{"id":"fpa-capex-opex-talk-track-facilities","audience":"managers","category":"finance-work","track":"finance","level":"beginner","technique":"audience","title":"Explain capex vs opex to your team using the new threshold","free":false,"task":"You manage facilities and have 60 seconds at the team huddle to explain which planned purchases finance treats as capex. Write a talk track under 130 words in plain text that classifies all 5 items using the current per-item threshold. Don't use the words \"depreciation\" or \"amortization\", and end with exactly: \"Finance makes the final call, so flag anything you're unsure about.\"","materialLabel":"Source material (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"From: Dee Okafor (Facilities lead)\nSubject: FY27 asks\n\nPlanned purchases for next year:\n1. 12 ergonomic chairs at $450 each ($5,400 total)\n2. Replace the rooftop HVAC unit: $38,000\n3. Janitorial contract renewal: $24,000 per year\n4. 20 laptops for the front desk team at $1,400 each ($28,000 total)\n5. Room booking software: $9,000 per year subscription\n\nFinance policy excerpt (effective Jan 1, 2026):\n\"An item is capitalized when a single unit costs $5,000 or more and is expected to last more than one year. All other spending is expensed as incurred.\"\n\nOlder wiki page (2023): \"Capitalize anything over $2,500.\"\n\nDee's note: \"Can we just bundle the chairs so they count as capex?\" ","rules":[{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":130}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Judging by order totals","why":"The AI sees $5,400 and $28,000 and calls chairs and laptops capex.","fix":"Add: \"Apply the $5,000 threshold per single unit, not per order.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Accounting jargon","why":"The AI explains capex with depreciation, which loses a facilities team in seconds.","fix":"Say: \"Explain it without the words depreciation or amortization.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"No clear close","why":"The AI ends with a generic summary instead of the line you need the team to remember.","fix":"Give the exact closing line in your prompt.","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Forgetting where it goes","why":"AI adds bold and headings, which show up as ** and # clutter in email and chat.","fix":"Add: \"Plain text only, no bold, no headings.\"","checks":["plainText"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting and usually runs long on finance write-ups.","fix":"Cap each part instead: \"each line under 15 words\" so the total stays well under 130.","checks":["maxWords"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Says who's listening","patterns":["team","huddle","facilities","non-finance"]},{"label":"Uses the per-unit rule","patterns":["per (single )?(unit|item)","5,?000","current"]},{"label":"Bans jargon","patterns":["depreciation","jargon","amortization"]},{"label":"Gives the closing line","patterns":["end with","final call","closing"]},{"label":"Sets a length limit","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","word (limit|count)","under \\d+"]}],"hint":"Your team isn't in finance. Tell the AI how the threshold applies and which words to avoid.","rubricLabels":["Only the HVAC unit is called capex; the chairs and laptops are called opex because each single unit is under $5,000 (not judged by order totals or the old $2,500 rule)","Doesn't use the words \"depreciation\" or \"amortization\"","Ends with exactly: \"Finance makes the final call, so flag anything you're unsure about.\""]}