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THE RAILBASE PRODUCT GUIDE
Reconcile and close the month
Bring Acme's source evidence, budget actuals and financial statements to one independently reviewed October result.
Updated
Continue the Acme case
The purchase, two customer receipts, asset and payroll lessons are complete. Tax evidence retains the stated training treatment. The controller now closes October; a report total alone does not prove the underlying sources are complete.
Role and prerequisites
The financial controller prepares the close. Specialists resolve their own source exceptions; independent assigned authorities decide the close dossier in Core. The month remains open until its required checks and decisions succeed.
Reconcile before locking
- Reconcile AP and AR to GL: Aster's payable and Beacon's receivable are zero. Confirm all acquisition, receipts, payroll and settlement acknowledgements; acquisition clearing is zero.
- Reconcile the bank to the confirmed statement and explain every unmatched movement. Check the asset register and one $100 depreciation result; payroll payable is zero.
- Compare the released $10,000 project budget with $8,000 actual spending: equipment $6,000 plus payroll $2,000. Explain the $2,000 unspent reserve. Capital expenditure is not the same as an expense in the profit-and-loss statement.
- Inspect the trial balance and the case's expected statements below. Attach the reconciliations, exceptions and explanations to the close dossier.
- Submit, resolve any returned checklist item and obtain the required independent decision. Verify the period is closed; reopening needs a reason and its own supported authority path.
Check the control totals
| Training result | USD |
|---|---|
| Bank: 20,000 − 6,000 + 9,000 − 2,000 | 21,000 |
| Equipment, net: 6,000 − 100 | 5,900 |
| Total assets | 26,900 |
| Sales − payroll − depreciation | 6,900 |
| Opening capital + period result | 26,900 |
| Payables, receivables, payroll payable, acquisition clearing | 0 |
Verify the saved result
Reopen the closed period and exact reviewed package. Statements, source references and independent decisions remain; retry does not create a second close. A blocked acknowledgement or unmatched bank item remains an exception rather than being labelled complete.
Next, study controlled migration for an existing business, or take this same case into GRC. An accounting close does not certify that every business control is effective.