Finance scenario: Analyze business performance
Download scenario guideAvailable with: Microsoft 365 Copilot for Finance Scenario level:
KPIs impacted
Decision making speed
Profit margin
Value benefit
Increase revenue
Using Copilot to analyze business performance
1. Generate formulas to clean data
Aggregate budget and spend data into an Excel spreadsheet, then use Copilot for guidance on how to standardize the data formatting.
Copilot in Excel
Example prompt: Suggest formulas to standardize the data formatting, including removing trailing spaces and correcting capitalization.
2. Analyze budget variances
Use Copilot for Finance in Excel to streamline the variance analysis process, looking at actuals and budgeted figures.
Copilot in Excel
Copilot for Finance (Preview)
Action: Open Copilot for Finance in Excel and select Analyze variances. Define variance threshold.
3. Review discrepancies
Review the variance analysis summary report for any large or unexpected variances.
Copilot in Excel
Copilot for Finance (Preview)
Action: Review any budget variances using the threshold set in step 2.
4. Report findings
Use Copilot in PowerPoint to accelerate the creation of a presentation summarizing key findings from the variance analysis summary.
Copilot in PowerPoint
Example prompt: Create a presentation from the following variance analysis summary [Paste summary].
5. Distribute findings
Use Copilot in Outlook to draft an email summarizing the variance analysis summary. Attach the PowerPoint and share with stakeholders.
Copilot in Outlook
Example prompt: Draft an email to stakeholders based on the following variance analysis summary.
1Access Copilot at copilot.microsoft.com or the Microsoft Copilot mobile app and set toggle to “Web”.
2Access Business Chat at copilot.microsoft.com or the Microsoft Copilot mobile app and set toggle to “Web”.
3Copilot agents allow Microsoft 365 Copilot to access your company-specific apps. In the past, this would have required an API call to get data from a system of record. The content in this example scenario is for demonstration purposes only. You should evaluate how Copilot aligns with your organization’s business processes, regulatory requirements, and responsible AI principles.
The content in this example scenario is for demonstration purposes only. You should evaluate how Copilot aligns with your organization’s business processes, regulatory requirements, and responsible AI principles.
