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Compute opex as a percent of revenue with a restated quarter

  • For FP&A and financial analysts
  • You practice Catching mistakes and made-up facts
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Beginner

About this exercise

You're showing the opex ratio trend to the CFO. Write a prompt for plain text with lines starting "Q1:", "Q2:", "Q3:" and "Change Q1 to Q3:". Each quarter line shows opex / revenue = percent to one decimal, with the numbers in $M. Use the restated Q2 opex. The last line is the change in percentage points. Under 60 words. No bullets or numbering. Do not mention the CEO or whether the ratio improved every quarter.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Using first-reported Q2. The AI uses 2.30 and shows 52.3%. Try: Say: "Use the restated Q2 opex of 2.42."
  • Dividing revenue by opex. The AI flips the ratio. Try: Add: "opex / revenue = percent."
  • Echoing the CEO. The AI says the ratio improved every quarter. Try: Add: "Do not comment on the CEO's claim."
  • Markdown extras. The AI adds bold labels, headings and a closing note. Try: Say: "Plain text, no bold. Output only the lines asked for."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs past word limits. Try: Ask for fewer words than the real cap and keep each line short.

What a strong prompt includes

  • Names the four lines
  • Uses restated Q2
  • Gives the formula
  • Skips the CEO claim
  • Caps length

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