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Ready for the year-end closing? How to wrap up 2025 smoothly

The end of the fiscal year is approaching. For finance and procurement departments, this often means a peak period: extra invoices, tight deadlines, and a lot of checking work. But closing the books doesn’t have to be a race against the clock. With good preparation and a smart approach, you can make the process clearer and less prone to errors. Below are eight tips to help you close out 2025 smoothly and get 2026 off to a good start.

1. Start cleaning up early

A smooth end to the year starts in the weeks leading up to it. So plan your most important tasks well in advance: check outstanding invoices, review purchase orders, go through draft entries. The fewer loose ends you have in December, the faster you’ll be able to wrap things up.

Also check with your team: how is everyone doing? Joint preparation and a clear division of tasks ensure peace of mind during the busiest weeks of the year.

2. Automate where possible

A lot of time is wasted on manual tasks: searching for documents, checking data, or matching it with purchase orders. This takes energy and increases the risk of errors.
By automating as much as possible, for example through automatic recognition, matching, or approval, you give your team more time to focus on control and quality.

Do you work in the cloud? Then a clear reporting environment will help you gain immediate insight into expenses, suppliers, and trends. With reliable data, you can make better decisions for the new year.

3. Check your approval flow

Nothing is more annoying than invoices getting stuck in a workflow, especially in the last few weeks of the year. So take a moment to do a quick check: are the roles still correct? Are any employees absent around the holidays? Is the authorization flow clear? By arranging this in advance, you can keep turnaround times short.

4. Plan the technical steps for the new fiscal year

New number series, creating a new fiscal year, cleaning up old data; every ERP system has its own steps. It pays to plan these in advance. Contact your ERP supplier or internal application manager in good time so that you can continue working without interruption. This will prevent you from coming to a standstill in January.

5. Make room for a fresh start

The end of the year is also a good time to review your processes: where can you work smarter or faster next year? Which tasks could be automated? Small optimizations often yield big gains for your team.

A smooth year-end closing starts with an overview, smart choices, and the right preparation. This way, you can start 2026 with peace of mind, insight, and an administration that is ready for growth.

6. Use the checklist as your guide

In a previous blog post, we already mentioned that it is useful to work with a checklist. This helps you maintain an overview and prevents you from overlooking anything. Focus on the most important elements before December and tick off what has been completed. By dividing your tasks into clear and manageable steps, you make the process clear and efficient. Want to know what to include in the checklist? Click here for inspiration.

7. Sharpen your focus on data & trends

In addition to ‘closing the books’, this is also a good time to look at what the figures are telling you: which suppliers cause the most headaches? Where are the biggest costs? Where are the opportunities for optimization? By gaining this insight before the end of the year, you can take immediate action in 2026.

8. Involve the entire organization

The year-end closing is not just a matter for finance or purchasing, but affects multiple departments. Make sure everyone knows what is going on: from shareholders to employees who submit invoices. Support leads to fewer last-minute surprises and a smoother process.

Start 2026 with confidence

These eight steps will not only help you complete the 2025 year-end closing smoothly and in a controlled manner, but also lay a solid foundation for 2026. Use the period before December to tidy up, automate processes, and get your team and systems ready. This will allow you to start the new fiscal year with insight, peace of mind, and room for growth.

2026 off to a good start?

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The benefits

  • Save time and money

  • Flawless administration

  • Create overview

Inspiration for 2026?

Would you like to get inspiration for 2026 or discover how other organizations have optimized their administration? We have numerous examples and are happy to help you further improve your processes.

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With a (web) demo, you can quickly and easily see what benefits our solution brings you.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Schedule your demo

With a (web) demo, you can quickly and easily see what benefits our solution brings you.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.