Australia’s mid-sized businesses have held their nerve through a challenging year and many leaders are planning for growth in 2026. The latest MYOB mid-market research shows strong confidence and a pragmatic focus on technology that lifts productivity, strengthens customer relationships and reduces operating friction. Below is a quick read on what this means for you, plus a link to download the full report.
The sentiment on the ground
Across the mid-market, decision-makers are cautiously optimistic. Many report steady or improving performance and are planning for further gains next year. They also recognise the headwinds that can slow momentum, such as energy costs, inflation and the cost of finance. The common theme is disciplined growth: invest where it improves resilience, speed and clarity.
Where leaders are prioritising investment
Mid-market firms are sharpening their tech stack to support revenue growth and leaner operations. The top priorities we are seeing from conversations with finance, operations and IT leaders include:
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- Customer relationship depth. Upgrading CRM to capture the full customer journey, strengthen retention and improve pipeline visibility.
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- Financial control. Modern finance and accounting to shorten close cycles, improve cash visibility and tighten cost control.
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- End-to-end visibility. ERP upgrades to unify data, automate workflows and remove swivel-chair processes between systems.
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- Workforce and payroll. Cleaner time capture, leave, awards and compliance to lower admin load and risk.
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- Data, security and compliance. Better governance and auditability as teams scale and regulations evolve.
These moves are not about shiny tools. They are about compounding advantages: faster decisions, fewer manual steps and fewer avoidable errors.
How AI fits into practical operations
AI is moving from experiments into targeted use cases that save real time. Mid-market teams are using it to:
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- Pre-process invoices, expenses and timesheets
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- Speed up reconciliations and reporting checks
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- Draft customer communications and support summaries
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- Surface exceptions so humans can focus on judgment calls
Expect the next 12 months to bring more embedded AI inside core platforms you already use, rather than separate point tools.
What this means for mid-market leaders
If you are planning for growth in 2026, three priorities will help you stay ahead.
1. Tighten core financials and cash control
Move off spreadsheets and point integrations that hide true costs. A modern ERP centralises data, reduces manual handling and gives you live cash and margin visibility.
2. Automate the busywork across functions
AP, AR, inventory, project costing and payroll all benefit from workflow automation. Every keystroke you remove is time you can reallocate to customers and strategy.
3. Build a single source of truth
When CRM, finance, projects and inventory talk to each other, leaders can trust the numbers and act faster. That is a competitive advantage in any cycle.
Putting the insights to work with ERP
Mid-market growth plans rely on clear data, faster decisions and fewer manual steps. An ERP brings these together by:
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- Uniting core functions so finance, sales, operations, projects and inventory work from the same numbers.
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- Automating routine tasks like AP bill capture, approvals, reconciliations and stock movements.
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- Improving visibility with role-based dashboards, live cash and margin views, and exception alerts.
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- Strengthening governance through audit trails, permissions and compliance controls.
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- Scaling cleanly as teams, product lines and locations grow without adding admin.
Modern platforms such as MYOB Acumatica add embedded analytics and practical AI, helping teams pre-fill documents, surface anomalies and speed up reporting. You can start with priority workflows or modules, then expand as benefits compound.
The takeaway: choose an ERP approach that reduces friction, gives everyone a single source of truth and supports measured growth into 2026.
Download the MYOB Mid-Market Report
Get the full data set, charts and methodology from MYOB’s latest research.
Ready to turn confidence into action?
Book a personalised demo and we will show you where automation and better visibility can unlock growth in your business.
