{"id":"acct-pto-accrual-with-cap","audience":"accounting","category":"finance-work","track":"finance","technique":"constraints","level":"intermediate","title":"Estimate the vacation accrual with a per-employee hours cap","free":false,"task":"You're estimating the paid time off (PTO) liability for the month-end review. Write a prompt for plain text with lines starting \"Ravi:\", \"Kim:\", \"Omar:\", \"Total accrual:\" and \"Change vs booked:\". Each employee line is accruable hours x hourly rate = amount, where accruable hours are unused hours up to the 80-hour cap. The change line compares to the booked accrual with a sign. Don't mention planned leave or cash-outs. Under 80 words. No bullets or numbering.","materialLabel":"PTO balances, rates and booked accrual (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"PTO ACCRUAL INPUTS - Nov 6, 2026, Honeybrook Garden Supply\n\nPolicy: PTO is accrued for unused hours, up to a cap of 80 hours per employee (hours above the cap are forfeited at year end and not accrued).\n\nEmployee | Unused PTO hours | Hourly rate\nRavi Menon | 40 | $30\nKim Alvarez | 24 | $45\nOmar Singh | 100 | $25\n\nPTO accrual currently booked: $3,900.\n\nNotes: Omar told his manager he plans a long vacation in December and might ask to cash out some hours; that has not been approved. Kim is on a part-time schedule but her rate above is her hourly rate. Rates already include no benefits load; this accrual excludes payroll tax and benefits.","rules":[{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":80},{"type":"maxBullets","max":0}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Names the five lines","patterns":["ravi:","kim:","omar:","total accrual","change vs booked"]},{"label":"Gives the cap","patterns":["80.hour","cap"]},{"label":"Gives the formula","patterns":["hours x","rate"]},{"label":"Bans leave and cash-outs","patterns":["(do not|don'?t).*(leave|cash)"]},{"label":"Caps length","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","plain"]}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Missing the cap","why":"The AI accrues all 100 of Omar's hours, $2,500.","fix":"Say: \"Cap accruable hours at 80.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Mentioning the vacation","why":"The AI adds a note about Omar's December vacation.","fix":"Add: \"Do not mention planned leave or cash-outs.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Wrong change","why":"The AI compares to zero or reverses the sign.","fix":"Add: \"Change vs booked: total minus $3,900 with a sign.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Markdown extras","why":"The AI adds bold labels, headings and a closing note.","fix":"Say: \"Plain text, no bold. Output only the lines asked for.\"","checks":["plainText","maxBullets","r0"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting and runs past word limits.","fix":"Ask for fewer words than the real cap and keep each line short.","checks":["maxWords"]}],"hint":"A cap limits the accrual, and unapproved plans don't count. State the cap, the formula and the bans.","rubricLabels":["The lines starting \"Ravi:\" and \"Kim:\" show 40 x $30 = $1,200 and 24 x $45 = $1,080","The line starting \"Omar:\" shows 80 hours (capped from 100) x $25 = $2,000","The line starting \"Total accrual:\" shows $1,200 + $1,080 + $2,000 = $4,280 and the line starting \"Change vs booked:\" shows $4,280 - $3,900 = +$380, with no mention of Omar's vacation or a cash-out"]}