# Build a business budget with driver assumptions

An annual or project budget built from clear drivers and assumptions.

- Topic: Finance & Accounting
- Framework: RCTFVV
- Level: Advanced
- Tags: Finance, Analyze, Plan, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/build-a-business-budget-with-driver-assumptions

## Prompt

```text
Role: Act as an FP&A analyst building a driver-based annual budget.

Context: Entity / cost centre: [ENTITY]. Prior-year actuals and current run-rate: [PRIOR_ACTUALS]. Business plan inputs (volume, headcount, pricing, initiatives): [PLAN_INPUTS]. Known cost drivers and their rates: [COST_DRIVERS]. Constraints / targets from leadership: [TARGETS]. Chart of accounts structure: [COA].

Task: Produce: the driver tree linking business inputs to P&L lines; an assumptions log (each assumption, its value, source, and owner); the build sequence (which lines to model first and dependencies); the key sensitivities to test; and the review checkpoints before submission.

Format: Sections: Driver tree | Assumptions log (table) | Build sequence | Sensitivities | Review checkpoints. ~450 words.

Verification: Flag every assumption without a named source or owner, and any P&L line not connected to a driver. Do not invent rates - mark [INPUT NEEDED].

Validation: Sanity-check the implied totals against prior-year run-rate: are the growth/cost movements explainable by the plan inputs? Flag any line that jumps without a reason.
```

## What to fill in

- ENTITY
- PRIOR_ACTUALS
- PLAN_INPUTS
- COST_DRIVERS
- TARGETS
- COA
- INPUT NEEDED

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.