This month-end close checklist splits each close task into what an AI agent prepares and what a person reviews, approves or posts. Every line carries a working day, a depth for the agent, a named owner and the evidence left behind. Copy the template, assign your own tasks and days, and use the worked sample as a guide.
What makes a close checklist with agent tasks different?
A normal close checklist has one owner per task. Once an agent joins, most tasks have two: the agent that prepares and the person who signs. If the checklist hides that split, the person ticks the box assuming the agent checked, and the agent's output is treated as reviewed when it was not. Keeping preparation and sign-off visibly separate is the core of AI agents for finance: books you can audit.
So the template adds three columns: the agent's part, the depth it acts at, and the person's part. The idea behind it, that the close speeds up because preparation moves earlier rather than because approval disappears, is set out in month-end close: what the agent prepares.
When should you use it?
Every month, from the last working day of the period to the sign-off of the management accounts. The checklist is also the right document for the first conversation with internal audit before an agent joins the close. It shows them, line by line, where human judgement still sits.
If you are new to the structure of a close, what the month-end close is covers the basics.
How do you fill in each field?
- Day uses working days relative to period end: WD-1, WD1, WD2.
- Agent task is written as a verb: match, draft, compile, flag. If the agent has no role, write "none".
- Depth is the depth the agent holds for that capability. Most close tasks sit at 2 or 3. If a row needs 4, question it.
- Person task is what the owner does with the agent's output: review, approve, post, sign.
- Evidence is what remains for audit: a reconciliation, a workpaper, a held item record, a variance commentary.
- Dependency names the task that must finish first. Agents are fast; dependencies are what slow a close.
The template
| Field | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Task ID | Reference, such as MEC-12 |
| Area | Cash, AP, AR, payroll, fixed assets, accruals, intercompany, tax, reporting |
| Task | What must be done |
| Day | Working day relative to period end |
| Dependency | Task IDs that must finish first |
| Agent task | What the agent prepares, or "none" |
| Agent depth | 1 to 3 |
| Person task | Review, approve, post or sign |
| Owner | Named person |
| Evidence | Document or record left behind |
| Status | Not started, agent done, under review, complete |
A worked sample
A hypothetical professional services firm with a five-day close.
| ID | Task | Day | Agent task | Depth | Person task | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEC-01 | Bank reconciliations | WD1 | Match all bank lines, list exceptions | 3 | Review exceptions, sign rec | Treasury analyst |
| MEC-02 | AP cut-off | WD1 | Compare goods received to invoices; list received not invoiced | 2 | Confirm list with budget holders | AP lead |
| MEC-03 | Accruals | WD2 | Draft accrual journals with workpaper | 2 | Review and post | Assistant controller |
| MEC-04 | Prepayment releases | WD2 | Calculate releases from schedule, draft journal | 2 | Post | Assistant controller |
| MEC-05 | Unbilled revenue | WD2 | Compile unbilled time by client from timesheets | 2 | Partner review of recoverability | Billing manager |
| MEC-06 | Payroll reconciliation | WD2 | Reconcile payroll report to ledger | 3 | Review and sign | Payroll manager |
| MEC-07 | Intercompany | WD3 | Match balances between entities, list differences | 3 | Agree differences with other entity | Group accountant |
| MEC-08 | Balance sheet recs | WD3 | Prepare recs for medium and low risk accounts | 2 | Review and sign | Financial controller |
| MEC-09 | Flux analysis | WD4 | Draft variance commentary against budget and prior month | 2 | Edit and approve commentary | Financial controller |
| MEC-10 | Management accounts | WD5 | Compile pack from approved figures | 2 | Sign off pack | Finance director |
MEC-05 shows a task where the agent's role stops early. It can add up unbilled time, but judging whether that time is recoverable is a partner's call. MEC-03 links to a fuller process in how to run month-end accruals with an AI agent.
No row exceeds depth 3, and no row has the agent posting or signing. That matches our position on whether an AI agent can run the month-end close: it can prepare nearly all of it, and should finish none of it.
Questions people ask
Which close tasks should an agent take first?
Start with high-volume, rule-based tasks that already have an independent check: bank reconciliations and intercompany matching. Leave judgement-heavy tasks such as provisions until the agent has a record.
Does adding an agent shorten the close?
Usually, because preparation starts the moment data is available instead of when someone is free. The review steps still take time, so plan for review capacity, not just agent capacity.
How do we stop people rubber-stamping agent work?
Make the person's task specific: "review all exceptions and five matched items" rather than "review". Then sample the reviews themselves each quarter.