CFO Magazine just tweeted out a cool Metric of the Month
Fast Fact: The top 25% of companies can finish the close-to-disclose cycle in 12 days or less. http://t.co/Q5NTX4mRIM pic.twitter.com/iVTIYrSH2G
— CFO.com (@cfo) October 17, 2015
We followed the link, and found a great article (as usual) by Mary Driscoll “Metric of the Month: Close-to-Disclose Cycle Time”
We were (of course) happy to see a quote from SVA Founding Principal Gabe Zubizarreta in the first paragraph
When a large public company produces a quarterly financial report, anything less than 100% accuracy can spell disaster. As Gabe Zubizarreta, chief executive of Silicon Valley Accountants, an accounting and consulting firm, says, “Getting your close 96% right is not an ‘A’ or an ‘A+.’ Rather, 96% is an ‘F.’”
The article has a bunch of great stats, including this chart
As noted in the article, a better close is also more efficient
The top performers among these 524 organizations — those top 25% with the best cost-efficiency — get the job done for one quarter of the cost incurred by the bottom performers, the worst 25% of the group.
The key question, of course, is how do you get there? As we have worked with customers all over the world to improve their closes, we have seen that the following factors are most effective.
- Documentation. Efficient closes are well documented
- Communication. Finance departments that have set up processes to improve communication are more effective
- A clear schedule with accountability. Everyone in the department knows what is due and when
We have helped companies all over the world to improve their closes. Join us on one of our upcoming webinars and learn how, or contact us for free a free onsite course or assessment.
