Variance analysis software computes one thing, budget against actual by line and by department, and everything else it is sold with follows from it: the run rate is the actual to date scaled to the year, spend analysis reports are the variance cut by department, supplier or category, and FP&A automation is the record producing all of them without a spreadsheet. For a small finance team the whole of that is the month-end figure, and this page is about what the software must compute to produce it; the free departmental roll-up sheet on this site works the variance and the run rate from the team's own numbers with no account.
The variance, by line and by department
Year-to-date budget less year-to-date actual, per line, summed per department and rolled up: $10,000 over across three departments at month six on the worked example, with Department A $20,000 over on its own. Variance analysis software that needs the actuals exported from the accounting package is a spreadsheet with a login.
The run rate and spend analysis reports
Actual to date over months elapsed times twelve is the run rate; against the annual budget it is the full-year overrun, $20,000 on the worked example. Spend analysis reports are the same variance cut another way, and the cut is only as good as the line the actual was posted to.
What FP&A automation automates
The posting of actuals against lines and commitments, the roll-up, and the month-end figures; not the judgement about which lines to hold. Opexvo Pro keeps the lines, commitments and actuals against their holders and works the roll-up from them at one flat price; the sheets on this site do the arithmetic free.
Questions people ask about variance analysis software
What does variance analysis software compute?
Budget against actual by line and department, rolled up, and the run rate and full-year overrun that follow; the free roll-up sheet works all of it.
What is a run rate?
Actual to date over the months elapsed, times twelve: $1,220,000 against a $1,200,000 budget on the worked example.
What does FP&A automation automate?
The posting, the roll-up and the month-end figures, from a record of lines, commitments and actuals; not the decisions.