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A guide to financial consolidation and close.
Consolidation and close is how finance turns many sets of books into one trusted set of numbers at the end of each period.
The work includes collecting data from every entity and system, mapping accounts, converting currencies, removing intercompany activity, reconciling, and signing off.
Combine
Consolidation
Every entity and system rolled up into one set of financials.
Finalize
Month-end close
Reconciliations, accruals, review, and sign-off each period.
Control
Data governance
Who can see and change which numbers, set once and enforced everywhere.
Prove
Audit trail
A record of every edit, sync, and publish, traced to its source.
Why consolidation and close matters
Every report, plan, and board deck depends on the closed numbers. A slow or error-prone close delays everything downstream and puts audits at risk. A clean, governed close gives the whole company one set of books to work from.
How to run consolidation and close in Cube
Most multi-entity teams follow these steps each period.
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1.
Connect every entity. Sync each ERP and source system into Cube.
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2.
Map the chart of accounts. Align each entity’s accounts to one reporting structure.
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3.
Convert and eliminate. Apply FX rates and remove intercompany transactions.
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4.
Reconcile and review. Run reconciliations with owners, status, and comments in one place.
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5.
Sign off and report. Approve the close and publish one set of numbers, with the audit trail attached.
Key consolidation and close terms
- Consolidation
- Combining the results of multiple entities into one set of financials.
- Intercompany elimination
- Removing transactions between entities of the same company.
- FX translation
- Converting entity results into the reporting currency.
- Chart of accounts mapping
- Matching source accounts to the standard reporting structure.
- Reconciliation
- Checking that two sets of records agree.
- Days to close
- Business days from period end to final numbers.
Manual consolidation vs. consolidation in Cube
|
Manual process |
Cube |
| Data collection |
Exports from each entity |
Live sync from every ERP |
| Mapping |
Rebuilt in spreadsheets |
Governed mappings, maintained once |
| FX and eliminations |
Manual journal adjustments |
Applied consistently on the model |
| Close tracking |
Checklists and email |
Tasks, owners, and sign-off in one place |
| Audit |
Hard to reconstruct changes |
Every change logged and traceable |