Fast Closing of Month-End and Year-End Accounts

Most finance teams know their close takes too long, but the causes sit upstream of the ledger. Cut-off information arrives late from operations and procurement, accruals are rebuilt from scratch each month, reconciliations are left until the last day, intercompany balances do not agree, and manual journals are posted and reversed several times before the numbers settle. Year-end then adds audit requests, provisions and disclosures on top of a process that was already stretched.

This programme treats the close as a process that can be designed and managed, not a monthly crisis. It moves through five stages: diagnosing the current close and setting a target timetable, moving work out of the critical days, controlling reconciliations and journals, managing the additional demands of year-end and the audit, and sustaining improvement through automation, review and performance measures.

Built on recognised practice. The programme references the accounting requirements that shape period-end work, including IAS 1 and its successor IFRS 18 on presentation, IAS 10 on events after the reporting period, IAS 37 on provisions, IFRS 9 on expected credit losses and IFRS 15 on revenue cut-off, together with the COSO Internal Control Integrated Framework for close controls. Participants apply them to real close tasks rather than studying them in isolation.

Decisions this programme improves. Which tasks can move before period end and which must wait; where materiality allows estimates instead of exact figures; which reconciliations need daily, monthly or quarterly attention; how to set approval limits and review levels for manual journals; when to automate and when to simplify first; and what the finance director should see to judge whether the close is under control.

How it is delivered. Twenty hours across five sessions, built around one running case: a group with several subsidiaries that currently closes in twelve working days and must reach a shorter target. Participants map its close, build a close calendar and task list, test reconciliations and accruals, and prepare an improvement plan with measures.

In-house option. For organisations, the programme can be tailored to your own ERP system, chart of accounts, group structure and reporting deadlines, and delivered to finance, shared services and business teams together so that cut-off responsibilities are agreed across functions.

Who Should Attend

Finance managers: financial controllers, chief accountants and finance managers responsible for the close

Accounting staff: general ledger, reporting and consolidation accountants

Shared services teams: record-to-report leads and process owners

Finance systems staff: ERP and finance transformation specialists

Internal auditors reviewing financial close and reporting controls

Objectives

Map the current close process and identify the tasks that sit on the critical path

Build a close calendar and task checklist with owners, deadlines and dependencies

Move work out of the critical days through pre-close activities and continuous accounting

Apply materiality to decide where estimates are acceptable and where exact figures are needed

Prepare accruals, prepayments and provisions using consistent methods and documented assumptions

Design a reconciliation framework with risk-based frequency, review and sign-off

Control manual journals through approval limits, supporting evidence and review

Resolve intercompany differences and prepare clean consolidation inputs

Plan year-end activities and an audit-ready file of schedules and evidence

Track close performance with measures and present an improvement plan to management

Course Outline

Why the Close Takes Too Long: Diagnosis and Target Setting

The close as an end-to-end process: from operational cut-off to management reporting
Common causes of delay: late inputs, rework, manual journals and unclear ownership
Mapping the close and finding the critical path
Setting a realistic target timetable and agreeing it with stakeholders
Close calendar, task lists and responsibility matrices
Materiality and the balance between speed and accuracy

Moving Work Before Period End: Cut-off, Accruals and Estimates

Pre-close and soft-close activities
Continuous accounting: spreading reconciliations and reviews through the month
Revenue and purchase cut-off, including IFRS 15 considerations
Standard methods for accruals, prepayments and deferred income
Recurring and template journals
Working with procurement, sales, payroll and operations on timely inputs

Controlling the Numbers: Reconciliations, Journals and Intercompany

Balance sheet reconciliation framework: risk rating, frequency and evidence
Bank, receivables, payables, inventory and fixed asset reconciliations
Suspense and clearing accounts: preventing build-up
Manual journal controls: approval limits, documentation and review
Intercompany matching, netting and settlement
Close controls within the COSO internal control framework

Year-End and the Audit: Additional Demands Without Delay

Year-end planning: timetable, responsibilities and early agreement with auditors
Provisions under IAS 37 and expected credit losses under IFRS 9
Fixed asset review, impairment indicators and inventory counts
Events after the reporting period under IAS 10
Consolidation inputs and group reporting packs
Preparing an audit-ready file and managing auditor requests
Presentation changes from IAS 1 to IFRS 18: what finance teams should plan for

Sustaining a Fast Close: Automation, Measures and Continuous Improvement

ERP configuration and close management tools: what to automate and what to simplify first
Automated reconciliations, matching rules and workflow approvals
Uses of robotic process automation and AI in the close: potential and limits
Close performance measures: days to close, post-close adjustments and late tasks
Post-close reviews and lessons learned
Action plan: a staged roadmap to a faster close in your organisation

Competencies

Close process mapping and critical path analysis

Close calendar and task management

Pre-close activities and continuous accounting

Cut-off, accruals and period-end estimates

Risk-based balance sheet reconciliation

Manual journal and close controls

Intercompany reconciliation and consolidation inputs

Year-end planning and audit readiness

Close automation and performance measurement

Kuwait

Train in Kuwait City with access to Elite Academy’s full portfolio of professional programs. In a city known as a key Gulf business and government center with an established professional environment, organizations and professionals can join upcoming courses or request any program to be arranged locally. Professional training in Kuwait City is not limited to a specific group of subjects. Elite Academy makes its complete portfolio available in the city across management, business, technical and industry-focused disciplines. With a key Gulf business and government center with an established professional environment, Kuwait City provides an effective setting for international learning. Use the schedule below to view courses already planned for the destination, or contact our team to request another program and preferred dates in Kuwait City, subject to scheduling and delivery requirements.