{"id":"res-mgr-pto-carryover-four-people","audience":"managers","category":"research","technique":"grounding","title":"Work out PTO carryover for four team members from the policy","free":false,"task":"Four people on your team asked how many unused PTO days will carry into 2027. You want exactly 4 numbered lines in the form \"Name: N days (Sec. X)\", applying the HR memo where it changes the policy, in plain text with nothing else. Use only the policy and memo, and if the documents don't cover someone's situation, write \"Ask HR\" instead of a number.","materialLabel":"PTO policy, HR memo, and your team's balances (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"ALDER & RAINE MARKETING - PTO POLICY (2025 handbook)\nSec. 3.1 Full-time employees may carry over up to 5 unused PTO days into the next calendar year. Days above the cap are forfeited on Dec 31.\nSec. 3.2 Employees in their first 90 days (probation) on Dec 31 may not carry over any PTO.\nSec. 3.3 Part-time employees carry over up to half of the full-time cap, rounded down.\n\n-----\nHR MEMO (Oct 15, 2026, from Nadia Brooks, HR Director):\n\"Starting with the 2026-to-2027 rollover, the full-time carryover cap in Sec. 3.1 rises from 5 days to 10 days. Sec. 3.2 and 3.3 still apply, and part-time caps follow the new full-time cap.\"\n\n-----\nMY TEAM - unused PTO expected on Dec 31, 2026\n- Marcus (full-time, hired 2021): 14 unused days\n- Elena (full-time, hired Nov 10, 2026): 3 unused days\n- Theo (part-time, hired 2023): 8 unused days\n- Grace (full-time, hired 2019, on approved unpaid leave since Sept): 6 unused days","rules":[{"type":"numberedItems","count":4},{"type":"plainText"}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Using the old cap","why":"The handbook says 5 days, and the AI may not apply the memo that raised it to 10.","fix":"Say: \"Apply the Oct 15 memo where it changes the policy.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Forcing a number on every case","why":"The AI treats Grace's leave as a normal case and gives a number the policy never supports.","fix":"Add: \"If the documents don't cover a situation, write Ask HR.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"No line shape","why":"The AI explains each person's math in a paragraph, which is hard to paste into a team message.","fix":"Show it: \"Format: Name: N days (Sec. X).\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Not saying how many","why":"The AI decides the length itself and usually returns more lines, one per person than you can use.","fix":"Be exact: \"exactly 4 numbered lines, one per person.\"","checks":["numberedItems"]},{"title":"Getting markdown back","why":"AI defaults to bold labels and headings, which show up as stray symbols in a team message.","fix":"Ask for \"plain text, no bold, no headings.\"","checks":["plainText"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Applies the memo","patterns":["memo","10 days","oct(ober)?\\.? 15","new cap"]},{"label":"Says what to do when it's not covered","patterns":["ask hr","not covered","doesn't cover","does not cover","(don't|do not) guess"]},{"label":"Gives the line shape","patterns":["name:","n days","sec\\.? ?x","format"]},{"label":"Says exactly how many","patterns":["\\b(4|four)\\b.{0,25}(line|person|people)","exactly \\d+"]},{"label":"Asks for plain text","patterns":["plain","no bold","no markdown","no formatting","no headings"]}],"hint":"Rules plus a later change plus an odd case is where AI gets sloppy. Tell it which document wins, what to do with uncovered cases, and the exact line shape.","rubricLabels":["Marcus carries over 10 days (the memo's new cap, not 5), and Theo carries over 5 days (half of the new 10-day cap; not 2)","Elena carries over 0 days because she is still in her first 90 days (Sec. 3.2), and Grace's line says Ask HR (unpaid leave isn't covered) rather than a number","Outputs only the 4 lines in the 'Name: N days (Sec. X)' form with a section reference on each numeric line: no intro, no explanation paragraphs, no advice"]}