Cutting a month-end close from twelve business days to four

A $30M business employing 25 people, running a single-entity month-end close. We took over close preparation in Q1 2026 with one person and have completed three closes. Their controller reviews and signs off.

A twelve business day close, versus a five to six day benchmark, led the finance team to believe they needed more staff. The actual problem was that the books were not in a state where a fast close was possible.

Balance sheet accounts had not been consistently reconciled. Old balances carried forward month after month because they had always existed, not because they had been tied back to supporting records. As a result, several accounts lacked a clear explanation, and each close started with numbers the team could not fully rely on.

Accruals were inconsistent or missing. Expenses were often recorded when they were entered rather than when they were incurred, causing monthly results to shift for accounting timing reasons instead of business activity. That made trend analysis and decision-making less reliable.

The books also lacked supporting schedules behind key balances. The amounts existed in QuickBooks, but the documentation behind them did not. Any controller question required rebuilding the answer from source records, and that work was happening during the close instead of before it.

Reconciled every balance sheet account

We reconciled the balance sheet properly, account by account, and built a schedule behind each one. This was the largest part of the work and happened before any attempt to accelerate the close. Each balance now ties to documentation showing what makes up the amount, allowing the controller to review without rebuilding the answer. Any discrepancies or unexpected balances were identified and resolved with the controller rather than adjusted without explanation.

Standardized and documented the accruals

We standardized the accrual process and documented the basis behind it. What gets accrued, what evidence supports it, and when it should be recorded. The process became a documented policy owned by the client rather than a monthly judgment call, creating consistency in when costs hit the books.

Took over the recurring close work

We now handle the recurring close activities, including bank and credit card reconciliations, accrual entries, prepaid and fixed asset schedules, and supporting schedules for balance sheet accounts. The controller reviews the work rather than preparing it, allowing the role to focus on oversight and analysis.

Redesigned the close calendar

Once the accounts were reliable, we redesigned the close calendar around actual dependencies. Bank reconciliations, fixed assets, prepaid amortization, and intercompany work can run in parallel, while only a limited number of steps need to wait on another. The previous process ran everything sequentially because it had always been done that way.

One change on the client side

One change on the client side made the rest possible. Operations now provides a defined list of required documents by business day three, with a named owner responsible for delivery. The project manager reinforced the deadline and followed up once. Faster sequencing only works when the information arrives on time.