A balance moved and I don't know why

Check the trial balance first for an obvious coding error, before assuming the schedule is wrong. Check whether a new store opened or a store closed during the period — a large share of unexplained movement traces back to an allocation, royalty worksheet, or inventory schedule not yet being updated for a location change. Check whether the client sent a GL adjustment entry that hit the account unexpectedly — common with accrued expenses and admin/G&A accounts.

The intercompany tie-out isn't at zero

This is very rarely a true intercompany imbalance, since Intacct enforces a due-to/due-from source across entities. Look first for an entry posted to a location assigned to the wrong entity. Check the client's own period-end GL adjustment entries — these have been a past source of one-sided postings. See Intercompany tie-out.

The delivery service numbers don't match the platform's own reporting

This is very likely the known POS-vs-platform sales variance driven by delivery-platform price markups. Confirm it nets out through fees at the total-company level before treating it as an error. If it's a new or growing variance rather than the familiar pattern, check the marketplace-facilitator tax adjustment calculation next. See Delivery service reconciliation.

A new store's numbers look wrong

Check, in this order: Is it on the sales/royalty worksheet? Is it in the prepaid allocation groups? Is it in the delivery service reconciliation inputs tab? Is its P&L account structure consistent with other open stores? New-store setup gaps are the single most common cause of a location looking wrong in this portfolio.

Troubleshooting and consolidated watch-outs

Q: The side-by-side and the trend report seem to disagree

They're not measuring the same thing. The side-by-side is a completeness check for the current period; the trend report is an analytical, multi-period comparison. A new store or a location with a one-time item will often look "wrong" on trend without there being any actual error — confirm against the side-by-side and account detail before concluding something is missing.

Q: Who posts the journal entry — me or the preparer?

This engagement is actively transitioning that responsibility to the preparer performing the close. Until the checklist consistently shows entries posted by the preparer, confirm by searching the journal directly rather than assuming.

The recurring "why doesn't this tie" situations, organized as quick-reference rather than repeated inside each account page — plus a consolidated watch-out list pulled from every section of the review documentation.

Source: Rackson_RRS_RCY_Review_Process.docx sections 34 and 51.

"Why doesn't this tie?"

Check the trial balance first for an obvious coding error, before assuming the schedule is wrong.
Check whether a new store opened or a store closed during the period — a large share of unexplained movement traces back to an allocation, royalty worksheet, or inventory schedule not yet being updated for a location change.
Check whether the client sent a GL adjustment entry that hit the account unexpectedly — common with accrued expenses and admin/G&A accounts.

This is very rarely a true intercompany imbalance, since Intacct enforces a due-to/due-from source across entities. Look first for an entry posted to a location assigned to the wrong entity.
Check the client's own period-end GL adjustment entries — these have been a past source of one-sided postings.

See Intercompany tie-out.

This is very likely the known POS-vs-platform sales variance driven by delivery-platform price markups. Confirm it nets out through fees at the total-company level before treating it as an error.
If it's a new or growing variance rather than the familiar pattern, check the marketplace-facilitator tax adjustment calculation next.

See Delivery service reconciliation.

Check, in this order:

Is it on the sales/royalty worksheet?
Is it in the prepaid allocation groups?
Is it in the delivery service reconciliation inputs tab?
Is its P&L account structure consistent with other open stores?

New-store setup gaps are the single most common cause of a location looking wrong in this portfolio.

They're not measuring the same thing. The side-by-side is a completeness check for the current period; the trend report is an analytical, multi-period comparison.

A new store or a location with a one-time item will often look "wrong" on trend without there being any actual error — confirm against the side-by-side and account detail before concluding something is missing.

This engagement is actively transitioning that responsibility to the preparer performing the close. Until the checklist consistently shows entries posted by the preparer, confirm by searching the journal directly rather than assuming.

Consolidated watch-outs

A single list for a pre-close read-through.

Prepaid

Prepaid POS Maintenance (GL 14600) is a separate workbook and GL account from general Prepaid Expenses (GL 14000) — don't treat them as one file. Paste new POS-summary data into the existing "2026 POS Summary" tab — never add a new tab — and never type over the blue formula-linked cells.

Confirm the JE's pivoted debit/credit total ties to the Reconciliation tab's variance before posting (GL 14600). This is a hard stop, not a nice-to-have.

ERTC

The GL 19999 schedule is ERTC (Employee Retention Tax Credit) tracking, not a generic "RTC" line. Use the correct term when searching for it or discussing it with the team.

Rebates

The PTM (preventive-maintenance) vendor rebate is the single largest exposure item on the Rebates Receivable schedule (GL 12700/12730). Confirm whether the write-off-to-expense conversation with the client has been finalized before assuming current treatment. Don't confuse it with the separate Coke/RSI rebate accrual on the close checklist.

If the quarterly sponsor/director fee (JE description "Adjust CCV Mgmt Fee Accrual to Actual") changes without a clear reason, stop and get support/confirmation from the client before advancing the new number as the run rate. Note that a credit-back adjustment already hit Q1 and Q2 of this fiscal year.

Insurance

Confirm the 85/15 allocation split and each carrier's actual policy period (GL 14300 — CNA, AmTrust, and The Horton Group/Chubb do not all renew on the same date) rather than assuming either is unchanged. Confirm whether the client's new March policy structure has been fully documented and reconciled.

In-house maintenance and closed store

In-house maintenance (GL 80500, JE "Reclass Ops Maintenance payroll costs") and the closed store reclass (JE "[Period] Closed Store Expenses") are both sensitive to Caitlin's GL adjustments landing after the allocation/reclass has already run. Plan to rerun both reports a second time later in the close, or confirm the close calendar has been adjusted to sequence around this.

Labor reclass

Always compare the incoming labor reclass file's row/column layout to the prior period before pasting — the client has been known to remove rows without notice, which breaks downstream formulas if pasted blind. Watch for GL accounts 81210, 15900, 80100, 80900, 82540, and 81200, and confirm the EE [ID] | Per Schedule… memo pattern is intact.

Bonus

Confirm current cadence — monthly versus quarterly, and whether RCY is on the same cadence as RRS — before assuming a bonus file is expected for a given period.

Reporting

Adding or restructuring an account group subtotal — not just moving an account between existing groups, e.g. anything touching the "Comp - EBITDA" computation group — resets formatting on every report built from it. Screenshot the Format tab first, and always verify the fix in PDF, not HTML.

Several location groups — e.g. "FLAME Stores," "Odyssey," "Operations - North" — are legacy/acquisition-era groupings that may no longer be correct to use. Check the "Used in a Structure?" column before spending time on one, and don't assume every group in the listing is still actively maintained.

Open question. The chart of accounts includes Food Sales GL accounts for Cinnabon and Popeyes in addition to Burger King and Dave's Hot Chicken — confirm with the engagement lead whether this reflects current scope.

Report scheduling

Report packages follow an AC Financials - [Location Group] naming convention. Always move a schedule's start date forward to the intended effective date before saving a change, to avoid Intacct attempting to re-send historical periods.

General Intacct caution

Intacct subledgers: when opening/closing subledgers at period end, double-check you are in the correct subledger (e.g. AP versus GL) before closing. The two selection screens look very similar and this has been flagged as an easy mistake to make.

Open items

Check the "Notes for Mid-Period Meeting" list at the bottom of the close checklist tab for standing open items — e.g. Blue Note Accounting Q1 2026, the POS Prepaid Account follow-up, TD Bank Card automation — before assuming a prior open item has been resolved. See Close checklist.

Review process overview — the general diagnostic order and materiality
Open items and risks — the engagement-level open list
Onboarding a new reviewer