Fast Closing Monthly and Year-End Accounts

Month and year-end closings are the ultimate processes of finance where the efforts spent during the period materialise in accurate and timely reports. It is important that such valuable information is developed at a cost that is justified by the benefits gained. Hence, organisations need to always identify inefficiencies in the closing process and apply continuous improvement. This course provides several tools for process analysis and improvements related to closing the books quickly and efficiently.

Objective

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Describe the different types of closing and list the main activities in the closing cycle
• Utilise assessment tools to pinpoint the disconnect between finance and internal users
• List the steps needed to carry on process improvements in finance and identify the need for closing process redesign
• Practice using process maps to identify closing inefficiencies and present improvement recommendations
• Apply best practices and enhance the monthly closing procedures

Course Outline

• Challenges to fast closing monthly and year end accounts
• Critical role of the finance function
• The finance function as Trojan horse
• Redefining the close cycle and redesigning the finance function
• Improving the finance process
• Implementing a process improvement project
• Applying an enhanced operating cycle
• Redefining the role of the finance manager