Explain the numbers to the business owner

Accountant · Time: 15 min · Finance

Tools that fit this task

• ChatGPT $20/mo
• Claude $20/mo
• Copilot in Word $20/mo
• Gemini in Google Docs $14/mo

Prompt

Role: you are a financial controller writing a short explanation for a business owner.
Context: period {{period}}. Key numbers: revenue {{amount}} (plan {{amount}}), costs {{amount}} (plan {{amount}}), margin {{percent}}%, cash balance {{amount}}. Main variances: {{line item, amount, scale}}, {{line item, amount, scale}}, {{line item, amount, scale}}.
Task: write the explanation in this structure: 1) What changed, two or three sentences. 2) Where the risks are, three points. 3) Recommended actions, three points with deadlines. Take numbers only from this block. Where the cause of a variance is needed, write [CAUSE, confirm] instead of guessing.
Format: business tone, up to 200 words, no long dashes and no filler phrases.

Steps

1. Write out the block of key numbers: period, revenue, costs, margin, the three main variances with their scale, cash balance
2. Give the assistant only this block with a prompt for an explanation in a strict structure
3. Get the text: what changed, where the risks are, what actions to take, with markers where a cause is needed
4. Replace the markers with real causes you have confirmed and check every number against the block
5. Ask it to cut the text by a third and remove generic phrases
6. Add a title, the date and your name, and reread it through the owner's eyes: is it clear within a minute

How to check the result

The text is under 200 words, every number matches the source, every variance has a confirmed cause, and after reading the owner asks about decisions rather than numbers

Pitfalls

• The model invents plausible causes for variances: without a [CAUSE, confirm] marker in the prompt you cannot tell inventions from facts
• Numbers in the draft are sometimes rounded or have a flipped sign, so check each one against the source

Data that stays out of public AI tools

• Employee names, tax IDs, dates of birth and salaries: into a public service only as [Employee 1] and [amount]
• Account numbers, tax numbers and counterparty names from bank statements and the trial balance: banking and trade secrets, replace them with codes C1, C2
• Digital signature keys and passwords to online banking or the taxpayer portal: never, anywhere

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AI tools for accountants · Prompt: Explain the numbers to the business owner