The year-end close is pivotal for finance and accounting teams, demanding both precision and speed as they finalize transactions and prepare essential reports. Optimizing this critical process drives shareholder value and ensures regulatory compliance while positioning the organization for a strong start to the new fiscal year.
Supporting your team with the right tools, processes, and resources during this intensive period not only improves accuracy and efficiency but also strengthens your competitive advantage by enabling faster financial insights and strategic decision-making. The tips ahead — including a practical year-end close checklist — will help you handle the demands of the season while keeping your people engaged and supported.
Since the year-end close typically requires some extended hours, prioritizing work-life balance by providing flexibility is one of the best ways to help your team during this period. Build in core collaboration hours where everyone must be available, and allow flexibility around those core hours.
Use digital collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams or Slack to reduce the need for everyone to be present simultaneously. Setting up a dedicated channel for year-end reporting tasks lets your team share updates, ask quick questions and solve issues in real time. These channels can also double as a central spot for key documents, so no one’s hunting through emails for the latest version.
And offer your team the option to work from home at least part of the time. A quiet home environment is often better for tasks that require deep focus, like reconciling accounts, without the distractions of the office.
In the final stretch of the year-end close, good communication can save you from unnecessary headaches. Start by connecting with other departments to track down missing data — unsubmitted expense reports, unrecorded invoices or approvals that are still sitting in inboxes. The sooner you get these gaps closed, the easier the rest of the process will be.
Even simple tools like shared spreadsheets can improve communication and reduce unnecessary emails. Create a central dashboard within a shared spreadsheet to track the progress of key tasks. This dashboard can draw data from other sheets to show which tasks are complete, which are pending and who’s responsible for each. It can also highlight deadlines or flag potential bottlenecks. By giving everyone easy access to real-time updates, you cut down on back-and-forth emails and ensure the team stays aligned and efficient.
A simple “thank you” goes a long way, but during year-end reporting, it’s worth taking recognition a step further. After the job is done, celebrate your team’s hard work with a small team lunch or gathering to mark milestones and acknowledge their efforts.
Personalized recognition can make an even bigger impact. Take a moment to highlight individual contributions with a handwritten note or a thoughtful gesture like a small gift. If possible, offer team members extra paid time off after the financial close process to reward their dedication.
Rewarding your team’s hard work is key to wrapping up the year on a high note. Discover how year-end and retention bonuses can help keep your team motivated and engaged for the year ahead.
The year-end close can take a serious toll, even on the most resilient team members. Burnout doesn’t just mean feeling tired or stressed — it can lead to exhaustion, depression and long-term health problems. Watch for signs like more frequent errors, disengagement or changes in work habits. If someone who’s usually detail-oriented starts slipping, it could be a sign they’re overwhelmed.
If you notice these red flags, step in early. Sit down with the individual and discuss their workload, offering to redistribute tasks, extend deadlines or bring in temporary support. Let them know their well-being is a priority and that asking for help is welcomed.
Sometimes, the best support you can offer your team is additional hands on deck. Contract professionals with specialized skills can help manage the increased workload and keep the financial close process running smoothly.
Consider working with a talent solutions firm to onboard pre-screened professionals quickly. Their recruiters can match you with qualified candidates at short notice, ensuring you get the help you need without delays.
Use this practical year-end close checklist to keep your team aligned, focused and motivated:
Kick things off with a team check-in: Hold a short meeting to see how everyone’s feeling, highlight any big tasks ahead and make sure no one is overwhelmed. This helps you communicate priorities and ensures everyone knows their role.
Review key accounts: Take a close look at your main financial accounts — the money you have in the bank, what customers owe you, what you owe to others and what’s in stock. Getting these numbers right now will save time later.
Tackle reconciliations: Compare records and verify that all account balances match what’s on your bank statements or other records. If something doesn’t line up, fix it now so you know all your numbers are correct.
Sort out accruals and deferrals: Add in any earnings or expenses that occurred this year but haven’t shown up on the books yet. This ensures your financial picture truly reflects the year’s activity.
Plan an appreciation break: Halfway through, pause for a simple thank-you break. A quick coffee or lunch can boost everyone’s morale.
Make adjusting entries: Make any final accounting corrections so your books reflect the reality of your company’s finances.
Prepare financial statements: Generate the key reports—like the income statement and balance sheet—that wrap up the financial close process.
Streamline review and approvals: Decide who will check each part of the work and how they’ll sign off quickly and smoothly. This helps catch any mistakes and keeps things moving.
Gather feedback: After wrapping up, ask the team what went well and what could be improved. Their insights can make next year’s process smoother.
Celebrate the finish line: Once the hard work is done, acknowledge your team’s efforts with a celebration. They’ve earned it.
A successful year-end close is within reach. Focus on essential tasks, utilize your digital tools effectively and keep communication flowing. Our comprehensive year-end close checklist will keep you on track, and if you plan ahead for next year, the process can be even smoother. For now, trust your team and remember: You’ve got this!
