Guide
A simple month-end checklist for small businesses
Month-end is when a month of activity becomes a set of figures you can trust. Done in the right order, it takes hours, not weeks.
The checklist
- Record every sale and send every invoice for the month
- Enter every bill and receipt, including card spending
- Match your books to every bank and card statement, to the cent
- Review who owes you money and chase anything overdue
- Review what you owe, and when each bill is due
- Check unusual items: duplicates, one-off costs, anything that looks out of place
- Then, and only then, read the profit and loss and the balance sheet
- Update your cash forecast for the weeks ahead
Why the order matters
If the books do not match the bank, every figure built on them is wrong: profit, cash cover, the forecast. Matching to the bank comes before reading any report.
Make the second half automatic
Big4CFO checks that your books add up to the cent, and to your bank when you add statements, then produces the report, the leak checks and the forecast. Your bookkeeper keeps the books; the scramble to find out whether the numbers are right goes away.
Have it worked out on your own figures
Big4CFO checks your books to the cent and produces this every month, from your own records. One-time reports cost $49 (one month), $99 (three months) or $199 (twelve months). Monthly plans start at $349 a month (Foundational), with Growth at $599, Leverage at $899 and Capital Stack at $1,999.
Questions
- How soon after month-end should figures be ready?
- Within the first week is a good aim. The later they arrive, the less you can do with them.
See it on your own figures
One-time reports from $49, delivered within minutes. Monthly plans from $349. Every payment carries a 14-day money-back guarantee.