2026 Budgeting Playbook with Marcus Rien: Set Goals, Incentives, and Accountability

The Founder’s Guide to Smarter Budgeting

Budgeting season is here. For founders, executives, and leadership teams, building next year’s budget isn’t just about plugging numbers into a spreadsheet. It’s about aligning sales, operations, and finance so your team has the resources and accountability to hit ambitious goals.

In this episode of the Growth Department podcast, Marcus Rien shares his proven approach to collaborative, people-first budgeting that sets businesses up for success.

Looking Back Before You Look Ahead

Marcus emphasizes that every effective budget process starts with reflection. Leaders should compare budgeted numbers against actual performance year-to-date. Were revenue targets realistic? Did departments stay within their budgets? Understanding where you hit, missed, or overspent provides a baseline for 2026 planning.

This exercise helps founders avoid simply rolling last year’s numbers forward and instead builds intentional, data-driven forecasts.

Collaboration and Accountability Across Teams

A budget should never be created in a silo. Marcus points out that department leaders understand their areas more intimately than the CEO. Inviting them into the process not only improves accuracy but also creates accountability.

“If you, as a leader, can give them ownership of their budget, they’ll have a greater sense of pride in executing it,” Marcus says. “They’ll be more aware of deviations and better equipped to explain what’s happening.”

That sense of ownership strengthens both the process and the culture.

Avoiding Sandbagging and SWAG Budgets

Marcus cautions against two common traps: sandbagging and SWAG (Scientific Wild Ass Guess) numbers. When leaders underestimate revenue or overestimate costs, they create distortions that hurt the company long-term. Sandbagging sales numbers may lead to under-resourcing marketing or operations. Overinflating expense budgets can create wasteful end-of-year spending.

On the flip side, overly optimistic “top-down” growth targets can put impossible pressure on teams. “You can’t just declare a 25% growth target without asking how it will actually happen,” Marcus says. “Sales, ops, and finance all need to collaborate to see what resources are truly required to support growth.”

The Three Horses of Budgeting

Marcus uses a memorable EOS-inspired analogy: budgeting requires three horses to run in stride—sales, operations, and finance. If sales forecasts aren’t supported with enough operational resources, customer experience suffers. If operations overspend without sales growth, the bottom line takes a hit. Finance brings accountability, tracking, and reporting to ensure alignment.

The lesson: every budget is a team sport.

Fractional CPAs and CFOs as Strategic Partners

Many founders only think of CPAs as year-end tax compliance partners. Marcus argues that bringing in a CPA or fractional CFO earlier in the process can transform budgeting.

Fractional finance leaders also provide an unbiased perspective, helping founders separate emotional bias from financial reality.

Technology, AI, and Efficiency

No 2026 budgeting playbook would be complete without discussing technology. Marcus encourages leaders to review existing software spend and assess what’s truly adding value. Many businesses use overlapping tools across departments, which can be consolidated.

On AI, Marcus provides a balanced perspective: “AI isn’t a magic fix. It helps with efficiency, but it still requires human oversight. Don’t assume you can cut 25% of your team next year unless you have real proof AI has created that much efficiency.”

Instead of betting the budget on untested tech, leaders should treat AI as an evolving tool—one that can free up time for higher-value work but not replace sound planning.

People First, Business Second

At the heart of Marcus’s budgeting philosophy is a people-first approach. “Your people make the company grow. They protect your spend and execute your strategy,” he says. Investing in fair compensation, clear role structures, and professional growth opportunities ensures your team has the capacity and motivation to deliver on the numbers.

Marcus’s Final Advice for Founders

As founders head into 2026 planning, Marcus recommends starting with one key question:

Are my people set up for success? 

From there, build a budget process that:

• Reviews historical results and lessons learned

• Involves department leaders for ownership and accuracy

• Balances optimism with realism in sales and expense targets

• Leverages fractional finance leaders for sharper insights

• Audits technology spend for efficiency and value

Budgeting isn’t about predicting the future perfectly. It’s about creating alignment, accountability, and confidence across your company so you can pursue growth with clarity.