Start with a calendar and a checklist
Write down every task in the close, who owns it, what it depends on, and when it is due. Publish the calendar before the period ends so everyone knows deadlines for entering transactions, submitting approvals, and delivering supporting schedules. Measure the actual close each month against the plan and discuss the delays that recur. A task that is always late usually has a cause that can be fixed.
- Assign a named owner and a backup for each task.
- Set cut-off dates for operational teams, such as sales and purchasing.
- Track completion in one place so status is visible to everyone.
Automate the recurring entries
Many close entries repeat every month: depreciation, prepaid amortization, accruals for regular expenses, and allocations of shared costs. Recurring journals, amortization schedules, and allocation rules can generate these automatically, leaving people to review exceptions. Keep supporting schedules attached so reviewers and auditors can see how amounts were calculated, and review the rules when circumstances change.
Our NetSuite ERP practice →Intercompany, currency and reconciliations
For groups with several entities, intercompany balances and currency revaluation can dominate the close. Agree intercompany balances during the month instead of on the last day, and run revaluation on a fixed schedule. Reconcile key accounts, such as bank, receivables, payables, inventory, and accruals, on a defined cadence, and require sign-off from someone other than the preparer. A reconciliation that stays open for months is a warning sign.
Implementation and integration services →Approvals, cut-offs and period locking
Late approvals hold up the close. Configure approval workflows with sensible delegation, so a manager's absence does not stall invoices. When the books are final, lock the period so entries cannot be posted retroactively without authorization. Allow a limited, controlled way to post a late adjustment, with a clear owner and a record of why. Locking and discipline together prevent the reopened-books problem that undermines confidence in results.
Review, analysis and reporting
Speed is worth little without insight. Build a standard review package: a trial balance with variances to budget and prior period, key ratios, and a list of unusual entries. Ask account owners to explain significant variances in writing while the memory is fresh. Over time, the commentary becomes a record of how the business behaves and speeds up the next period's review.
Revenue and billing solutions →Decisions to settle before you redesign the close
- Target. Set a goal for working days to close and the first date you want preliminary numbers.
- Materiality. Define thresholds below which items are not accrued or analyzed, to keep effort proportionate.
- Responsibility. Decide who owns each reconciliation and who reviews it.
- Tooling. Choose whether the checklist lives in NetSuite, a marketplace add-on, or a shared tracker, and keep it in one place.
A realistic first 90 days
- Days 1 to 30. Document the current close, measure its duration, and list the top causes of delay.
- Days 31 to 60. Automate the recurring entries and allocations, publish the calendar, and agree cut-off dates with operations.
- Days 61 to 90. Standardize reconciliations and the review package, lock periods, and compare the new close to the old.
Pitfalls to avoid
- Automating a broken process. Fix the cause of delay first; otherwise you automate the delay.
- Manual journals as the default. Entries made in spreadsheets and re-keyed are slow and error-prone. Use schedules in the system.
- No consequence for late inputs. If cut-off dates are not enforced, they are not dates. Escalate patterns of lateness.
- Reopening periods casually. Frequent reopening erodes trust in reported numbers. Allow it only through an approved exception.
