variance-commentary

name	variance-commentary
description	Write flux commentary for P&L and balance-sheet lines over threshold, comparing current period against prior period and budget with drivers explained from underlying activity. Use for month-end close packages and management reporting.
metadata	{"short-description":"Write month-end variance commentary"}

Variance Commentary

Given current-period actuals, prior-period actuals, and budget for the same scope, produce a commentary table.

Threshold

Flag a line for commentary if either condition is true:

• Absolute variance is at or above the firm's materiality threshold.
• The line is on the always-comment list, such as revenue, headcount cost, or cash.

If no threshold is provided, use 5% of the line or a fixed floor if the user supplies one.

For Each Flagged Line

Column	Content
Line	Account or caption
Current / Prior / Budget	The three values
Delta vs prior and Delta vs budget	Amount and percent
Driver	One sentence explaining the movement from underlying activity

A driver explains why, not what. Good: "Cloud spend up $1.2M on incremental GPU reservations for the May launch." Bad: "Cloud spend increased $1.2M, or 18%."

Sourcing the Driver

Inspect the activity behind the line, such as journal-source breakdown, vendor mix, headcount delta, or volume times rate. Use configured GL, ERP, and document tools through interpreter-app tools ... when available.