Budget Variance Explainer

Difficulty: Beginner | Time to implement: 15 min | Saves you: ~1 hr/week Tools: ChatGPT / Claude

This template turns a budget-versus-actuals export into a plain-language variance report: which numbers moved, which ones actually matter, whether each is a one-time blip or a structural shift, and what to do about it. It's for every owner and manager who dutifully pulls the monthly report, stares at two columns of numbers, thinks "revenue down, ads up, I guess that's fine?" and closes the tab — the review that happens in name only, until a small structural drift has compounded into a real problem three quarters later.