A month-end close checklist for growing businesses
A consistent month-end close is what turns bookkeeping into reliable management information. Without it, decisions are made on numbers that may be weeks out of date or simply wrong. This checklist covers the steps most growing businesses need every month.
Week 1: Record and reconcile
Make sure every transaction for the month is recorded and every account agrees to its statement.
Week 1: Review receivables and payables
Review the aged receivables and payables reports. Chase overdue customer balances and confirm that supplier balances agree to statements.
Week 2: Post adjustments
Record the entries that do not come from bank transactions.
Week 2: Review and report
Compare the profit and loss with budget and the prior month, and investigate anything unusual. Then produce a short management pack: profit and loss, balance sheet, cash flow and key metrics.
Lock the period
Once reviewed, close the period in your accounting software so nothing changes after reports have been issued. This one step prevents most month-to-month inconsistencies.
