{"id":"ind-fin-vendor-setup-checklist","audience":"finance","category":"planning","technique":"grounding","title":"Turn a controller's email into a vendor setup checklist","free":false,"task":"You're in accounts payable, setting up a new vendor. Turn the controller's email into exactly 5 numbered steps in the order she gives, each in the form \"Step - who does it\", each step under 12 words, plain text, under 80 words. Use the updated approval threshold, and leave out the parts of her email that aren't steps. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.","materialLabel":"The controller's email (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"FROM: Odette Laurent, Controller - Pinewood Builders (fictional)\nSUBJECT: New vendor setup - how we do it now\n\nHi AP team,\n\nFor every new vendor, first get a W-9 through the secure vendor portal (AP does this). Then AP checks the vendor's name and tax ID against the IRS TIN matching tool. Once that passes, the requesting manager confirms in writing what we're buying and the expected annual spend.\n\nIf expected annual spend is over $5,000, I need to approve before setup. Actually, correction: the board raised that threshold to $10,000 in October, so only vendors over $10,000 need my approval.\n\nAfter that, AP enters the vendor in the system, and a second AP person reviews the bank details by calling the vendor at a phone number from their website (never the number on the invoice).\n\nBackground: we had a fake-vendor scam attempt last year, which is why the call-back step exists. Also, please clean up the old vendor list when you have time.\n\nThanks,\nOdette","rules":[{"type":"numberedItems","count":5},{"type":"maxWords","max":80},{"type":"plainText"}],"mistakes":[{"title":"No fixed shape","why":"The AI rewrites the email as a policy doc with headings.","fix":"Be exact: \"Exactly 5 numbered lines: Step - who does it.\"","checks":["numberedItems","plainText"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting. Ask for \"under 80 words\" and it often lands well over.","fix":"Cap each part instead: \"each step under 12 words.\"","checks":["maxWords"]},{"title":"Losing order or owners","why":"The AI reorders steps or drops who does each one.","fix":"Add: \"Keep her order and end each step with who does it.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Using the old threshold","why":"$5,000 appears first; the correction follows in the same paragraph.","fix":"Add: \"Approval needed only over $10,000.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Adding non-steps","why":"The AI turns the vendor list cleanup into a step.","fix":"Add: \"Only the setup steps.\"","checks":["r2"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Sets the number of steps","patterns":["\\b(5|five)\\b.{0,20}steps?"]},{"label":"Uses the new threshold","patterns":["10,?000","correct","threshold"]},{"label":"Names who does each step","patterns":["who (does|owns)","owner","step - who"]},{"label":"Leaves out non-steps","patterns":["only (the )?steps","skip","cleanup","background"]},{"label":"Sets a word limit","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","word (limit|count)"]}],"hint":"Process emails mix steps with background. Tell the AI how many steps, who does each, and which threshold is current.","rubricLabels":["The 5 steps in order are: get the W-9 through the secure portal (AP), check name and tax ID with IRS TIN matching (AP), manager confirms purchase and expected annual spend in writing (requesting manager), controller approval if expected spend is over $10,000 (controller), AP enters the vendor and a second AP person verifies bank details by calling a number from the vendor's website","The approval threshold is $10,000 (never $5,000)","Each line follows 'Step - who does it', and the background about the scam and the old vendor list cleanup are not included as steps"]}