Budget vs. actual
Maps general ledger accounts to departments, calculates budget variances in dollars and percentages, and flags accounts that exceed the variance threshold
How it works
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Upload a completed variance report
The workbook as it was distributed, including the summary, the account detail, and the department roll-up
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Add the source files
The GL actuals export, the approved budget, prior-period actuals, and the account mapping
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Skipper learns the reporting rules
The account-to-department mapping, variance formulas, favorable and unfavorable variance conventions, and account-level thresholds
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Upload the new general ledger export at each close
Skipper rebuilds the report for the new period and reconciles the detail with the summary. Any unmapped account is flagged on the Checks tab
Input files
- gl_actuals_202X-07.xlsx General ledger activity for the period, one row per posting
- approved_budget_202X-07.xlsx The approved budget for the period, by department and account
- prior_month_actuals_202X-06.xlsx Prior-period actuals used for trend analysis
- account_mapping.xlsx Account-to-category mapping, expense owners, and variance thresholds
Output workbook
budget_vs_actual_202X-07.xlsx
- Summary Period totals, with material variances listed first
- Actual Detail Each general ledger line with its category, owner, budget, variance amount and percentage, and status
- Variance Analysis Variances by department and category, with prior-period comparisons
- Checks Reconciliation of detail totals to the summary