Overview

A South African law firm with over 100 timekeepers engaged Emerald Consulting to assist with long-standing balancing issues between their General Ledger and subledgers.

Since go-live, the firm had experienced ongoing differences across key financial areas. Over time, a number of manual interventions were introduced to manage these differences, which increased complexity and reduced visibility into the underlying issues.

Emerald Consulting was brought in to stabilise the environment, restore alignment, and support the firm in establishing sustainable processes going forward.

The Challenge

The firm’s environment reflected several years of accumulated imbalance. Rather than a single issue, the challenges were layered and interconnected:

• Differences between subledgers and GL control accounts
• Historical transactions that had not fully unwound through standard processes
• Increased reliance on manual journals to manage financial positions
• Use of interim or holding accounts to manage unresolved balances
• Limited visibility into when differences first occurred

These approaches had allowed the firm to continue operating, but made it increasingly difficult to trace issues back to their source.

As a result, balancing was no longer a periodic activity but had become a persistent concern

Our Approach

The focus was not on short-term correction, but on restoring integrity to the system. Emerald Consulting approached this in a structured way:

1. Establishing a Clear Baseline

We first identified the current position across subledgers and the GL, quantifying the differences and isolating the affected areas.

2. Time-Based Analysis

Rather than reviewing all data at once, we worked to identify when imbalances first began. This allowed us to narrow the scope and focus on specific periods.

3. Transaction-Level Investigation

We analysed transactions within those periods to understand how postings had behaved, and where expected GL impact had not occurred.

4. Controlled Corrections

Adjustments were made by following standard 3E transaction logic, ensuring that corrections flowed through the system correctly rather than bypassing it.

5. Process Review

Alongside technical correction, we worked with the firm to understand how existing processes had contributed to the issue.

The Outcome

Within approximately 50 hours of focused effort:

• Key subledger and GL balances were brought back into alignment
• Historical differences were identified and addressed at source
• Reliance on manual adjustments was significantly reduced
• Visibility into financial data improved

While the core imbalance was resolved, the work did not end there.

Ongoing Transformation

Balancing is not a one-time fix. Emerald Consulting continues to work with the firm to strengthen internal processes and reduce the risk of future issues.

This includes:

• Reviewing how financial corrections are handled
• Aligning processes with standard 3E behaviour
• Introducing controls around GL postings and reversals
• Supporting finance teams in understanding transaction flow and impact

The focus is on ensuring that balance is maintained as part of daily operations, rather than requiring periodic intervention.