Dear business leader,

I know that this year you put fewer wishes on your list. I also know why. 2025 came with higher taxes, more levies, and harder calculations. I am not writing to calm you down. I am writing to help you.

I have read budgets. I have seen tight cash flows. I have heard the same question hundreds of times. “How do we move forward without exhausting the team and without sacrificing the future?” I do not have magic solutions. I have solutions that work.

I have seen them applied in companies that went through tougher crises than this one. Take this letter as a pragmatic gift. No ribbon. Clear instructions for use starting January 2026. And yes, a touch of humor. Otherwise, even Santa Claus would not survive reality.

Gift 1. Cut complexity before you cut costs

The first impulse is to cut expenses. The second is to freeze initiatives. Both can be wrong.

What you need to cut first is complexity. Redundant processes. Reports that lead to no decisions. Meetings with no outcomes. Data shows this clearly. Only companies that simplify operational processes can reduce costs by 10% to 20%, without layoffs.

Here is a simple exercise for you. Take the list of all active projects. Ask yourself for each one. What business decision does it support? What measurable result does it produce? If you cannot answer clearly, the project does not deserve money in 2026.

A CEO told me recently, “We dropped 30% of our initiatives and gained time, money, and energy. We lost nothing essential.” Is that not a good place to start?

Gift 2. Shift focus from growth to real productivity

In good years, growth masked inefficiency. In 2026, it will not. Productivity becomes the main differentiator. Not volume. Not revenue. Companies that increase productivity by 5% can absorb tax increases without raising prices.

What does this mean in practice? Fewer objectives, but clear ones. Metrics that matter, not dozens of KPIs. Clearly defined roles. Here is one example. A services company reduced its client portfolio by 15%. It kept only profitable clients. Margins increased. Stress dropped.

A direct question for you. Do you know exactly which activities generate money and which only consume time? If you do not know the answer, things do not look good.

Gift 3. Invest in leaders, not only in specialists

When taxes go up, training is among the first cuts. This is an expensive mistake. Not all training matters. But good leadership pays for itself. Why? Teams led by capable leaders have lower turnover and up to 25% higher performance.

What should you do differently in 2026? Do not send people to generic courses. Work with your leaders on three things. Decision making. Proper prioritization. Managing team energy. A good manager saves you money every month. A weak manager burns it every day.

And yes, I know the classic joke. The CFO says, “What if we train people and they leave?” The CEO replies, “What if we do not train them and they stay?”

Gift 4. Use technology to gain time

Artificial intelligence. Automation. Digitalization. They all sound good in presentations. Sometimes they sound bad in results.

In 2026, technology must answer one question. How much time does it free up for me? Companies that automate repetitive processes gain 15% to 25% operational time. Do not start with expensive solutions. Start with simple processes. Invoicing. Reporting. Planning.

A concrete example. One company automated weekly reporting. It gained two hours per week for each manager. Two hours mean better decisions, not prettier reports.

So ask yourself honestly. Which activity in your team should be done by a system, not by a person? If Santa Claus had a favorite elf in 2026, it would be a well-chosen piece of software.

Gift 5. Build emotional reserves, not only financial ones

This is discussed the least. But it matters a lot. Decision fatigue is real. Leader stress is real. Teams feel everything. Companies that invest in clear internal communication and constant feedback withstand hard times better.

What can you do in practice? Tell the truth, even when it is uncomfortable. Explain decisions. Listen more. A leader told me last year, “I could not raise salaries, but I gained respect. People stayed.”

In 2026, retention will not depend only on money. It will depend on trust. A question for you. How often do you talk to your team about direction, not only about results?

A bonus from Santa Claus

Do not compare yourself to others. Compare yourself to who you were last year. Do not seek total control. Seek clarity. Do not postpone difficult decisions. They increase the interest in your opportunity costs. And please, laugh from time to time. If you cannot laugh at the situation, it will laugh at you.

Dear business leader,

I do not know exactly what 2026 will look like. You do not know either, and that is fine. But I know one thing. Winning companies are not the ones that wait for better times. They are the ones that adapt first.

You made it through the pandemic. You are making it through inflation. You will make it through this wave of tax increases too. Not because it is easy. But because you are ready to do things differently. Take these five gifts. Apply them with discipline, calm, and realism. And if one day in 2026 everything feels like too much, remember this. Even Santa Claus does not work alone. He has a good team and a clear plan. Happy holidays!

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About Constantin Măgdălina

Constantin Măgdălina has 15 years of professional experience, during which he worked for multinational companies, both in the country and abroad. Constantin has a Master's degree in Marketing and Communication at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies. He is LeanSix Sigma and ITIL (IT Information Library®) certified, which facilitates a good understanding of processes and transformations within organizations. On the other hand, the certification obtained from the Chartered Institute of Marketing completes his business expertise. In the more than 4 years of activity within a Big 4 company, he initiated and coordinated studies that analyzed aspects related to the business environment in Romania. Among them are the economic growth forecasts of companies, knowledge management, the buying experience in the era of digital consumers, the use of mobile devices or the customer-centricity of companies in Romania. He is the author of numerous articles on topics related to innovation, streamlining business processes, digital transformation, emerging trends and technologies. He is invited as a speaker at numerous events and business conferences.