Finance Transformation

Finance Function Assessment

A structured, independent review of your finance function — what’s working, what isn’t, and what needs to change.

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What It Is

More than a health check.
A complete picture.

The Finance Function Health Check gives you an instant read on where your finance function stands. The Finance Function Assessment goes deeper — reviewing your documentation, interviewing your team, walking through your processes, and producing a structured findings report with evidence behind every observation.

It is the right engagement when the self-assessment has surfaced real gaps, when the business is preparing for a sale or acquisition, or when leadership needs an independent view of what is actually happening inside the finance function — and what needs to change.

This is not an audit. An audit looks back and reports on compliance. A Finance Function Assessment looks forward — it is a practical, improvement-focused review that works with your team to understand how the function operates, where the real constraints are, and what a better state looks like.

Typically Triggered By

A Finance Function Health Check result that surfaced significant gaps

The self-assessment identified real weaknesses across one or more domains and you want a clear picture of scope and priority before acting.

Preparing the business for sale or acquisition

Whether you are on the buy side assessing a target or preparing your own business for sale, an independent view of the finance function’s current state — and any gaps that need addressing before scrutiny arrives — is a sound investment before the process begins.

A new CFO, Finance Director, or CEO wanting an independent baseline

You have stepped into a new role and want to understand what you have inherited — not just the numbers, but the processes, controls, and team capability behind them.

Recurring issues that haven’t been resolved internally

Month-end is slow, audit findings keep coming back, or the reports aren’t trusted. The team knows something needs to change but hasn’t been able to break the pattern from the inside.

How It Works

Four stages. One coherent view.

The engagement is structured to minimise disruption while getting the depth of information needed to form well-evidenced conclusions.

01
Scoping & Preparation

We agree on the scope, confirm the domains to review, and identify the key stakeholders. You prepare a short document list — trial balance, chart of accounts, close calendar, staffing — that we review ahead of the fieldwork.

02
Fieldwork

Interviews with finance leadership and key process owners. Walkthroughs of core processes. Review of documentation, system configuration, and output. Timed to your pace and mindful of disruption to your team.

03
Analysis & Findings

We consolidate the evidence, identify root causes, and build the findings register. Every observation is anchored in what we observed — not impressions and not performance assessment.

04
Report & Debrief

The findings report is delivered with a structured debrief to walk through the maturity rating, priority findings, and recommended actions. The debrief is a conversation — there is time to discuss, question, and refine before the final report is produced.

What We Assess

Seven domains. One coherent picture.

The assessment covers the components that determine how well the finance function actually operates — not just the numbers it produces.

Chart of Accounts & General Ledger

Whether the chart of accounts is structured to support meaningful reporting, or whether it has grown in ways that create noise and ambiguity in the numbers.

Balance Sheet Integrity

The quality of balance sheet reconciliations, how aged items are managed, and whether leadership can rely on what the balance sheet is telling them.

Month-End Close

The effectiveness of the close process — its consistency, timing, dependencies, and whether the outputs are trusted by those who use them.

Internal Controls

Whether the controls that exist on paper are operating in practice, and whether there are gaps that create financial, compliance, or reputational exposure.

Compliance & Reporting Obligations

The finance function’s ability to meet statutory, regulatory, and tax reporting requirements — on time, with accuracy, and without creating risk.

Team Structure & Capability

Whether the team is structured for the complexity of the business, key person dependencies, and whether capability gaps are creating systemic risk.

Systems & Technology Utilisation

How effectively the business is using its ERP and finance systems — and where manual workarounds are filling gaps that the system should be handling.

What You Receive

A report you can act on.

Every output is structured to be useful beyond the debrief — a working document, not a shelf piece.

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Findings Report

A structured written report covering all observations across the seven domains, with evidence, root cause analysis, and recommended actions for each finding.

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Maturity Rating by Domain

A domain-by-domain maturity rating that gives leadership a clear view of where the finance function stands — and where the most significant gaps are.

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Prioritised Improvement Roadmap

A sequenced set of recommendations that distinguishes quick wins from structural changes — so the business can begin acting on the findings immediately.

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Findings Debrief Session

A structured walkthrough of the report with key stakeholders. Time to discuss, question, and refine conclusions before the final version is produced.

Beyond the Report

We can help you act on what we find.

The assessment is a standalone engagement. But if the findings point to work that needs doing, Waypost can help with that too.

Focused Improvement Work

Targeted remediation of specific findings

Where the assessment identifies a specific gap — a reconciliation process that needs rebuilding, a controls framework that needs designing, a chart of accounts that needs restructuring — we can scope and deliver focused remediation work.

  • Month-end close redesign
  • Internal controls design and documentation
  • Chart of accounts restructuring
  • Balance sheet reconciliation processes
Finance Function Transformation

Broader transformation support

Where the findings indicate systemic issues — a finance function that has not kept pace with the business, or that needs significant structural change, Waypost can support a broader transformation programme.

  • Finance function redesign
  • ERP optimisation and system improvement
  • Audit and year-end readiness
  • Interim finance leadership support

These are separate engagements, scoped after the assessment is complete. The assessment itself carries no obligation to proceed further and we will always tell you if we think a finding is one you can address internally.

The assessment starts with a conversation.

A conversation to understand your situation, confirm the scope, and make sure this is the right engagement for where you are. Approximately 30 minutes.

Book a Discovery Call →

Want to start with the Health Check instead?

Twenty-three questions. Five minutes. Instant results on screen — with a clear picture of what your finance function needs next.

Start the Finance Function Health Check →

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Your Results

Finance Function Health Check

Results by Area

How your five areas scored

Ready to discuss your results?

A short discovery call with Waypost can confirm priorities, scope, and whether a full Finance Assessment is the right next step for your business.

Book a Discovery Call →