Workpaper standard

What this page is for: what every journal entry and reconciliation workpaper looks like, so a reviewer can open any one, from any month, and know where to look. Every JE and rec skill in skills/ follows it.

Last reviewed: 2026-10-15, by Head of Finance

The September 2026 usage accrual, 2101 - Accrued Expenses - Usage Accrual 2026.09.xlsx, is the reference JE workpaper.

Rules for every workpaper

File name: {GL account number} - {account name} - {description} {YYYY.MM}.xlsx, for example 2101 - Accrued Expenses - Usage Accrual 2026.09.xlsx or 1010 - Operating Checking - Rec 2026.09.xlsx.
Formulas, never hardcoded results. If the source data changes, the result changes.
Source tabs are never edited. Inputs stay exactly as pulled or exported.
Accounts must exist in the chart of accounts. Never invent one.
Blue text for inputs, black for formulas.
Sign-off block at the bottom of the Summary tab:

Prepared by: Claude (run by [name]) on [date] Reviewed and approved by: ______________ Date: ________ Requires approval by someone other than the preparer, per handbook/company-overview.md.

Save to testing/ while a skill is new or changed. After it has passed review, Google Drive, Finance/Close/YYYY-MM/JEs/ or Finance/Close/YYYY-MM/Recs/.

If any check below fails, say so plainly and stop. Don't hand off a workpaper with a failed check.

Journal entries

Tabs, in this order:

Tab	What's on it
Summary	Purpose, period, the handbook policy it follows, where each input came from (system and report, or export file name, with date range), the result in one sentence, and the sign-off block.
Source Data	The raw inputs exactly as pulled or exported.
Calculation	The math, as live formulas that reference Source Data. Every assumption (a rate, a threshold, a useful life) in its own labeled cell, with where it came from.
JE	The entry: post date, reversal date (if any), account, debit, credit, memo, department or class. Totals row. A balance check that reads BALANCED or OUT OF BALANCE.
Prior Period (optional)	Last month's entry beside this month's, with the change explained if it's material.

Debits equal credits, and the balance check is a formula, not a typed word.
Memo format: {description} - {vendor or contract} - {YYYY.MM}.
Optional import file: if the accounting system accepts a journal entry import, also save a CSV in its import format beside the workbook. A person imports it after approval. Claude never posts.

Checks before handoff, shown to the user as a short table:

Balanced: total debits equal total credits.
Ties to source: the Calculation total equals the JE amount.
Ties to the schedule or balance: for entries that roll a balance (prepaids, accruals, deferred revenue), opening + additions - releases = closing, and closing matches what the GL will show after the entry.
Reasonable vs. last month: if the amount moved more than the flux threshold in handbook/close-process.md, explain why.
Accounts valid: every account exists and is active.

Reconciliations

The same shape works for a bank account, a credit card, a clearing account, or a balance-sheet account tied to a schedule.

Tabs, in this order:

Tab	What's on it
Summary	The account, the period, the statement date, the GL balance, the independent balance (statement or schedule), total reconciling items, and the unreconciled difference, which must be zero. Sources and the sign-off block.
GL Detail	The account's GL activity for the period, as pulled.
Statement	The independent source: bank or card statement lines, or the supporting schedule.
Reconciling Items	Every item on one side but not the other, each with a type, date, amount, age in days, and what happens next.
Rollforward	Last month's open reconciling items: cleared this month, or still open (with age).

Reconciling item types:

Type	Meaning	What happens next
Deposit in transit	In the GL, not yet on the statement	Should clear in the first days of next month
Outstanding payment	In the GL, not yet on the statement	Should clear when the payee cashes or the payment settles
Bank-only item	On the statement, not in the GL (fees, interest, unrecorded transfers)	Propose a JE for a person to book
Error	Recorded wrong in the GL (amount, account, or duplicate)	Propose a correcting JE
Timing	Statement and GL cut off on different dates (common for cards)	Explain the cutoff

The unreconciled difference is a formula, and it must be zero. If it isn't, the rec isn't done.
Every reconciling item has a type and a next step. "Unknown" is not a type.
Items older than 60 days get flagged on the Summary tab.

Checks before handoff:

Unreconciled difference is zero.
GL balance matches the trial balance for the account at the statement date (the month end for most bank accounts; cards often close mid-month).
Statement ending balance matches the statement (not a running total Claude computed).
Last month's items are accounted for: every prior open item is cleared or carried forward with its age.
Proposed JEs listed: any bank-only item or error has a proposed entry for a person to book.