Virtual Controller Service Helps Overcome Accounting Labor Shortage

Global Shop Solutions’ Virtual Controller is a financial consulting service that helps manufacturers complete month-end on time and close an employee gap that could impact their businesses. As the manufacturing industry is experiencing a labor crunch, this service aids companies that may be falling behind in their month-end closing and financial reporting due to a lack of qualified accounting professionals.

 As a provider of ERP software for manufacturers, this solution was a natural development for Global Shop Solutions’ customers. “Virtual Controller helps our customers overcome the loss of experienced accounting employees by producing their monthly statements for them,” says Daniel Carranco, director of continuous improvement for Global Shop Solutions. “Staffed with our most experienced consultants, the service enables users to complete their monthly financials in a timely manner until they can hire or develop qualified accounting professionals to perform this vital process.”

The immediate goal of the Virtual Controller service is to ensure the recommended month-end processing for customers gets completed on time. This involves reconciling accounts receivable and payables to the general ledger, inventory batch processing, inventory reconciliations and more. The Virtual Controller team then analyzes the data to ensure the numbers are correct and generates financial statements and summary reports ranging from income statement results to month-over-month analysis and cost accounting reviews.

Completing month-end on schedule is only half of the Virtual Controller process. Virtual Controller’s consultants also provide training and education to strengthen the ERP skills and financial acuity of manufacturers’ accounting personnel.

“A big part of Virtual Controller consists of helping our customers develop the analytical skills to understand what the numbers are saying and how that impacts their business,” Carranco says. “We teach them how to use the tools within Global Shop Solutions ERP software — such as our Sales Analysis and other Dashboards — to analyze what’s happening from a financial perspective, identify areas for improvement and uncover issues that may need correction.”

As an online service, Virtual Controller provides access to Global Shop Solutions’ most senior consultants without the time or financial burden of having them be on-site. The service can be used on an interim or continuous basis depending on the customer’s needs.

“Our mission is to simplify manufacturing so our customers can continue growing their businesses,” says Dusty Alexander, president and CEO of Global Shop Solutions. “Virtual Controller handles routine financial tasks for customers impacted by the labor shortage and analyzes what the numbers mean so they can make the right decisions for their businesses. It’s a financial game changer for our customers at a time when we all have to do more with less.”