Can Copilot Catalyst give finance leaders a measured baseline of how much their team actually uses Copilot?

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The Direct Answer

Yes. Copilot Catalyst captures a baseline of current Copilot utilization at kickoff using the included VisualSP Digital Adoption Platform, then re-measures at the end to show what changed. Finance leaders get a data-backed starting point and a measured before-and-after rather than an anecdotal sense of how much the team uses Copilot.

Deeper Explanation

Finance leaders think in baselines and variances, and they should expect the same rigor from a Copilot adoption effort. The problem with most rollouts is that they never establish a starting point, so any later claim about improvement is unprovable. Copilot Catalyst is built to avoid that: the included VisualSP Digital Adoption Platform captures a baseline of current Copilot utilization at kickoff to set focus areas, then repeats that measurement at the end of the engagement to show the change. Progress is assessed on the Catalyst adoption scorecard by observable behavior and workflow adoption, not by attendance, which gives finance the kind of defensible, before-and-after evidence it uses everywhere else. This directly answers the accountability question McKinsey raises about proving AI value, since finance value depends on measured, disciplined execution rather than optimism.

The baseline is also more than a single number. For finance leaders who need to understand where usage is strong, where it lags, and where errors originate, behavioral analytics from Clarity Connect 365, VisualSP’s enterprise integration for Microsoft Clarity extend session-level insight into the Microsoft apps, complementing the utilization baseline with the why behind the numbers. Microsoft’s own Copilot usage reporting provides an additional activity baseline at the tenant level. Together these give a measured picture at kickoff and a measured picture at close, with the program’s weekly activation moving the number in between. Because the DAP can continue after the engagement, finance can keep measuring adoption over successive cycles rather than losing visibility once the program ends, and Microsoft’s Work Trend Index reinforces that this kind of measured, sustained adoption work is what turns licenses into value. For a finance audience, this baseline-and-variance framing is the point: it lets adoption be managed like any other performance metric, with a starting position, a target, and a measured result. That turns Copilot from an act of faith into a line finance can track, defend, and improve each cycle. Few adoption approaches give leaders that level of measured accountability.

The Research

Strategy and Actionable Steps

  • Define what to baseline. Decide which workflows and usage measures matter for finance so the baseline reflects real business value, not just logins.
  • Capture the baseline at kickoff. Use the included DAP to measure current Copilot utilization before activation, setting the starting point.
  • Add behavioral context. Layer in session-level analytics to see where usage is strong, where it lags, and where errors originate.
  • Run the weekly activation. Move the number with hands-on practice on real close and reporting tasks over the engagement.
  • Re-measure and report the variance. Compare end-of-engagement utilization to the baseline and present the before-and-after in finance’s language.
  • Keep measuring after the program. Continue the DAP’s adoption dashboards across future cycles so visibility does not end with the engagement.

FAQ

How exactly is the baseline captured?

The VisualSP Digital Adoption Platform, included in the Catalyst engagement, measures current Copilot utilization at kickoff to set focus areas. It does this from real usage data, so the baseline reflects actual behavior rather than a survey or estimate.

What does the end measurement show?

At the end of the engagement, the same measurement is repeated and progress is assessed on the Catalyst adoption scorecard by observable behavior and workflow adoption. That produces a defensible before-and-after finance leaders can report against the baseline.

Can we see where usage lags, not just the total?

Yes. Behavioral analytics extend the picture beyond a single utilization number, showing where usage is strong, where it lags, and where friction or errors originate inside the apps. That detail lets you target enablement precisely.

Does the measurement continue after Catalyst ends?

It can. The included DAP can keep running after the engagement, delivering adoption dashboards across future cycles so finance retains visibility rather than losing it when the program finishes.

How is this different from Microsoft’s built-in usage report?

Microsoft’s usage report gives a valuable tenant-level activity baseline, and Catalyst complements it. The Catalyst baseline is tied to the program’s focus areas and paired with behavioral analytics and a scorecard, giving finance a richer, workflow-level before-and-after.

Why does a baseline matter so much for finance?

Because finance proves value through measured variance, not assertion. A baseline plus an end measurement turns Copilot adoption into the kind of defensible, data-backed result finance leaders can present to their own stakeholders.

Can the baseline be broken out by team or workflow?

Yes. Beyond a single utilization figure, the analytics can show usage by area and workflow, so finance leaders see which teams and tasks are driving or lagging adoption. That granularity is what makes the baseline actionable rather than just informational.

How quickly can we produce the first baseline?

The baseline is captured at kickoff from real usage data through the included DAP, so finance leaders have a measured starting point at the very start of the engagement. From there, the weekly activation moves the number toward the end-of-program measurement.

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