Cast your mind back 12 months. This time last year Heart of Midlothian had yet to make a signing ahead of the 2023/24 season. The club had confirmed the coaching setup only a couple of weeks before. An announcement that diverted plenty of focus.

It wasn't until July 14 that the first signing of the window was made. Yes, it was an international goalkeeper in Michael McGovern. However, someone who would end up being the third choice and going out on loan wasn't the addition fans were wanting during a period of confusion.

Now, all's well that ends well.

Under Steven Naismith and his coaching staff, Hearts skooshed third place in the Premiership, reached two semi-finals and the key summer signings of Frankie Kent, Kenneth Vargas and Calem Nieuwenhof all made a positive impact, with Kyosuke Tagawa demonstrating his quality in the final two games of the season. All four were added in July and August.

READ MORE: Inside Daniel Oyegoke's Hearts transfer: Huge interest, Easy sell, strongest role

The reason last summer and the timescale are relevant is that we sit here with a day left in June, the team having returned for pre-season, and six players have already been announced with a seventh in Gerald Taylor closer to being confirmed after the club were granted a Governing Body Exemption.

This wasn't luck or good fortune, this was by design. Naismith didn't want to have to wait around for new recruits. He wanted them in the door. He wants the club to operate a front-foot, 24/7 recruitment policy that runs throughout the year. When the club need to move on a target they are ready to do so.

"I hold a lot of value in getting players in the building because from my personal experience, I needed time," he told Hearts Standard recently. "No club I went to did I hit the ground running straight away. I needed time, I needed to be comfortable, I needed to have an understanding of what I was there to do. That’s really important."

It's pretty straightforward.

The earlier players are in the door the more time they have to adapt on and off the field. They can get used to their new surroundings, both in terms of the Oriam and Tynecastle Park and the city itself, which they will be calling home for the foreseeable future, while also understanding the demands of the club.

The management team places great importance on the principles of play, certain movements on the pitch that relate to the team's game plan. Players are provided more time to familiarise themselves with those. The coaching staff also places great importance on team spirit. The warm-weather training camp in Tenerife plays a significant part in that. The new recruits will be in the Canary Islands providing an ideal opportunity to familiarise themselves with their new team-mates.

It is a good position to be in with both Aberdeen and Hibs under new management and the time it can take for those head coaches to put their stamp on a newly-assembled team.

Season 2024/25 is going to be a big one for Hearts. There is every likelihood the team will play upward of 50 games. We saw from the release of the fixtures on Thursday that the schedule is going to be demanding, especially during the league phase of either the Europa or Conference League. There is going to be a stretch where a European fixture is followed by a trip to Aberdeen, Hibs, Rangers and Kilmarnock, as well as the Dons at Tynecastle Park.

It is one area Naismith will look for improvement, dealing with the expectations of playing in Europe and then the demand to win at the weekend. The team did relatively well in that regard the last time they played in the group stage but it was viewed as an issue last season. 

Pitch time in training will be limited during the first half of the season making pre-season even more important for work with the players, especially new signings.

Naismith said of the team's fundamentals: "A lot of our players know it and understand it and it will be a refresher but the new players will get that which will then go into the later friendlies and pre-season where there is a better understanding of what we want to do."

The early business can only be viewed positively. But what about the business itself? It will lend itself to a more in-depth article in the coming days but Hearts have ticked off key areas. The right-side of defence was problematic last season and has been bolstered. There is more depth on the left-hand side with James Penrice. Blair Spittal and Yan Dhanda provide increased creativity and goal threat from midfield. While Musa Drammeh provides another attacking option, bringing pace and power to the final third. They also added a third-choice goalkeeper in Ryan Fulton.

In terms of the individuals themselves, there are some really good profiles of players. Spittal, Penrice and Dhanda know Scottish football. Between them, they have more than 300 Premiership appearances. That experience should allow them to make a more immediate impact. At 25, Penrice and Dhanda are at an age where they could grow even further. Livingston boss David Martindale believes Penrice has what it takes to play for the Old Firm while the man who brought Dhanda to Ross County reckons he is good enough for the Premier League.

Then you have Musa Drammeh, Daniel Oyegoke and possibly Gerald Taylor. They don't know the league but have varying degrees of experience. They are all early-20s and the same word can be used to describe them: Potential.

Time will tell whether any of the players will drastically improve the starting XI immediately. But they don't need to. Naismith has the squad in place already to deliver in the short-term. But there is no doubt that the additions have increased the depth and the competition for places. It's healthy.

Players will leave due to the size of the squad. And Naismith may need to re-enter the transfer market if he feels the squad needs another option in a specific area, possibly at the base of midfield, or if a key player is sold. But with five weeks until the start of the season, Hearts, thanks to some proactive recruitment, are in the ideal place ahead of an exciting season full of challenges and opportunities.