# Break down my results into the business drivers behind them

Builds a driver tree from your results, sizes how much each driver contributed to the change, and names which ones to act on.

- Topic: Data & Analysis
- Framework: Few-Shot
- Level: Advanced
- Tags: Finance, Plan, Explain & Teach, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/break-down-my-results-into-the-business-drivers-behind-them

## Prompt

```text
Help me find the key business drivers behind these results.

**The result I'm explaining:** [METRIC and change - e.g. "Q3 revenue up 4% vs. plan of 9%"]
**Data:** [PASTE the numbers - by period, product, region, channel, customer segment]
**Comparison point:** [last period / same period last year / plan / target]
**What people think is driving it:** [CURRENT THEORIES, if any]

Steps:
1. Build a driver tree: break the result into its components (e.g. revenue = customers x orders per customer x average order value; or volume x price x mix). Choose the breakdown that fits my business and say why.
2. Using my data, calculate how much each driver moved and how much of the total change it explains. Show the arithmetic so I can check it. If the data can't split a driver, say so.
3. Separate drivers we control (pricing, headcount, marketing spend, process) from external ones (seasonality, market, one-offs).
4. Test each current theory against the numbers: supported, partly supported, or not supported.
5. Flag anything that looks like a data problem rather than a business change.

Return:
1. A three-sentence answer: what drove the result.
2. The driver tree as an indented list with the change at each node.
3. A table: Driver | Change | Contribution to total | Controllable? | Evidence strength.
4. The 2-3 drivers worth acting on, and the follow-up analysis that would confirm them.

Use only my data. Do not invent figures; where a number is needed but missing, write [NEED: ...]. Treat correlations as leads, not proof of cause.
```

## What to fill in

- METRIC and change - e.g. "Q3 revenue up 4% vs. plan of 9%"
- last period / same period last year / plan / target
- CURRENT THEORIES, if any
- NEED: ...

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