Use Case

A hedge fund company that provides services to pooled investment vehicles, high net worth individuals, corporations, foundations, and endowments sought to redesign key back-office functions.

The company had a particular focus on:

  • Stronger processes and controls across the accounting department.
  • Timely and accurate reporting of financial data.
  • Risk mitigation across financial, management, and regulatory reporting.

CrossCountry Consulting was engaged to strategize and execute these cross-functional objectives, with an emphasis on cleaner, more efficient procedures for communicating and automating multi-currency statements between foreign offices and headquarters in Washington D.C.

Our Approach 

Powered by an expert team of accounting, finance, risk management, and technology specialists, CrossCountry collaborated closely with core stakeholders within the client organization to map out the processes, frameworks, and procedures that required varying degrees of transformation.

Through various workstreams, the team was able to identify opportunities for automation, consolidation, and implementation of new software and process optimizations. 

Overall, these efforts entailed:

  • Redesigning the Chart of Accounts.
  • Reducing the accounting close cycle by redesigning existing processes and integrating sub-ledgers.
  • Helping to mitigate risk by implementing new controls.
  • Establishing processes and procedures for foreign offices to provide financial information to headquarters on a timely basis.
  • Eliminating time-consuming manual consolidation of the multiple entities transacting in different currencies through the implementation of an accounting system that allowed for automated multi-currency management and the production of financial statements in base currency.
  • Documenting accounting procedures to retain critical knowledge and train new employees. 

Our Impact 

CrossCountry’s work generated a higher baseline of accountability, accuracy, control, and speed within the organization. With new or optimized systems and processes in place, the client was relieved of labor-intensive accounting processes and was set up with a more robust, accurate financial reporting framework.

These changes also enabled the client to better manage the close cycle and the production of financial statements on an ongoing basis far into the future, as new documentation provided by CrossCountry could be codified, circulated, and engrained in recurring skills development and continuing education.