close-management

What this skill does

# Close Management

**Important**: This skill assists with close management workflows but does not provide financial advice. All close activities should be reviewed by qualified financial professionals.

Month-end close checklist, task sequencing and dependencies, status tracking, and common close activities organized by day.

## Month-End Close Checklist

### Pre-Close (Last 2-3 Business Days of the Month)

- [ ] Send close calendar and deadline reminders to all contributors
- [ ] Confirm cut-off procedures with AP, AR, payroll, and treasury
- [ ] Verify all sub-systems are processing normally (ERP, payroll, banking)
- [ ] Complete preliminary bank reconciliation (all but last-day activity)
- [ ] Review open purchase orders for potential accrual needs
- [ ] Confirm payroll processing schedule aligns with close timeline
- [ ] Collect information for any known unusual transactions

### Close Day 1 (T+1: First Business Day After Month-End)

- [ ] Confirm all sub-ledger modules have completed period-end processing
- [ ] Run AP accruals for goods/services received but not invoiced
- [ ] Post payroll entries and payroll accrual (if pay period straddles month-end)
- [ ] Record cash receipts and disbursements through month-end
- [ ] Post intercompany transactions and confirm with counterparties
- [ ] Complete bank reconciliation with final bank statement
- [ ] Run fixed asset depreciation
- [ ] Post prepaid expense amortization

### Close Day 2 (T+2)

- [ ] Complete revenue recognition entries and deferred revenue adjustments
- [ ] Post all remaining accrual journal entries
- [ ] Complete AR subledger reconciliation
- [ ] Complete AP subledger reconciliation
- [ ] Record inventory adjustments (if applicable)
- [ ] Post FX revaluation entries for foreign currency balances
- [ ] Begin balance sheet account reconciliations

### Close Day 3 (T+3)

- [ ] Complete all balance sheet reconciliations
- [ ] Post any adjusting journal entries identified during reconciliation
- [ ] Complete intercompany reconciliation and elimination entries
- [ ] Run preliminary trial balance and income statement
- [ ] Perform preliminary flux analysis on income statement
- [ ] Investigate and resolve material variances

### Close Day 4 (T+4)

- [ ] Post tax provision entries (income tax, sales tax, property tax)
- [ ] Complete equity roll-forward (stock compensation, treasury stock)
- [ ] Finalize all journal entries — soft close
- [ ] Generate draft financial statements (P&L, BS, CF)
- [ ] Perform detailed flux analysis and prepare variance explanations
- [ ] Management review of financial statements and key metrics

### Close Day 5 (T+5)

- [ ] Post any final adjustments from management review
- [ ] Finalize financial statements — hard close
- [ ] Lock the period in the ERP/GL system
- [ ] Distribute financial reporting package to stakeholders
- [ ] Update forecasts/projections based on actual results
- [ ] Conduct close retrospective — identify process improvements

## Task Sequencing and Dependencies

### Dependency Map

Tasks are organized by what must complete before the next task can begin:

```
LEVEL 1 (No dependencies — can start immediately at T+1):
├── Cash receipts/disbursements recording
├── Bank statement retrieval
├── Payroll processing/accrual
├── Fixed asset depreciation run
├── Prepaid amortization
├── AP accrual preparation
└── Intercompany transaction posting

LEVEL 2 (Depends on Level 1 completion):
├── Bank reconciliation (needs: cash entries + bank statement)
├── Revenue recognition (needs: billing/delivery data finalized)
├── AR subledger reconciliation (needs: all revenue/cash entries)
├── AP subledger reconciliation (needs: all AP entries/accruals)
├── FX revaluation (needs: all foreign currency entries posted)
└── Remaining accrual JEs (needs: review of all source data)

LEVEL 3 (Depends on Level 2 completion):
├── All balance sheet reconciliations (needs: all JEs posted)
├── Intercompany reconciliation (needs: both sides posted)
├── Adjusting entries from reconciliations
└── Preliminary trial balance

LEVEL 4 (Depends on Level 3 completion):
├── Tax provision (needs: pre-tax income finalized)
├── Equity roll-forward
├── Consolidation and eliminations
├── Draft financial statements
└── Preliminary flux analysis

LEVEL 5 (Depends on Level 4 completion):
├── Management review
├── Final adjustments
├── Hard close / period lock
├── Financial reporting package
└── Forecast updates
```

### Critical Path

The critical path determines the minimum close duration. Typical critical path:

```
Cash/AP/AR entries → Subledger reconciliations → Balance sheet recs →
  Tax provision → Draft financials → Management review → Hard close
```

To shorten the close:
- Automate Level 1 entries (depreciation, prepaid amortization, standard accruals)
- Pre-reconcile accounts during the month (continuous reconciliation)
- Parallel-process independent reconciliations
- Set clear deadlines with consequences for late submissions
- Use standardized templates to reduce reconciliation prep time

## Status Tracking and Reporting

### Close Status Dashboard

Track each close task with the following attributes:

| Task | Owner | Deadline | Status | Blocker | Notes |
|------|-------|----------|--------|---------|-------|
| [Task name] | [Person/role] | [Day T+N] | Not Started / In Progress / Complete / Blocked | [If blocked, what's blocking] | [Any notes] |

### Status Definitions

- **Not Started:** Task has not yet begun (may be waiting on dependencies)
- **In Progress:** Task is actively being worked on
- **Complete:** Task is finished and has been reviewed/approved
- **Blocked:** Task cannot proceed due to a dependency, missing data, or issue
- **At Risk:** Task is in progress but may not meet its deadline

### Daily Close Status Meeting (Recommended)

During the close period, hold a brief (15-minute) daily standup:

1. **Review status board:** Walk through open tasks, flag any that are behind
2. **Identify blockers:** Surface any issues preventing task completion
3. **Reassign or escalate:** Adjust ownership or escalate blockers to resolve quickly
4. **Update timeline:** If any tasks are at risk, assess impact on overall close timeline

### Close Metrics to Track Over Time

| Metric | Definition | Target |
|--------|-----------|--------|
| Close duration | Business days from period end to hard close | Reduce over time |
| # of adjusting entries after soft close | Entries posted during management review | Minimize |
| # of late tasks | Tasks completed after their deadline | Zero |
| # of reconciliation exceptions | Reconciling items requiring investigation | Reduce over time |
| # of restatements / corrections | Errors found after close | Zero |

## Common Close Activities by Day

### Typical 5-Day Close Calendar

| Day | Key Activities | Responsible |
|-----|---------------|-------------|
| **T+1** | Cash entries, payroll, AP accruals, depreciation, prepaid amortization, intercompany posting | Staff accountants, payroll |
| **T+2** | Revenue recognition, remaining accruals, subledger reconciliations (AR, AP, FA), FX revaluation | Revenue accountant, AP/AR, treasury |
| **T+3** | Balance sheet reconciliations, intercompany reconciliation, eliminations, preliminary trial balance, preliminary flux | Accounting team, consolidation |
| **T+4** | Tax provision, equity roll-forward, draft financial statements, detailed flux analysis, management review | Tax, controller, FP&A |
| **T+5** | Final adjustments, hard close, period lock, reporting package distribution, forecast update, retrospective | Controller, FP&A, finance leadership |

### Accelerated Close (3-Day Target)

For organizations targeting a faster close:

| Day | Key Activities |
|-----|---------------|
| **T+1** | All JEs posted (automated + manual), all subledger reconciliations, bank reconciliation, intercompany reconciliation, preliminary trial balance |
| **T+2** | All balance sheet reconciliations, tax provision, consolidati