Close the quarter
Reconciliations, every variance explained and a draft board pack, by lunch on day 2 of close.
- Agents
- 96
- on the default fleet
- Starts
- 6:30 AM
- day 2 of close
- Done by
- 11:38 AM
- 22 minutes to spare
- Elapsed
- 5 h 8 min
- from the ask to the last approval
The ask, as sent to Sol
Sol, it is day 2 of close. I want the reconciliations done, every variance explained and a draft board pack in front of me before lunch.
Before
An 8-day close with 60 accountants.
- 60 accountants across 14 entities
- 8 working days from period end to a signed-off close
- Variance explanations are written last, from memory, the night before the board pack is due
With Solstice
Reconciliations, flux analysis with explanations, and a draft board pack by lunch on day 2.
5 hours 8 minutes. 96 agents. 3 approvers.
The morning
IllustrativeSimulated time. Each line is one step of the mission as it would run on the default fleet.
Sol
Sol splits the close into 5 workstreams across 14 entities and assigns 96 agents.
Finance
Finance agents pull the trial balance, subledgers and bank statements: 2.1 million ledger lines.
Finance
1,840 accounts reconciled. 212 differences investigated. 37 are left open with a proposed entry.
Finance
Intercompany agents match 9,600 transactions between entities and propose eliminations.
Finance
Flux analysis complete: 318 variances above threshold, each explained from the transactions behind it.
IT
IT agents trace 6 unexplained variances to a late interface file and document the fix.
Review
Review agents re-perform a sample of every reconciliation and flag 11 explanations as unsupported.
Finance
The draft board pack is assembled. Every number links to its ledger line.
Mission complete
Controller, Head of FP&A and CFO approve. The clock stops 22 minutes before lunchtime.
Lunchtime
22 minutes to spare
The agent team
Illustrative96
96 agents on the default fleet, by function.
- Finance60
- IT10
- Controls10
- Review16
Named approvers
Every deliverable waits for a person with the authority to decide. Roles are illustrative.
- Controller
- Approves: Reconciliations and every proposed journal entry
- Head of FP&A
- Approves: The variance explanations
- Chief Financial Officer
- Approves: The draft board pack
Deliverables
3 approvers, each with the authority to decide.
- Reconciliations for every balance sheet account, with support attached
- Intercompany matches and proposed eliminations
- Flux analysis with a sourced explanation for every variance above threshold
- Proposed journal entries, each waiting for approval
- A draft board pack with every number traced to the ledger
The same mission, two ways.
Illustrative- Traditional estimate
- 8 working days, 60 accountants.
- Solstice
- 5 hours 8 minutes. 96 agents. 3 approvers.
Illustrative. Simulated time.