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Variance analysis
Variance analysis
Explaining the difference between actual and plan by breaking it into causes — price, volume, mix, cost, timing — rather than just reporting the gap.
Owned by: AnalystTest band: Analyst
In practice
A good variance note is one sentence: what moved, by how much, why, and whether it repeats. "Revenue −$40k: two enterprise deals slipped to Q3, both still expected."
The kind of thing the test asks
- The best one-line variance explanation is…
- Gross margin fell from 42% to 38%. Which decomposition is most useful?
More in variance analysis
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