Close Management

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, and payroll
• Verify freee会計の動作に問題がないことを確認する
• 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
• Complete bank reconciliation with final bank statement
• Run fixed asset depreciation
• Post prepaid expense amortization
• freee APIで試算表を取得し、勘定残高の異常がないことを確認する（mcp__freee__freee_api_get path="/api/1/trial_balance"）

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)
• 取引で外貨が発生した場合は為替差損益を計上する（月次の一括FX再評価は不要）
• Begin balance sheet account reconciliations
• 消費税区分（課税・非課税・免税・対象外）の仕訳への付与を確認する

Close Day 3 (T+3)

• Complete all balance sheet reconciliations
• Post any adjusting journal entries identified during reconciliation
• Run preliminary trial balance and income statement（freee APIで取得）
• Perform preliminary flux analysis on income statement
• Investigate and resolve material variances
• 電子帳簿保存法に準拠した証憑（領収書・請求書等）の保存状況を確認する

Close Day 4 (T+4)

• Post tax provision entries (income tax, sales tax, property tax)
• 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 freee会計
• 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

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)
├── 外貨取引の為替差損益計上（該当取引がある場合のみ）
└── Remaining accrual JEs (needs: review of all source data)

LEVEL 3 (Depends on Level 2 completion):
├── All balance sheet reconciliations (needs: all JEs posted)
├── Adjusting entries from reconciliations
└── Preliminary trial balance（freee API取得）

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

LEVEL 5 (Depends on Level 4 completion):
├── Management review
├── Final adjustments
├── Hard close / period lock（freee会計でのロック）
├── 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:

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

Common Close Activities by Day

Typical 5-Day Close Calendar

Accelerated Close (3-Day Target)

For organizations targeting a faster close:

Prerequisites for a 3-day close:

• Automated recurring journal entries (depreciation, amortization, standard accruals)
• Continuous reconciliation during the month (not all at month-end)
• Pre-close activities completed before month-end (cut-off, accrual estimates)
• Empowered team with clear ownership and minimal handoffs
• Real-time or near-real-time sub-system integration

Close Process Improvement

Common Bottlenecks and Solutions

Close Retrospective Questions

After each close, ask:

1. What went well this close that we should continue?
2. What took longer than expected and why?
3. What blockers did we encounter and how can we prevent them?
4. Were there any surprises in the financial results we should have caught earlier?
5. What can we automate or streamline for next month?