For many finance teams, year-end close can feel like a perfect storm of deadlines, spreadsheets, and last-minute adjustments. Manual checklists may live in email threads, responsibilities aren’t always clear, and small oversights can quickly turn into bigger problems.
While the close process will always require focus and coordination, the right tools can bring order and consistency to what is often a hectic time of year.
Acumatica offers built-in functionality that helps teams move away from ad hoc processes and toward a structured, repeatable year-end close.
By combining guided workflows, task automation, and smarter transaction management, finance teams can approach year-end with greater confidence and far less friction.
Building a Repeatable Year-End Process
One of the biggest challenges during year-end close is keeping everyone aligned. Tasks are often known, but not always documented in a way that’s easy to follow. This can be especially for newer team members or those stepping in to help.
Acumatica’s Business Scenarios provide a practical way to turn a year-end checklist into a guided workflow. These scenarios act as interactive task lists that walk users through each step of the close process, from accounts receivable and accounts payable reviews to final period close activities.
Each task can include:
- Clear instructions and notes
- Links directly to the relevant screens in Acumatica
- Assigned owners and due dates
- Dependencies that enforce the correct order of operations
Because tasks are tracked in the system, teams can see what’s in progress, what’s complete, and what still needs attention—all in one place. Over time, this creates a consistent process that can be reused year after year.
Automating Key Financial Steps
Year-end often brings a surge of routine transactions, many of which follow predictable patterns. Manually recreating these entries not only takes time, but also increases the chance of errors.
Acumatica helps streamline this work through several automation options:
| Recurring Transactions |
For entries that happen on a set schedule with the same amounts (like payroll or fixed monthly expenses), recurring transaction profiles can generate journal entries automatically based on predefined rules. |
| Templates |
When transactions are similar but not identical each period, templates allow users to quickly copy a standard structure and adjust amounts as needed. |
| Auto-Reversing Entries |
Accruals and other temporary entries can be marked to reverse automatically in the following period, removing the need for manual follow-up. |
| Excel Imports |
Large or complex journal entries can be prepared in Excel and uploaded directly into Acumatica, saving time and reducing rekeying. |
Together, these tools reduce manual effort during close and free up the finance team to focus on review and analysis rather than data entry.
Stay on Track with Period Management
Managing financial periods is a central part of year-end close, and Acumatica provides clear controls to support this process. Authorized users can open, close, or lock periods by module or across the general ledger, depending on how the organization prefers to sequence its close.
Built-in visibility into unposted or unreleased transactions helps teams identify what’s holding a period open. From the period management screen, users can quickly drill into outstanding documents and resolve issues without jumping between multiple reports.
Proper role assignments, such as the financial supervisor role, further support this process by defining who can manage periods and make adjustments when needed.
Simplifying 1099 Reporting
Year-end close often overlaps with preparation for 1099 reporting, which can add another layer of pressure. Acumatica allows teams to review 1099 information throughout the year rather than waiting until January.
Finance users can:
- Validate vendor setup and tax information
- Run 1099 detail reports at any time
- Drill into source transactions to confirm amounts
- Generate IRS-compliant electronic files directly from the system
By spreading this work across the year, teams reduce surprises and shorten the timeline when filing deadlines approach.
Cleaning Up Before the New Year
Year-end is also a natural time to tidy up the system. Deactivating inactive customers, vendors, employees, and general ledger accounts helps keep data current and reduces clutter going into the new fiscal year. These cleanup steps make day-to-day work smoother and reporting easier to manage.
A More Predictable Close
Year-end close doesn’t have to rely on tribal knowledge or last-minute heroics. With structured workflows, automated transactions, and real-time visibility into progress, Acumatica helps finance teams bring consistency and clarity to one of the most demanding processes of the year.
The result is a close process that’s easier to manage, easier to repeat, and better positioned to support the year ahead.
© 2026 SVA Consulting
