Complete budgeting and forecasting workflow covering annual budgets, departmental budgets, rolling forecasts, and variance analysis. Delivers documented budgets with approval trails.
This skill provides a structured workflow for comprehensive budget development using the budget-planner agent.
The budget creation workflow follows 6 phases:
| Phase | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Planning | Define budget scope, methodology, timeline |
| 2 | Assumption Development | Document all budget assumptions |
| 3 | Line Item Build | Build detailed budget by line item |
| 4 | Consolidation | Consolidate and review totals |
| 5 | Approval | Obtain required approvals |
| 6 | Documentation | Finalize with version control |
MANDATORY: Define budget parameters before building
| Question | Purpose |
|---|---|
| What is the budget period? | Sets time scope |
| What methodology will be used? | Incremental vs ZBB |
| Who are the budget owners? | Establishes accountability |
| What is the timeline? | Sets deadlines |
| What are the constraints? | Defines boundaries |
| Method | When to Use | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
| Incremental | Stable operations | Prior year + adjustments |
| Zero-Based | Cost reduction | Every item justified |
| Driver-Based | Scalable operations | Tied to activity drivers |
| Top-Down | Corporate targets | Allocate from total |
| Bottom-Up | Department input | Aggregate from detail |
If ANY of these are unclear, STOP and ask:
MANDATORY: Document ALL assumptions before building
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Revenue | Growth rate, pricing, volume |
| Headcount | Hiring plan, attrition, merit |
| Inflation | General inflation, specific items |
| Timing | Seasonality, project timing |
| Strategic | Initiatives, investments |
| Element | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Assumption statement | Clear, specific description |
| Value | Quantified assumption |
| Rationale | Why this assumption |
| Owner | Who owns this assumption |
| Sensitivity | Impact if wrong |
| Rationalization | Why It's WRONG | Required Action |
|---|---|---|
| "Same as last year" | Each budget is independent | RE-EVALUATE assumption |
| "Industry standard" | Industry varies | CITE specific basis |
| "Conservative estimate" | Conservative needs quantification | DEFINE conservatism |
Dispatch to specialist with full context
Task tool:
subagent_type: "ring:budget-planner"
model: "opus"
prompt: |
Build budget per these specifications:
**Period**: [budget period]
**Type**: [annual/departmental/project]
**Methodology**: [from Phase 1]
**Assumptions**:
[From Phase 2]
**Constraints**:
[Any targets or limitations]
**Prior Period Reference**:
[Attach prior budget/actuals]
**Required Output**:
- Line item detail with owners
- Assumption linkage for each item
- Variance to prior period
- Monthly/quarterly phasing
| Element | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Budget Summary | High-level totals |
| Line Item Detail | Every line with owner |
| Assumptions | Linked to line items |
| Phasing | Monthly or quarterly |
| Variance | To prior period/target |
| Version | Version number and date |
MANDATORY: Review consolidated budget for reasonableness
| Check | Validation |
|---|---|
| Math accuracy | All totals foot and cross-foot |
| Assumption consistency | No conflicting assumptions |
| Intercompany | Eliminations if applicable |
| Completeness | All departments included |
| Test | Validation |
|---|---|
| YoY change | Explainable variance |
| Margin trends | Consistent with strategy |
| Headcount | Reconciles to HR plan |
| CapEx | Within investment guidelines |
MANDATORY: Document all approvals
| Level | Approver | Documentation |
|---|---|---|
| Department | Department head | Written approval |
| Finance | Controller/CFO | Written approval |
| Executive | CEO | Written approval |
| Board | Board/Committee | Meeting minutes |
| Element | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Approver name | Full name and title |
| Approval date | Specific date |
| Version approved | Version number |
| Conditions | Any conditions or caveats |
MANDATORY: Finalize with full audit trail
| Element | Status |
|---|---|
| All assumptions documented | Required |
| All line items with owners | Required |
| All approvals documented | Required |
| Version control in place | Required |
| Change log complete | Required |
See shared-patterns/execution-report.md for base metrics.
Budget-Specific Metrics:
See shared-patterns/pressure-resistance.md for universal pressures.
| Pressure Type | Request | Agent Response |
|---|---|---|
| "Make the numbers work" | "Budgets must reflect realistic projections. I'll document achievable targets." | |
| "Skip departmental review" | "All budgets require owner sign-off. I'll coordinate with departments." | |
| "Use last year's assumptions" | "Each budget needs fresh assumption validation. I'll re-evaluate all assumptions." | |
| "We need it by EOD" | "Quality cannot be compromised by timeline. I'll document what's achievable." |
See shared-patterns/anti-rationalization.md for universal anti-rationalizations.
| Rationalization | Why It's WRONG | Required Action |
|---|---|---|
| "Just add X% to last year" | Every item needs justification | JUSTIFY each item |
| "Department requested it" | Requests need validation | VALIDATE request basis |
| "We always spend this much" | Historical ≠ justified | JUSTIFY current need |
| "Round number is close enough" | Precision matters | USE calculated amounts |
Upon completion, report:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Duration | Xm Ys |
| Line Items | N |
| Departments | N |
| Assumptions | N documented |
| Approval Status | DRAFT/APPROVED |
| Result | COMPLETE/PARTIAL |
| Indicator | Status |
|---|---|
| All assumptions documented | YES/NO |
| All items have owners | YES/NO |
| All approvals obtained | YES/NO |
| Version control in place | YES/NO |