Fast & Hard Close
Category : Accounting
Duration: 5 days
In today’s fast-paced financial environment, companies are required to close their books quickly and accurately. The "Fast & Hard Close" program provides participants with the tools and techniques to accelerate the financial close process without compromising accuracy or compliance. Participants will learn best practices for organizing teams, streamlining processes, and utilizing technology to achieve a faster month-end close. This training will enable finance professionals to shorten the close cycle while maintaining high-quality financial reporting standards.
Learning Objectives
Understand the importance of a fast and accurate financial close
Implement process improvements to speed up the close cycle
Utilize technology to automate the close process
Ensure compliance and accuracy in financial reporting
Training Program
Introduction to Fast & Hard Close
The importance of a timely financial close
Common challenges and risks in financial closing
Overview of a standard financial close process
Practical case: Analyze the typical closing challenges faced by a multinational company
Key Metrics for an Efficient Close
Defining and tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) for closing
Benchmarking financial close performance against industry standards
The role of internal controls in ensuring an accurate close
Quiz: Identify KPIs that impact the speed and accuracy of financial closing
Process Automation in the Close Cycle
Leveraging ERP systems and financial software to automate the close process
Automation of reconciliations, journal entries, and reporting
Integration of technology with existing processes to reduce manual intervention
Practical case: Implement automation tools to speed up the close process for a large corporation
Compliance and Audit Considerations
Ensuring compliance with financial reporting standards (IFRS, US GAAP)
Addressing audit requirements during the close process
Managing audit trails and documentation for financial reviews
Quiz: Test your knowledge of compliance in financial closing
Practical Strategies for Accelerating the Close
Best practices for organizing and managing close teams
Strategies for reducing manual tasks and increasing efficiency
Continuous improvement in the financial close process
Practical case: Propose a fast close strategy for a mid-sized company
Key Points
Numerous practical examples illustrating the different studied concepts
Practical cases to draw parallels with the concepts learned
Who Should Attend This Training
Financial controllers
Accountants and financial reporting professionals
Finance managers responsible for monthly or annual closing
Auditors and compliance officers
Prerequisities
Familiarity with financial reporting and accounting processes is recommended
Teaching Methods
Training structured around skill transfer
Acquisition of operational skills through practice and experimentation
Collaborative learning during synchronous sessions
Multi-stage learning path to allow engagement, learning, and transfer
Training promoting participant engagement for better anchoring of lessons
Satisfaction and Evaluation
Skill evaluation will be conducted throughout the training by the participant (self-evaluation) and/or the trainer according to the training methods.
Online training evaluation on your participant space:
Immediate evaluation at the end of the training to measure your satisfaction and perception of skill improvement against training objectives. With your agreement, your overall rating and comments will be published on our site via Verified Reviews.
Post-training evaluation 40 days later to validate the transfer of your acquired skills in the workplace
Attendance tracking and issuance of an individual training certificate or a certificate of completion
LONDON
128 City Road, EC1V 2NX London
PARIS
38 Rue Boulard, 75014, Paris