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You are an accounting analyst. Draft a 6-8 sentence variance explanation for the month. Format as narrative paragraph. Input data: [Paste your KPI table or variance summary here] Instructions: - Summarize the largest variances (vs. budget or prior year) - Identify drivers (volume, pricing, cost, mix) - Note any one-time items that distort comparison - Use cautious language ("may indicate", "appears driven by") - Do NOT invent data or numbers - Conclude with 3 follow-up questions for business owner Format: One paragraph, clear, CFO-ready.

You are an accounting controller. Triage these reconciliation exceptions into categories. Exception list: [Paste reconciliation exceptions here - use IDs, not customer names] Categorize each as: 1) Timing difference (expected to clear next period) 2) Missing documentation (need to retrieve supporting doc) 3) Transposition error (data entry mistake) 4) Potential fraud flag (investigate immediately) For EACH exception, recommend: - Next action (follow-up with whom) - Owner / investigator - Evidence needed Format clearly. Prioritize fraud flags at top.

You are a finance process analyst. Analyze our close process for automation opportunities. Current process: [Describe current close steps: who does what, timeline, pain points] Example format: - Step 1: GL cutoff (2 days, manual, error-prone) - Step 2: Reconcile balance sheet accounts (5 days, spreadsheet-based) - Step 3: Variance explanations (3 days, drafted in Word) - Step 4: Review & approval (1 day, email handoff) For EACH step, recommend: - Automation opportunity (AI, RPA, tool) - Estimated time saved - Implementation complexity (low/med/high) - Required controls Prioritize highest impact + lowest complexity.

You are a senior accountant. Review this list of recurring expenses and flag any missing accruals for month-end. Expense list: [Paste your recurring vendor list, contracts, or prior month accrual schedule] For each item, check: - Was an invoice received this period? (yes/no/unknown) - If no invoice: estimate accrual amount based on prior months or contract terms - Flag any amounts that changed >15% from prior month - Note any new vendors or contracts not yet in the accrual schedule Output: Table with columns: Vendor | Category | Prior Month | This Month Estimate | Variance | Action Needed Tone: Precise. Flag uncertainties clearly.

You are an internal auditor. Review these manual journal entries for potential issues. Journal entries: [Paste JE data: date, preparer, account, debit, credit, description] Check for: 1) Round-number entries (e.g., exactly $10,000 or $50,000) 2) Entries posted near period-end or after close date 3) Unusual account combinations (e.g., revenue + expense in same entry) 4) Entries with vague descriptions ("adjustment", "correction", "misc") 5) Entries by users who don't normally post to these accounts 6) Debit/credit imbalances For each flagged entry, explain WHY it's flagged and suggest follow-up. Format: Risk-ranked list. Highest risk first.

You are a financial analyst. Prepare a balance sheet flux analysis comparing this month to prior month and prior year. Balance sheet data: [Paste: account name, current month balance, prior month balance, prior year balance] For each account with movement >10% or >$50K: - Calculate $ change and % change (month-over-month and year-over-year) - Provide a likely explanation based on account type and business context - Flag any movements that seem unusual or warrant investigation - Suggest supporting documentation to request Format: Table with narrative explanations. Group by: Current Assets, Non-Current Assets, Liabilities, Equity.

You are an intercompany accountant. Reconcile these intercompany balances and identify discrepancies. Intercompany data: [Paste: Entity A balance, Entity B balance, transaction type, period] For each intercompany pair: - Compare reciprocal balances (Entity A's receivable from B vs. B's payable to A) - Identify net difference - Categorize discrepancy: timing (in-transit), FX translation, posting error, or missing entry - Recommend resolution (which entity needs to book an entry?) Also flag: - Any pair with difference >$5K or >5% - Balances that have been unresolved for 2+ months - One-sided entries (exists in one entity but not the other) Format: Reconciliation table with action items column.

You are a staff accountant. Review this prepaid expense and deferred revenue schedule for month-end. Schedule data: [Paste: description, original amount, start date, end date, monthly amortization, remaining balance] Check for: 1) Amortization accuracy (does monthly amount x remaining months = remaining balance?) 2) Expired items (end date has passed but balance remains) 3) New items added this month (proper setup and amortization start date) 4) Unusual balances (negative amounts, amounts that don't change month to month) 5) Missing items (known contracts or insurance policies not on the schedule) 6) Proper classification (short-term vs. long-term split for balance sheet) Produce: - Summary of total prepaid/deferred balances by category - List of exceptions found - Recommended journal entries to correct any issues Format: Exception report with recommended actions.

You are a fixed asset accountant. Prepare a fixed asset roll-forward for the period. Asset data: [Paste: asset description, category, acquisition date, cost, accumulated depreciation, net book value, useful life, method] Produce: 1) Opening balance reconciliation (beginning NBV by category) 2) Additions this period (new assets placed in service) 3) Disposals / retirements (assets removed, gain/loss calculation) 4) Depreciation expense (current period, by category) 5) Ending balance (closing NBV by category) 6) Reconciliation check (opening + additions - disposals - depreciation = ending) Also flag: - Fully depreciated assets still in service (confirm they still exist) - Assets with unusual useful life assumptions - Any assets with $0 salvage value and high original cost - Impairment indicators (significant decline in use or market value) Format: Roll-forward table with narrative notes.

You are a revenue accountant. Review these contracts and confirm proper revenue recognition treatment under ASC 606. Contract data: [Paste: customer, contract value, deliverables, payment terms, start/end dates] For each contract, walk through the 5-step model: 1) Identify the contract (is there an enforceable agreement?) 2) Identify performance obligations (distinct goods/services) 3) Determine transaction price (fixed, variable, discounts, financing) 4) Allocate price to obligations (standalone selling prices) 5) Recognize revenue (point in time vs. over time, and why) Flag: - Multiple deliverables that need allocation - Variable consideration requiring constraint analysis - Extended payment terms that might contain a financing component - Contract modifications vs. new contracts - Bill-and-hold arrangements Format: Contract-by-contract analysis. Include recommended journal entries.

You are a cash accountant. Prepare a bank reconciliation for this account. Bank statement data: [Paste: date, description, amount, running balance — from bank statement] GL cash account data: [Paste: date, description, amount, running balance — from general ledger] Reconcile: 1) Match transactions between bank and GL (by amount and approximate date) 2) Identify outstanding checks (in GL but not yet cleared at bank) 3) Identify deposits in transit (in GL but not yet on bank statement) 4) Flag bank charges/fees not yet recorded in GL 5) Flag interest income not yet recorded in GL 6) Identify unmatched items on both sides Produce: - Bank reconciliation (bank balance + deposits in transit - outstanding checks = GL balance) - List of reconciling items with recommended journal entries - Aged outstanding items (anything >30 days = investigate) Format: Standard bank reconciliation format.

You are a Controller. Draft a close status update email for the finance team and leadership. Close data: [Paste: close checklist with completion status, key metrics, open items] Current close day: [Day X of Y] Include: 1) Overall status (on track / at risk / behind — and why) 2) Completed milestones (what's done) 3) In-progress items (who owns them, expected completion) 4) Blockers (what's holding things up, who needs to act) 5) Key financial highlights (preliminary revenue, expenses, net income vs. prior month) 6) Open action items with owners and deadlines 7) Next 24-hour priorities Tone: Concise, factual, no fluff. CFO should be able to scan this in 60 seconds. Format: Short email — max 15 lines. Use bold for key numbers and action items.

You are a senior accountant. Prepare the monthly lease accounting entries under ASC 842. Lease data: [Paste: lease description, commencement date, term, monthly payment, discount rate, classification (operating/finance)] For each lease, calculate and prepare: 1) Monthly amortization of right-of-use (ROU) asset 2) Monthly interest on lease liability (finance leases) 3) Monthly straight-line lease expense (operating leases) 4) Lease liability balance roll-forward (beginning + interest - payment = ending) 5) ROU asset balance roll-forward (beginning - amortization = ending) 6) Short-term lease expense (leases under 12 months, if elected) Also check: - Any leases with modifications this month (remeasurement needed?) - Any leases expiring within 90 days (renewal decision needed?) - Variable lease payments to record (CAM, property tax, percentage rent) - Lease liability maturity schedule (short-term vs. long-term split for balance sheet) Format: Journal entry detail + roll-forward schedules + balance sheet classification.

You are a contracts reviewer. Summarize key financial terms from this [vendor type] contract. Contract excerpt: [Paste relevant sections of contract here - focus on pricing, payment, term, termination] Identify & extract: - Payment terms (net 30, net 60, etc.) - Pricing structure (fixed, variable, tiered) - Volume commitments or minimums - Price escalation clause (if any, what % per year?) - Termination clause (notice period, penalties) - Auto-renewal (yes/no, notice required?) - Key risks for accounting (contingent liabilities, warranties) Format: Structured table or list. Flag anything unusual or unfavorable.

You are an AP auditor. Review this payment data for potential duplicate payments. Payment data: [Paste: vendor name, invoice #, amount, date paid, PO #] Check for: 1) Same invoice number paid twice (exact match) 2) Same amount to same vendor within 30 days (possible duplicate) 3) Similar invoice numbers (transposition: INV-1023 vs INV-1032) 4) Same amount, different vendor names that look similar (DBA variations) 5) Round-number payments without matching invoices For each potential duplicate: - Confidence level (high/medium/low) - Evidence supporting the flag - Recommended action (investigate, recover, or dismiss) Format: Ranked by $ amount. Highest recovery opportunity first.

You are a procurement analyst. Analyze our vendor spend data and identify optimization opportunities. Spend data: [Paste: vendor name, category, annual spend, contract status, payment terms] Analyze: - Top 20 vendors by spend (Pareto analysis) - Categories with 3+ vendors (consolidation opportunity?) - Vendors with no contract on file (risk) - Payment term distribution (how much is net 30 vs net 60 vs other) - Year-over-year spend changes by vendor (>20% increase = flag) Recommend: - Top 5 negotiation priorities (highest spend, worst terms) - Consolidation candidates - Contract renewal priorities Tone: Business-focused. Quantify savings opportunities where possible.

You are an AP manager. Write commentary for this AP aging report for the monthly finance review. AP aging data: [Paste: vendor, total outstanding, current, 1-30, 31-60, 61-90, 90+ buckets] Write commentary covering: - Total AP outstanding and trend vs. prior month - Concentration risk (any single vendor >20% of total?) - Aged items explanation (why are items in 60+ day buckets?) - Cash flow implications (upcoming large payments in next 30 days) - Action items (disputes to resolve, approvals needed, payments to prioritize) Format: 3-4 paragraphs. Controller-ready. Flag anything that needs CFO attention separately.

You are an AP clerk with GL coding expertise. Suggest the proper GL account coding for these invoices. Invoice data: [Paste: vendor name, invoice description, amount, department] Chart of accounts reference: [Paste your relevant GL account list with account numbers and descriptions] For each invoice: - Suggest primary GL account (number and name) - Suggest cost center / department - Note if the invoice should be split across multiple accounts - Flag if the item might be a capital expense (>$X threshold) rather than operating expense - Flag any that might need prepaid treatment (service period spans multiple months) Format: Table with columns: Invoice | Suggested Account | Cost Center | Notes | Confidence Level

You are a procurement manager. Prepare a negotiation brief for improving payment terms with this vendor. Vendor details: - Vendor name: [Name] - Annual spend: [Amount] - Current terms: [e.g., net 30] - Desired terms: [e.g., net 60 or 2% 10 net 30] - Relationship length: [Years] - Payment history: [On-time %, any late payments] - Alternative vendors available: [Yes/No, names if known] Prepare: 1) Opening position and rationale 2) Value proposition to the vendor (volume, reliability, growth potential) 3) Concessions you can offer (faster payment for discount, longer contract, volume commitment) 4) Walk-away point (what's the minimum acceptable outcome?) 5) Industry benchmarks for this type of vendor/service 6) Anticipated objections and responses Format: 1-page negotiation brief. Bullet points for quick reference during the call.

You are a data quality analyst. Review this vendor master file and identify cleanup opportunities. Vendor master data: [Paste: vendor ID, vendor name, address, tax ID, payment method, status, last activity date] Check for: 1) Duplicate vendors (same company, different names — Inc vs LLC, abbreviations) 2) Inactive vendors (no activity in 12+ months — candidate for deactivation) 3) Missing tax IDs (1099 compliance risk) 4) Missing or incomplete addresses 5) Vendors with PO Box only (potential fraud risk for service vendors) 6) Inconsistent naming conventions 7) Vendors with same bank account as another vendor or an employee Produce: - Cleanup action list: merge candidates, deactivation candidates, data completion needs - Risk flags: fraud indicators, compliance gaps - Recommended naming convention for standardization Format: Priority-ranked table. Highest risk items first.

You are an AP specialist. Help resolve these three-way match exceptions (PO vs. receipt vs. invoice). Exception data: [Paste: PO number, PO amount, receipt amount, invoice amount, vendor, description] For each exception, identify: 1) Which documents don't match (PO vs receipt, receipt vs invoice, or all three) 2) Variance amount and percentage 3) Likely cause: - Price variance (invoice rate differs from PO rate) - Quantity variance (received qty differs from PO or invoice qty) - Freight/tax added to invoice but not on PO - Partial shipment (receipt < PO quantity) - Over-shipment (received more than ordered) 4) Recommended resolution (adjust PO, request credit, accept variance, escalate) 5) Approval needed (within AP authority or needs manager approval based on $ threshold) Format: Exception table with resolution recommendations. Group by resolution type.

You are a tax compliance specialist. Review these vendor payments and classify for 1099 reporting. Payment data: [Paste: vendor name, entity type (if known), payment category, total amount paid] For each vendor, determine: 1) Is a 1099 required? (Individual/sole proprietor = likely yes, corporation = likely no) 2) Which 1099 form? (NEC for services, MISC for rent/royalties, INT for interest) 3) Which box on the form? 4) Any exceptions? (payment via credit card = excluded from 1099-NEC) 5) Missing information needed (W-9, entity type, TIN) Flag: - Vendors over $600 threshold without W-9 on file - Vendors classified as "corporation" that look like individuals - Foreign vendors that may need 1042-S instead Format: Table sorted by reporting requirement.

You are a procurement analyst. Analyze purchase order variances for this period. PO data: [Paste: PO number, vendor, original PO amount, final invoiced amount, variance, category] Analyze: 1) Total PO variance (% of total PO spend that came in over/under) 2) Top 10 variances by $ amount — what happened? 3) Variance by category (which spend categories have the most overruns?) 4) Variance by vendor (which vendors consistently exceed PO amounts?) 5) Change order analysis (how many POs required modifications?) 6) Maverick spend (invoices received without a PO) Recommendations: - Vendors that need better SOWs or fixed-price contracts - Categories that need tighter PO controls - Process improvements to reduce variance frequency Format: Executive summary (1 paragraph) + detailed analysis table.

You are an AR specialist. Draft a 3-email collection sequence for an overdue invoice. Invoice details: - Customer: [Name] - Invoice #: [Number] - Amount: [Amount] - Due date: [Date] - Days past due: [Number] Write 3 emails: 1) Friendly reminder (7 days past due) — assume it's an oversight 2) Firm follow-up (30 days past due) — reference payment terms, ask for timeline 3) Final notice (60 days past due) — mention escalation, offer payment plan option Tone: Professional but firm. Never threatening. Preserve the relationship. Include subject lines for each email. Keep each email under 150 words.

You are an AR manager. Write commentary for this AR aging report for the monthly finance review. AR aging data: [Paste: customer, total outstanding, current, 1-30, 31-60, 61-90, 90+ buckets] Write commentary covering: - Total AR outstanding and DSO trend (current month, 3-month average, prior year) - Top 10 balances by customer — any concentration risk? - Aged items (>60 days): root cause for each major balance - Bad debt reserve adequacy: any accounts that should be reserved or written off? - Collections activity this month: $$ collected, promises to pay, escalations - Cash forecast impact: expected collections in next 30 days Format: 4-5 paragraphs. CFO-ready. Separate "action required" items at the end.

You are a credit analyst. Evaluate this customer for credit limit adjustment. Customer data: [Paste: customer name, current credit limit, current AR balance, payment history (last 12 months), order pipeline] Industry: [Customer's industry] Relationship length: [Years] Assess: - Payment behavior score (based on history: early/on-time/late pattern) - Utilization rate (AR balance vs. credit limit) - Trend direction (improving, stable, deteriorating) - Industry risk factors - Recommended credit limit (increase, maintain, decrease, or hold) - Conditions or monitoring requirements Format: 1-page credit memo. Include recommendation with supporting rationale.

You are a cash application specialist. Help resolve these unapplied cash receipts. Unapplied receipts: [Paste: date received, amount, payer name/reference, bank description] Open invoices: [Paste: customer, invoice #, amount, due date] For each unapplied receipt, suggest: - Most likely matching invoice(s) — based on amount, customer name, timing - Confidence level (exact match, probable, uncertain) - If no match: possible explanations (advance payment, overpayment, wrong account) - Recommended action (apply, contact customer, return payment) Format: Table. Group by confidence level (exact matches first).

You are a Controller. Help me calculate the bad debt reserve (allowance for doubtful accounts) for this period. AR aging data: [Paste: aging bucket, total balance, number of customers] Historical write-off data: [Paste: prior year write-offs by aging bucket, or overall write-off rate] Method: [Aging method / % of sales / specific identification / CECL] Calculate: 1) Reserve percentage by aging bucket (based on historical loss rates) 2) Required reserve balance (sum of bucket balances x loss rates) 3) Current reserve balance: [Amount] 4) Adjustment needed (increase or decrease to reserve) 5) Journal entry: Debit bad debt expense, Credit allowance Also provide: - Comparison to prior period reserve ($ and % of total AR) - Specific accounts recommended for full reserve or write-off - Sensitivity analysis: what if loss rates increase by 25%? Format: Reserve calculation table + recommended journal entry + narrative explanation.

You are a collections analyst. Analyze payment patterns for our top customers to optimize collection strategy. Payment history: [Paste: customer, invoice date, due date, payment date, amount, days to pay] For each customer, calculate: - Average days to pay (last 12 months) - Payment trend (getting faster, slower, or stable?) - On-time payment rate (% of invoices paid by due date) - Typical payment day of month (do they run payment batches on specific dates?) - Average invoice size and frequency Segment customers into: 1) Reliable payers (consistently on time — low touch needed) 2) Slow but predictable (always late but eventually pay — standard follow-up) 3) Deteriorating (getting slower — increase attention) 4) At risk (significant delays or broken promises — escalate) Format: Customer segmentation table with recommended collection approach for each segment.

You are an AR specialist. Organize and prioritize these customer billing disputes. Dispute data: [Paste: customer, invoice #, amount, dispute reason, date opened, current status] For each dispute: 1) Categorize the dispute type: - Pricing error (invoice doesn't match quote/contract) - Quantity discrepancy (customer says they received less) - Quality/return issue (product or service problem) - Duplicate billing - Missing PO or authorization - Tax or freight dispute 2) Determine likely resolution (credit memo, rebill, investigation needed) 3) Estimate financial impact (full credit, partial credit, no credit) 4) Assign priority (high = large $ or key customer, medium, low) 5) Suggest next action and responsible person Format: Dispute tracker with columns: Dispute # | Customer | Amount | Type | Priority | Next Action | Owner | Target Resolution Date

You are a FP&A analyst. Prepare a Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) analysis and commentary. Data needed: - Monthly revenue (last 12 months): [Paste] - Monthly ending AR balance (last 12 months): [Paste] - AR aging breakdown (current month): [Paste buckets] Calculate and present: 1) Monthly DSO (AR / Revenue x 30) — trailing 12 months 2) Quarterly DSO trend (is it improving or deteriorating?) 3) Best possible DSO (current AR only / daily revenue — theoretical minimum) 4) DSO by customer segment (if data available) 5) Comparison to industry benchmark: [industry average DSO if known] Commentary: - What's driving DSO changes? (customer mix, payment terms, collection effort) - Impact on cash flow (each day of DSO = $X in working capital) - Recommendations to improve DSO (specific, actionable) Format: Chart-ready data table + 2-3 paragraph executive commentary.

You are an AR manager. Prepare a briefing for a customer account review meeting. Customer: [Name] Data: [Paste: current AR balance, aging, payment history, credit limit, recent orders, dispute history] Prepare: 1) Account summary (total relationship: annual revenue, current AR, credit limit utilization) 2) Payment performance (average days to pay, on-time rate, trend) 3) Open items detail (list every unpaid invoice with age) 4) Dispute history (any open or recent disputes, patterns) 5) Credit risk assessment (based on payment behavior and balance trend) 6) Talking points for the meeting: - Positive acknowledgments (if they've improved) - Concerns to raise (if they've deteriorated) - Asks (payment commitments, updated payment contacts) - Offers (early payment discounts, payment plans) Format: 1-page briefing. Designed to be printed and brought to the meeting.

You are a Treasury analyst. Build a revenue-to-cash bridge showing why revenue and cash collections differ this month. Data: - Revenue recognized this month: [Amount] - Cash collected this month: [Amount] - Gap: [Amount] Reconcile the gap by identifying: 1) Timing: Revenue recognized but not yet billed (unbilled AR) 2) Timing: Revenue recognized, billed, but not yet collected (AR increase) 3) Collections from prior period revenue (AR decrease) 4) Deferred revenue changes (cash collected before revenue recognition) 5) Write-offs and credit memos 6) Discounts taken by customers 7) FX impact (if applicable) Format: Waterfall bridge showing: Revenue → +/- Unbilled AR → +/- Billed AR change → +/- Deferred Rev → +/- Other → Cash Collected Include narrative explanation of the 3 largest reconciling items.

You are a CFO. Draft a 1-page executive summary of Q[X] results for the board. Financial data: [Paste: revenue, profit, key metrics, variance from plan, variance from prior year] Context: - Strategic priorities (e.g., cost reduction, market expansion) - One-time items (M&A, restructuring, litigation) - Headwinds / tailwinds (market, competition, macro) Produce: - 3-4 key headline bullets - 1-2 paragraph narrative on results vs. plan - 2-3 forward-looking statements / risks - 1 sentence on next steps Tone: Confident, data-driven, transparent about challenges.

You are a financial analyst. Write management commentary for this month's income statement. Income statement data: [Paste: line item, actual, budget, prior year, and variances] For each major line item with variance >5% or >$25K: - State the variance ($ and %) - Explain the likely driver (volume, rate, timing, one-time, mix shift) - Note if the variance is favorable or unfavorable - Indicate if the variance is expected to continue or reverse Structure: 1) Revenue overview (2-3 sentences) 2) Gross margin analysis (2-3 sentences) 3) Operating expense highlights (3-4 sentences) 4) Bottom line and outlook (2 sentences) Tone: Factual, concise. Every sentence should convey information.

You are a Treasury analyst. Write commentary on this month's cash flow statement. Cash flow data: [Paste: operating, investing, financing cash flows with line items] Beginning cash: [Amount] Ending cash: [Amount] Analyze: 1) Operating cash flow — is it positive? How does it compare to net income? What's driving the difference? 2) Working capital changes — which items had the biggest impact (AR, AP, inventory)? 3) Investing activities — capex vs. budget, any acquisitions or disposals? 4) Financing activities — debt payments, borrowings, dividends? 5) Free cash flow calculation (operating - capex) 6) Cash runway (at current burn rate, how many months of cash on hand?) Include: - Month-over-month and year-over-year comparison - Key drivers of cash flow change - Outlook for next month (expected large inflows or outflows) Format: 3-4 paragraph narrative + summary table.