Month-end close reporting agent: variance analysis and narratives

Build me an agent workflow that helps my finance team run month-end close. It should act as a close reporting copilot that reads our close files, analyzes variances and their supporting documents, drafts grounded finance narratives, tracks gaps and owners, and assembles a review-ready close package.

How I want to use it: I will kick it off from chat (or on a schedule like the third business day of each month) with a short brief that includes the close period, the audience (for example CFO, leadership, or the audit committee), the deliverables I want (variance commentary, leadership update, gap list, review package), the section owners, and any known blockers. Treat that brief as the plan for this run.

Inputs the agent should pull from:

1) Google Drive: list and read files in the close folder I point it at, including Excel and CSV exports, Google Sheets workbooks, PDFs of supporting schedules, and Google Docs with prior period narratives. Use the Drive listing and file content operations, and export Google Sheets and Google Docs to a readable format so it can actually read them.

2) Microsoft SharePoint: same idea for teams that store close files in SharePoint. Let it search the document library, list a folder, and download files.

3) Slack or Microsoft Teams: read the recent history of the finance channel I name so it can pick up context like recent threads about a variance, late journal entries, or known one-time items. It should be able to fetch channel history in Slack and list channel messages in Microsoft Teams.

4) Pasted notes and linked documents the user provides at runtime, treated as additional source material.

What the agent should actually do, each run:

- Map the close: confirm the period, audience, deliverables, owners, and blockers from the brief. If anything important is missing, ask one focused clarifying question before proceeding.

- Analyze variance support: open the variance workbook and the supporting documents, check whether the numbers actually tie to the support, flag spreadsheet risks (broken formulas, hardcodes, unmapped accounts), and check that key metric definitions match prior period.

- Draft a grounded close narrative and a finance leadership update. Every callout has to cite a specific file and tab or section. If support is missing, say so plainly instead of guessing.

- Track gaps: produce a structured list of open items, likely owner, priority, and review risk.

- Assemble a review-ready package: a short executive summary, the variance commentary, the gap list, and links to the underlying files.

Where outputs go:

- Write the close package as a new document in the same Google Drive folder (using the create file from text operation) or upload it to the SharePoint folder.

- Post a short summary plus the gap list to the finance channel in Slack (send a message) or Microsoft Teams (create channel message), with a link to the full package.

Important guardrails: do not invent variance explanations, do not fabricate numbers, and never paraphrase a control or policy without citing the document it came from. If two files disagree, surface the conflict, do not pick a side. Keep tone calm and audit-friendly.

Make the channel, the source folder, the audience, the materiality threshold for callouts, and the deliverable set configurable so the same workflow can run for a startup CFO update or a more formal board-ready package.

Additional information

What does this prompt do?

Pulls the latest close workbooks, trial balance exports, and supporting schedules from Google Drive or SharePoint and reads them in context.
Analyzes variances against budget, forecast, and prior period, with a written read on whether the supporting documents actually back up the numbers.
Drafts grounded close narratives and a leadership-ready commentary that cite the underlying files instead of inventing explanations.
Tracks open gaps, likely owners, review risks, and outstanding questions, and posts the running checklist to your finance channel in Slack or Microsoft Teams.

What do I need to use this?

A Google Drive or Microsoft SharePoint folder where your close files, schedules, and supporting docs live.
A Slack workspace or Microsoft Teams team where the agent can post the close package and pick up context from your finance channel.
A short brief on the close period, audience, deliverables, and the people who own each section.

How can I customize it?

Point the agent at the specific Drive folder, SharePoint library, or set of files you want it to treat as the source of truth for the close.
Change the audience and tone of the narrative, for example a tighter CFO update versus a longer board-ready memo.
Adjust how the agent flags gaps, including which threshold counts as a material variance and how it routes follow-ups to owners.

Frequently asked questions

Does this replace our close checklist or accounting system?

No. It reads the files you already produce during close and helps you analyze, write up, and chase down gaps. Your GL, ERP, and close checklist remain the source of truth.

Will the narrative make up numbers or explanations?

The agent is instructed to ground every claim in the source files you give it. If support is missing for a variance, it flags the gap and asks for the missing document instead of inventing a reason.

Can it work off SharePoint instead of Google Drive?

Yes. You can point it at a SharePoint document library, a Google Drive folder, or both. It will read the close files wherever they live.

Does it post to Slack or Microsoft Teams?

Either. Tell it which channel to use and it will drop the close package summary, the open gap list, and any review risks there for the team.

Can we run it more than once during close?

Yes. Most teams run it on a few key days during close, for example after preliminary numbers, after adjustments, and right before the review meeting, so the narrative and gap list stay current.