I find the one step that holds up your month-end close, and I automate it.

Payment processor payouts matched to your deposits and invoices automatically, and a 13-week cash forecast that updates from your bank. For businesses doing $2M to $20M a year.

Email me to set up a call

Finance Systems Audit, from $1,500

  • I reply within two business days.
  • Read-only access to your systems, and a fixed price before any build.
  • If the audit doesn't find at least one fix that would save more than its fee in the first year, you don't pay.
A desk-scale sorting machine in brushed steel and dark green enamel, its output trays holding squared stacks of paperwork.

The problem

Where the close gets stuck

You know this is your problem if:

  1. A payment processor payout lands in the bank and no one can tie it to the invoices or orders behind it.
  2. The AR aging in QuickBooks Online shows balances nobody trusts, so collections runs from a spreadsheet.
  3. The close runs so long that you see last month's numbers halfway through this month.

The cause is usually one step. Fees, refunds, chargebacks, and timing differences sit between the payment processor and the general ledger, and someone nets them out by hand in Excel every month. Every later step of the close waits on that one.

A manual bookkeeping desk with an adding machine, curling paper tape, rubber stamps, a desk lamp, and an overflowing in-tray.

Demo with sample data

What the work looks like

Marlow Hill Supply Co. is a fictional company, and every number below is made up.

Schedule A. 13-week cash forecast, in thousands of dollars. Demo with sample data.Scroll sideways to see all 13 weeks.
Line Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10 Week 11 Week 12 Week 13
Opening cash 412396389372366358317323316310302305308
Receipts 9688104928199110948611810297108
Disbursements (112)(95)(121)(98)(89)(140)(104)(101)(92)(126)(99)(94)(118)
Net cash flow (16)(7)(17)(6)(8)(41)6(7)(6)(8)33(10)
Ending cash 396389372366358317323316310302305308298 below minimum
Minimum cash 300300300300300300300300300300300300300

Week 13 ends at $298K, under the $300K minimum. A forecast like this shows it 13 weeks early.

Schedule B. Close scorecard, by workday after month-end. Demo with sample data.
Step Target Actual Late
Bank accounts reconciled 220
Payment processor payouts matched to depositsBottleneck 264
AR subledger tied to the general ledger 374
AP and accruals posted 341
Revenue reconciled 484
Review and adjustments 594
Financial statements issued 6104

The close finished on workday 10 against a target of 6. Payout matching ran 4 workdays late, and every step after it waited. That step is the bottleneck.

Schedule C. Sample audit report, page 1. Demo with sample data.

Finance Systems Audit

Bottleneck report: Marlow Hill Supply Co.

The bottleneck is matching payment processor payouts to deposits. It finishes on workday 6 against a target of 2, and every later step of the close waits on it, so the close finishes on workday 10 against a target of 6.

Fixes, ranked by workdays saved against cost. Each assumes the fixes above it are in place.
Fix Days saved Cost
1. Automate payout matching 4$5,500
2. Post recurring accruals from a template 1$4,000
3. Reconcile revenue daily instead of at month-end 1$4,500

Recommendation: build fix 1 first. Fixed price $5,500, about 3 weeks, then a parallel run on the next close.

Services and pricing

Start with the audit

Finance Systems Audit

From $1,500

I find the bottleneck: the one step that holds up your close. Over about 2 weeks from access, I map your month-end close step by step, review how money moves from your payment processors and bank accounts into the general ledger, and interview the people who run the close. I work with read-only access only.

You get a written bottleneck report: every step of your close with the time it takes, the one step holding everything else up, 3 to 5 fixes ranked by time saved against cost, and a fixed-price quote for the build. I walk you through it on a 60-minute call. See a sample report page.

If the audit doesn't find at least one fix that would save more than its fee in the first year, you don't pay.

Final price depends on the number of systems and accounts in scope, quoted before work begins. The audit fee is credited toward a build booked within 30 days.

Email me to set up a call

What usually comes next

  • Month-end close build

    From $4,000

    Payouts matched to deposits and revenue reconciled automatically, so the close stops waiting on that step.

  • 13-week cash forecast

    From $5,000

    A 13-week cash forecast that updates from your bank and accounting data, with no weekly spreadsheet rebuild.

  • Automated finance reporting

    From $10,000

    Your payment processor and accounting data in one warehouse you can query, with the reconciliation run automatically.

  • Monthly systems support

    From $2,000/month

    Each month I keep your automations running and build the next one.

How I work

  1. Assessment. 2 weeks from access. This is the Finance Systems Audit: I map your close, find the bottleneck, and quote the build at a fixed price.
  2. Build. 2 to 6 weeks, depending on scope, at the fixed price quoted after the audit. I build the reconciliation, forecast, or data model in the tools you already run, such as QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, or Snowflake.
  3. Parallel run. 1 full month-end close. The old and new processes run side by side, and the new one replaces the old only after both produce the same numbers.
  4. Handoff with training. 1 week, then 30 days of email support. You get written documentation and a training session for the person who will run it day to day.
A statement page, a check-sized slip, and a receipt held by one binder clip on a ruled ledger sheet.

About

Jake, Ben Dot Solutions

I'm Jake. Ben Dot Solutions is named for my kids, a small piece of each of their names. It's just me: when you get in touch you talk to me, and I do the work.

I've spent 7 years working with financial data, 4 of them designing and building finance systems.

Tools I work in: QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Snowflake or MotherDuck, dbt, Python.

Questions owners ask

You are one person. What if you are unavailable?

Everything runs in your own accounts and comes with a written runbook, so anyone competent can operate it. Monthly support is optional, never required to keep things running.

Will it keep working after you leave?

All of it: the code, models, reports, documentation, and accounts, in your name from day one. Nothing runs on my infrastructure.

Is this just bookkeeping?

No. A bookkeeper records transactions. I build the systems that match, code, and report them without manual work. If you have a bookkeeper, their work gets faster, not replaced, unless you decide otherwise.

Why not hire a controller or a bookkeeper?

Most of this work is a build, not an ongoing job. I build it once, train your team, and hand it over. If you hire later, that person inherits working systems instead of starting from scratch. The audit is from $1,500.

Which systems do you work in?

QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Snowflake or MotherDuck, dbt, and Python. Payment processor data comes in through the processor's own exports or API.

Tell me where your close gets stuck

Email me at jake@bendotsolutions.com with your company size, the systems you use, and the step that slows your close. I reply within two business days, and the intro call is 30 minutes.

  • Read-only access to your systems, and a fixed price before any build.
  • If the audit doesn't find at least one fix that would save more than its fee in the first year, you don't pay.
Email me to set up a call
Email me to set up a call