

May is the month when most Australian managers feel the quiet pressure of a financial year drawing to a close. At the same time, they also have a team that may or may not be ready for what comes next. While this period is meant for some serious thinking and brainstorming sessions about capability gaps, it’s also meant to witness the mid-year performance conversation. Both are high-value activities. With capability discussion comes decisions about the team’s training needs. At CTO, we recommend organisations in Australia to prioritise the most suitable corporate training courses before July.

This blog is a guide that covers both the crucial aspects of corporate organisations at the EOFY. It provides a practical checklist that can be of great help to managers when it comes to identifying their teams’ development needs before the new FY begins. The blog also discusses the framework for effective mid-year performance conversations that will actually make a difference.

Why do timely decisions about EOFY training needs matter?

Before you make a decision regarding your team’s professional training courses, slow down, take a pause and ask the right questions. These questions are the ones worth working through now.

People & leadership

New or emerging leaders

Do any team members need foundational management training before taking on more responsibility in the new year?

Supervisors struggling

Are frontline supervisors getting the support they need, or are they managing on instinct?

Coaching culture

Are your leaders developing their people, or solving every problem themselves?

Team performance & communication

Persistent performance issues

Are there any recurring concerns that can be addressed by training, not just feedback?

Communication breakdowns

Are you repeatedly observing issues, like unclear expectations, misalignment, or team conflict patterns?

Customer-facing teams

Has service quality been consistent? Are complaints/escalations higher than expected?

Tools & systems

Microsoft 365 adoption

Is your team actually using the tools you are paying for? Or is the team just working around them?

New system rollouts 

Do you feel any of the planned upcoming changes (in FY26/27) require a structured training program well before they land?

Did you say ‘YES’ to more than two questions? Then that’s your priority list of professional training needs for the new financial year!

As mentioned earlier, the time to act upon these identified training needs is before July. Missing this timeline can mean another crucial financial year without the right capability in place.

What does a good mid-year performance conversation actually look like?

Being in Australia’s corporate training industry for more than three decades now, we understand that most managers dread the mid-year review. They either rush through it, make it a one-way debrief, or simply steer the discussion away from difficult topics. None serves the manager or the employee well.

Most performance review sessions happen in June and are forgotten in July. We believe managers should be aware of what separates a conversation from the kind that employees tend to forget by the time the first quarter comes to an end. Here is what you can do as a manager to ensure your mid-year performance conversation is effective enough to make a difference.

Before the conversation

• Review the goals set at the start of the year: Not just your impressions of performance.
• Prepare specific examples, both where things are going well and where development still has a lot of scope.
• Give the employee enough time, too. Send a prompt 48 hours before, to prepare. 

During the conversation

• Start with their perspective. Ask how do they think the first half of the year has gone before you offer yours.
• Be specific about what you mean by ‘good’. Vague feedback (“You could have communicated better.”) is often not actionable.
• Focus on development, not just assessment. Offer your input on what the person needs to learn, practise or do differently.
• End with clarity – agreed actions, a development focus and a mutually decided timeline make it a clear, positive end.

That one ‘game changer’

Now’s the time to know that one question that changes the whole conversation – “What’s one thing I could do differently to better support your development this year?”

We know most managers never ask it, whatever the reason is. We recommend asking this because it can really be the ‘game changer’ for you and your team. The ones who ask tend to have teams that are more open, more engaged and more proactive toward your feedback.

Driving effective, fruitful performance conversations is certainly one of the most underrated leadership skills, and like any other skill, it improves with the right training and practice. CTO’s range of leadership training courses involves both development and learning to lead programs, with practical tools and real-scenario practice that managers start applying immediately.

Now is the best time to plan the new financial year!

The organisations that enter FY2026-27 with more capable teams will enter as stronger players. It means they have used the EOY time thoughtfully, while others may wait until August, only to end up with already visible skill gaps.  

CTO delivers customised leadership training, management development, and professional development programs across Australia – both onsite and online, built around your team’s real situation and your organisation’s specific goals.

Already started planning your team’s FY2026-27 training? That’s great!

Speak with a CTO specialist to know what the most suitable programs are given your team’s capability needs.

Frequently Asked Questions – Leadership Training and Mid-Year Performance Reviews

Are performance review and development conversation the same?

A performance review assesses what has already happened. A development conversation focuses on what comes next, what the person needs to learn, practise, or change to perform better in the coming period. Effective mid-year conversations do both: they acknowledge what has happened and create a specific, agreed development focus going forward. CTO’s Coaching for Development program teaches managers to hold this kind of conversation well, consistently, and in a way that employees respond to positively.

What leadership training is most useful for managers heading into a new financial year?

The programs with the most immediate impact for managers at EOFY are Coaching for Development, which builds the ability to develop team members through structured conversations rather than just directing and Learning to Lead, which gives new or emerging managers the foundational skills they need before stepping into greater responsibility. Both are available onsite or live online across Australia through CTO’s customised leadership training programs.

How do I make mid-year performance conversations less awkward?

The awkwardness usually comes from approaching the conversation as a judgment rather than a development discussion. When managers shift from “Here’s my assessment of you!” to “Here’s what I’ve noticed and what I think would help you grow!”, the conversation changes entirely. Preparation helps significantly – both your own, and giving the employee time to reflect beforehand. CTO’s management training programs include practical coaching conversation frameworks that managers can apply immediately.

Can you organise management training quickly before the end of the financial year?

Yes. CTO regularly works with Australian organisations to schedule and deliver management training programs within short time frames. Whether you need a half-day targeted workshop before June 30 or a structured multi-session program kicking off in July, CTO can design and schedule a program around your timeline. Call 1300 667 660 or submit a request at cto.com.au/course-enquiry/ to discuss your requirements.

These are the most common questions managers across Australia are asking right now. Have more questions?

Call 1300 667 660 | Visit https://cto.com.au/