After the budget has been approved ... what comes next?

After the budget has been approved, what comes next?  Quite possibly nothing at all.

This is a pity but it does not mean that the budgeting exercise has been a complete waste of time.

• The participants will have thought logically about the organization, its finances and its future.
• Some of the detail will remain in their minds and influence their future actions.
• Nevertheless, the budgets will be much more valuable if they are used in an active way.  

Regular performance reports should be issued by the accountants.

• These should be in the same format as the budgets.
• It should give comparable budget and actual figures.
• Variances should also be given.
• All levels of management should regularly review these figures and explain the variances.
• Significant variances will pose the question of whether corrective action needs to be taken.

Budgets do not necessarily have to be done just once a year.

They may be updated, reviewed or even scrapped and redone as circumstances dictate.