Fractional CFOs see this history every month and rarely think of it as an asset. The fractional CFO partner page covers the relationship side; this guide stays on what to inventory before the rollout.
Why a rollout strands intercompany history
Intercompany balances have to agree because consolidation removes them. IFRS 10 requires consolidated financial statements to eliminate in full intragroup assets and liabilities, equity, income, expenses and cash flows relating to transactions between entities of the group. Every month, someone in the group proves the two sides match, and when they do not, records why.
That explanation lives in layers that a rollout rarely moves. Illustrative: a fictional three-entity distributor moves from a legacy ERP holding 2018 to 2025 to a new multi-entity ERP that goes live for 2026. The project loads opening balances and open items, which is all the new ERP needs to run. The six layers that explain past differences stay in the old system:
| Layer | What it explains | Moves in a balance-only load? |
|---|---|---|
| Closed periods | Which entity booked what, and when | No |
| Paired document links | Which invoice matches which bill across entities | No |
| Old entity codes | Which legacy code meant which entity or counterparty | No, often remapped |
| Mapping versions | How accounts and entities were mapped over time | No |
| Reason codes | Why each difference arose, such as timing or goods in transit | No |
| Approvals | Who signed off each correcting entry | No, often in email |
The chart above shows the same split. In this example nobody has written down when the legacy ERP will be retired, which is the first thing a partner should ask about. Without a date, the inventory has no deadline to work back from.
What should be inventoried before a multi-entity ERP rollout affects intercompany reconciliation history?
Record classes, years of coverage, the system that owns each, and the real access deadline. Ask; do not collect.
Rollouts change intercompany history in other ways too. Switching on new intercompany features is not always reversible: NetSuite's setup guidance says elimination subsidiaries are needed first and that Automated Intercompany Management cannot be disabled once enabled. Once it is on, NetSuite documents that elimination entries are generated from flagged lines and that flagged intercompany receivable and payable lines get auto-reversing entries in the next period. That is a cleaner process going forward, and a clear before-and-after line in the history. How lines get flagged matters as well: NetSuite documents that adding an intercompany account to an advanced intercompany journal line sets its Eliminate flag to Yes, while regular journal entries used for intercompany activity do not automatically balance lines to be eliminated. A history that spans both methods should note when the switch happened.
NetSuiteChecklist for the controller, answered yes, no or unknown:
- ☐Which periods and entities will the new ERP hold in full, and which as balances only?
- ☐Is there a written date when the old ERP goes read-only or is retired?
- ☐Will historical intercompany document numbers and counterparty codes survive, or be remapped?
- ☐Where is the entity and account mapping kept, and are earlier versions saved?
- ☐Do reconciliation items and reason codes live in a tool whose subscription may end with the rollout?
- ☐Are approvals for correcting entries in a system, or only in email?
- ☐Do lender, audit or tax obligations set retention periods for any of these records?
Do not suggest keeping anything beyond the company's own retention policy. If no access deadline is documented, record it as unknown rather than inventing urgency. The ERP consolidation after acquisition guide covers the wider migration decisions.
Does the company qualify, and what stays unknown?
The introduced company needs 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded), a documented operating history, rights to license the records and an authorized contact. Companies in the U.S., Canada and the EU qualify, as do companies in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, South Africa, Latin America, the UAE and Saudi Arabia when at least 90% of the data is in English. In a group, note which entities meet these tests; the who qualifies page has the detail.
What stays unknown until SourceX reviews it: SourceX's current data needs for these record classes, the rights review result, which entities can license, any offer and its terms. SourceX licenses approved business data directly from companies for AI training and evaluation, and manages the agreement, rights review, data preparation, delivery and payout. Sign the Channel Partner Agreement before submitting; the first valid introduction within the 90-day window is credited when the company submits a verified application. Due diligence work such as a quality of earnings review often surfaces the same history, and the rewards page explains how payment is sequenced.
Go deeper on intercompany reconciliation
- Intercompany reconciliation exception examples: worked cases showing which records explain how a mismatched transfer was resolved.
- Reconstructing intercompany reconciliation across systems: a system map of the journal references and entity mappings that join both sides of a transfer.
- Who can license intercompany reconciliation records: a short answer on which finance and group roles to introduce.
- Intercompany reconciliation referral brief template: a fill-in template for the one-page introduction.
Next step
Refer a company. Earn up to $100,000. Default reward: 25% of Actual Supplier Payout, capped at $100,000 cumulatively per referred company. Eligibility and payment conditions apply, and a signed Schedule A or addendum can differ. A lead, meeting or signature alone does not trigger payment.
If a client's intercompany history still explains its differences and the old ERP has a written retirement date, register as a partner, check the group against who qualifies, and read the program terms before sending the controller's note to the group CFO.