Field notes
Observing a month-end close without slowing the team down
Fieldwork during close week works when reviewers shadow quietly and capture timing issues instead of interrupting posting windows.
Close week is the worst — and best — time to test operating effectiveness. People are rushed, which is exactly when signatures get skipped. The reviewer’s job is to watch the sequence, not to become another approver in the queue.
Agree ground rules on day one: which meetings you may attend, which screens you may view, and when questions wait until after the posting freeze. Capture timestamps for reconciliations completed after the reporting deadline; those late files often explain why prior-year auditors raised cut-off comments.
Afterwards, redesign the calendar so high-risk accounts close earlier, not so the team works longer nights. A cleaner sequence is the remediation most controllers thank us for.