• 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

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

• Numerous practical examples illustrating the different studied concepts

• Practical cases to draw parallels with the concepts learned

• Financial controllers

• Accountants and financial reporting professionals

• Finance managers responsible for monthly or annual closing

• Auditors and compliance officers

• Familiarity with financial reporting and accounting processes is recommended

• 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

• 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