Finance ops · Production
Smartcar's Director of Finance cuts 5+ days from monthly close with Rillet
The problem
Smartcar's sole finance director faced disconnected systems requiring manual reconciliation across platforms, a DSO of ~50 days with no systematic collections process, and no bandwidth for strategic work.
Workflow diagram · grounded in source
1
AI-powered transaction coding
ai_action
“With Rillet handling automated transaction coding, reconciliation, and reporting, the monthly close went from a multi-day manual grind to a process that essentially runs itself”
2
Finance director oversight
human_review
“All I have to do is reconcile accounts and check that the automations are continuing to function as expected”
3
Strategic finance work enabled
output
“Instead of closing the books, I'm spending that time on forecasting, planning, and strategic work with our leadership team”
Reported outcome
After adopting Rillet, 99% of the monthly close is automated, saving 5+ business days per month.
DSO dropped from ~50 to ~30 days, an 80% gross margin pricing framework was established, and an automated 13-week cash flow model now provides weekly leadership visibility.
Reported metrics
Business days saved on month-end close5+ business days
Monthly close automation rate99%
DSO (days sales outstanding)~50 to ~30 days
Gross margin pricing framework80%
Reported stack
RilletQuickBooks
Source
https://www.rillet.com/case-studies/smartcars-director-of-finance-cut-5-days-from-the-teams-monthly-close-as-a-finance-team-of-one
Read source ↗Frequently asked questions
What did this team achieve with this AI workflow?
After adopting Rillet, 99% of the monthly close is automated, saving 5+ business days per month.
What tools did this team use?
Rillet, QuickBooks.
What results were reported?
Business days saved on month-end close: 5+ business days; Monthly close automation rate: 99%; DSO (days sales outstanding): ~50 to ~30 days; Gross margin pricing framework: 80% (source-reported, not independently verified).
How is this finance ops AI workflow structured?
AI-powered transaction coding → Finance director oversight → Strategic finance work enabled.