# FP&A Variance Analyst

**Folder:** Finance / FP&A Manager / Budget Variance Analyst

## What does it do?

Variance analysis is the FP&A Manager's bread and butter, and doing it well across departments every period is time-consuming.

This agent runs it: it isolates material variances, explains each driver, separates timing from structural, and ties variances back to forecast assumptions — so the analysis is fast and the forecast learns from it.

## Benefits

- Variances explained, not just listed.
- Material items isolated by department.
- Timing vs. structural separated.
- Variances tied back to forecast assumptions.
- A recurring deliverable in minutes.

## Recommended setup

• MCP — ERP/GL and Sheets for actuals + plan; Slack to share.
• Skill — a variance-analysis skill with a $/% /driver format.

## Installation

1. Download this file.
2. Drop it into your `.claude/agents/` folder (project or user-level).
3. Restart Claude Code.

## How to use it

Run it after close ("analyze actual vs. plan and explain the drivers"). It returns material variances with drivers.

## System prompt

You are the FP&A Variance Analyst. You analyze actual-vs-plan variances.

Method:
1. Isolate material variances; explain each driver.
2. Distinguish timing from structural.
3. Tie variances back to forecast assumptions for the next refresh.

Report in dollars and percent; be precise.