FY26 in Review - A Year of Navigating Change, Together

FY26 asked a lot of every organisation we work with. Cost pressures kept climbing, talent stayed hard to find and harder to keep, and just when things felt like they were settling, renewed volatility out of the Middle East pushed freight, energy, and raw material costs up again.

It's been a year that rewarded organisations who stayed proactive rather than reactive - and we've been proud to stand alongside our clients through it.

A Year of Real Progress

Despite the pressure, FY26 was also a year of genuine progress. Together with our clients, we:

• Found smarter ways to drive down costs sustainably

• Strengthened supplier relationships to build resilience

• Leaned into flexible resourcing models to close capability gaps without the cost of building in-house

AI was the conversation of the year, but the real work was foundational - clean data and strong governance. That groundwork is what turns AI from a buzzword into real value, and it's what will separate the organisations who get genuine value from AI in FY27 from those still just experimenting.

Milestones That Strengthened Our Support

FY26 was also a milestone year for August Consulting - one that means we can show up for our clients even more strongly heading into FY27:

• Appointed to the Queensland Government Procurement Advisory Services Panel - formal recognition that strengthens the support we can bring to government and public sector clients

• Welcomed 7 new clients across healthcare and aged care, sectors where procurement decisions have a direct line to the quality of care delivered

• Continued growth in our Procurement as a Service model, now a genuine alternative for organisations facing capability and resourcing pressure

• Invested in AI-powered tools and capability, sharpening the speed, depth, and quality of the insights we bring to every engagement

• Welcomed talented new team members who continue to raise the bar on the quality of our work

Hearing our clients' feedback and the impact of our work means a great deal to the whole team. None of this matters without the trust, honest conversations, and partnership that made FY26 a year we're genuinely proud of.

Looking Ahead to FY27

The pressures of FY26 - cost, capability, and the push to make AI count - aren't going anywhere. Heading into FY27, our focus is on helping organisations turn those pressures into advantage:

• Partnering closely with clients to understand their unique challenges and deliver procurement solutions that create lasting, measurable impact

• Leveraging AI and intelligent automation to unlock smarter, faster procurement outcomes - optimising sourcing, contract management, and supplier relationships

• Driving real cost savings and performance improvements through advanced analytics that turn complex data into clear, actionable decisions

• Bringing deep market knowledge and specialist expertise to accelerate procurement programs and deliver better results, faster

• Offering flexible, scalable Procurement as a Service (PaaS) support that grows and adapts alongside organisational needs

• Continuing to invest in our people, capability, and technology, so every interaction with August Consulting delivers even greater value

Every organisation's challenges are different, and we take the time to understand yours. Whether you're looking to strengthen your procurement function, plan for FY27, or simply explore what's possible, we'd be glad to start a conversation.