ist

IST 3110 – Fall 2020

Spreadsheets

Overview:

You are the Budget Analyst for a small company. One of you primary tasks is to carefully monitor expenses to ensure you do not spend more than allocated/budgeted by the top management.

Requirements:

Your manager has asked you to generate a report using the following criteria:

1) Develop a table using the information provided in Attachment 1 (do not forget columns for rent and insurance).

2) Utilize cell arithmetic.

3) Provide totals for each expense category (e.g., salary) and for each month.

4) Calculate the following:

a) Average of the actual expenses incurred for each expenses category.

b) Estimate to Complete (ETC). This is the amount you are forecasting will be spent for each of the expense categories for the remainder of the year. (Use the monthly average times the number of remaining months except for the insurance and rent payments)

c) Estimate at Completion (EAC) – total actual expenses plus the ETC from b) above.

d) Difference between the budget (attachment 1) and your EAC for each expense category and the total budget.

5) Generate a pie chart based on the differences for each category (e.g., Salary, Supplies, etc.). Include the following in the chart:

a) Chart Title as “Difference Comparison”.

b) Data Labels as a percentage and including the category name.

6) Generate a report to your supervisor indicating your findings. Include the following:

a) Introduction explaining why you have decided to perform this analysis.

b) Methodology utilized.

c) Findings of your analysis. Develop a single table that shows all calculations. Provide a narrative of the significant differences between the budget and EAC.

d) Recommendations. Suggest a course of action that should be taken in order to ensure that the established budget is not exceeded.

What to Turn In?

1) Your written report to your supervisor with charts embedded into the text to support your findings.

2) Your spreadsheet file.

The grade will be based on completion of the requirements stated above and your recommendation to meet the organizational goal of not exceeding your budget.

Both files must be title with your name in the filename (ex: Mosher Tool 1) and be submitted as indicated in the course schedule.

Attachment 1

· Monthly rent for the office is $3,125

· Insurance is $195 (per month) for the first 4 months and goes up to $225 in May

Annual Budget Information:

Amount %

Salaries 160,000 62.4

Supplies 12,000 4.7

Phone 3,200 1.2

Utilities 6,000 2.3

Travel 15,000 5.9

Training 8,000 3.1

Rent 38,000 14.8

Insurance 2,200 0.9

Advertising 12,000 4.7