General ledger

Staff Accountant prepares a journal header with its entry date, organization, source and tax period. Journal lines carry the debit and credit amounts and reference the ledger accounts. The header totals bring those lines together for review. Controller needs to see both the balance and the reason for the entry before the finance team treats it as posted.

A balanced total is the starting point for review. The selected account must also reflect the intended treatment. An expense coded to an asset account can leave the entry balanced while changing the meaning of the books. Keep a clear description and line memo so the reviewer can compare the posting with its supporting document.

• Maintain account coding. Use the account code, type, group and normal balance to organize the chart of accounts. Review Active and Inactive accounts before importing journal lines.
• Prepare the entry. Staff Accountant selects the organization, source and period, then reviews the linked lines. Compare debit and credit totals and the out-of-balance indication.
• Review the period. Check the journal date against the intended accounting interval. Agree the posting and reversal procedure with Controller before changing a Draft entry to Posted or using Reversed.

Bring the current chart of accounts and a small set of opening entries. Agree the use of the journal source categories and how each source document is referenced in the description or supporting evidence. The app’s account structure supports grouping by account type and group; the team should confirm its own mapping before using those groups for financial review.

Controller defines the response to an out-of-balance journal and to a journal aimed at a Closed or Locked period. Rehearse those cases before opening the workflow to operators. Agree how a correction retains the original entry and its explanation. Review evidence access as part of setup so the accounting team can open the document that justifies the entry.

Staff Accountant prepares an accrual with a debit of 240 and a credit of 240. The header totals agree, but Controller sees that the expense line points to the wrong account group. Return the draft to the preparer for correction and retain the explanation. A zero difference between debit and credit totals does not resolve incorrect coding.

Next, rehearse the same entry against a closed accounting interval. The period policy determines the correction route and permitted posting date. Verify that the configured controls apply before the team relies on them. When the entry is ready, the reviewer can explain the period choice, corrected coding and supporting evidence together. Keep later reversals traceable through the entry description and evidence references.

• GL Entry Review — Compare journal dates, periods and debit and credit totals while reviewing each entry’s status.
• Journal Entries Unposted — Inspect draft entries with their account coding and supporting evidence before posting review.
• Tax period calendar — Confirm the accounting interval and read its close notes.

Use journal review before reviewing the tax period. Prepare the reference mapping with the data model and confirm responsibilities on the roles page.