Microsoft 365 Copilot for Finance
Build practical Copilot skills for the finance work you do every month.
Work through bank reconciliations, month-end schedules, budgets and management reporting using a realistic Australian business case. Learn how to prepare the work, check the numbers and explain the results using an Excel practice workbook, guided exercises and worked answers.
For accounting and advisory firms and in-house finance teams.
Practical work you can take back to your role
Follow one fictional Australian business through familiar finance tasks. Prepare the output, compare it with the worked answer and identify what needs review before it is used.
| Finance task | What you will work on |
|---|---|
| Bank reconciliation | Prepare a reconciliation workpaper, investigate exceptions and explain the adjusted balance. |
| Month-end close | Build a close checklist and support accrual and prepayment journal proposals. |
| Budgets and cash | Review a driver-based budget, compare scenarios and trace their cash effects. |
| Management reporting | Write evidence-based variance commentary and prepare a short reporting pack. |
| Excel dashboard | Build a finance summary with clear definitions, source references and update checks. |
You will work with source records, calculations and exceptions. Each workflow includes the checks needed to explain your result to a manager, client or reviewer.
Your learning path
Seven modules, with 18 lessons and a final assessment. Time estimates include practice and review.
▸1. Getting started with Copilot in a finance team3 lessons · approximately 25 minutes
Confirm your access and apply practical data-use and review boundaries.
- 1.Accessing Copilot and selecting a finance task
- 2.Checking data access and approved use
- 3.Assigning tasks and retaining professional responsibility
▸2. Bank reconciliation3 lessons · approximately 50 minutes
Complete a reconciliation and an evidence-based exception note.
- 1.Preparing and validating bank and ledger data
- 2.Proposing matches and identifying exceptions
- 3.Completing and documenting the reconciliation
▸3. Month-end close3 lessons · approximately 45 minutes
Prepare a close checklist, journal workings and account review.
- 1.Preparing a month-end checklist
- 2.Preparing accrual and prepayment workings
- 3.Reviewing and explaining account changes
▸4. FP&A: budgets, scenarios and commentary3 lessons · approximately 55 minutes
Review a budget, compare cases and write quantified commentary.
- 1.Building a budget from approved drivers
- 2.Comparing scenarios and cash impacts
- 3.Writing evidence-based variance commentary
▸5. The board pack and management pack3 lessons · approximately 40 minutes
Produce a short management paper, presentation and figure-check register.
- 1.Selecting content for management and board reporting
- 2.Preparing and checking the report and presentation
- 3.Preparing for management and board questions
▸6. Building and maintaining an Excel finance dashboard2 lessons · approximately 35 minutes
Build and test a formula-based Excel finance summary.
- 1.Selecting and defining dashboard measures
- 2.Building and checking the dashboard
▸7. Reviewing and approving AI-assisted finance work1 lesson · approximately 20 minutes
Correct a flawed workpaper and document the release decision.
- 1.Verification, source trails and the pre-send checklist
Final knowledge assessment: 10 questions, approximately 15 minutes. Worked examples and review guidance are included throughout.
Created with a finance professional’s perspective
Angela Shi
Founder & CEO, Empathetic AI · Former fintech CFO · Finance educator
Angela brings more than 15 years of experience across financial services and FinTech, alongside her work developing AI applications and teaching business and finance professionals.
This course reflects the questions finance teams need to answer in practice: what can Copilot help prepare, what evidence supports the result, and what must be checked before the work is issued?
Developed by Empathetic AI, an Australian AI company working at the intersection of finance expertise, practical implementation and education.
Designed for your starting point
This course is for you if…
- ✓You work in accounting, finance or business advisory.
- ✓You use Excel and understand basic accounting and reporting.
- ✓You want practical experience applying Copilot to recurring finance tasks.
- ✓You need a method for checking and explaining AI-assisted work.
What you need
- ✓A computer with Excel for the workbook exercises.
- ✓An approved work Copilot setup for the functions you want to practise.
- ✓Word or PowerPoint, or equivalent document tools, for the reporting activity.
- ✓Time to complete the exercises and review the answers.
No previous Copilot experience or coding is required. This is not an introductory accounting or Excel course. Microsoft subscriptions are purchased separately.
Before you enrol
▸Do I need previous AI experience?
No previous Copilot experience is required. You should be comfortable with basic Excel and familiar with accounting and financial reporting. The course introduces the Copilot steps and provides worked answers to check your understanding.
▸Do I need a paid Copilot licence?
The course fee does not include a Microsoft subscription. For full participation, you need an approved work setup that supports the relevant Copilot functions. File analysis, in-app Excel editing and Word or PowerPoint features can have different access requirements. The lessons provide manual alternatives where a function is unavailable. Check your access with your IT or subscription manager before enrolling.
▸How is the course delivered?
Self-paced written lessons, a downloadable Excel practice workbook, guided exercises, reusable prompts and worked answers. Allow approximately 4 hours 45 minutes to read, practise and complete the assessment. Completion time varies with your experience and access. The course does not require live attendance.
▸Will I need to upload confidential financial information?
No. The exercises use fictional Australian business records. You can practise the methods without uploading client, employee or company information.
▸Is this suitable for in-house finance teams?
Yes. The work covers recurring tasks in accounting and advisory firms and in-house teams: reconciliations, close workpapers, planning, variance analysis and management reporting.
▸What will I receive after completing the course?
Complete the course and pass the final assessment with at least 80% (8 correct answers out of 10) to receive your EAI Academy certificate of completion. You can share your certificate on LinkedIn.
▸How long will I have access?
The course is sold with lifetime access, as described in the Academy’s terms. You can return to the lessons and materials after completing the assessment. See the terms for the scope of access and applicable conditions.
▸Can my employer enrol a team?
Yes. The Academy offers team enrolment and pricing. Use the team-pricing link to review the current options for your organisation.
▸Where can I find the refund terms?
The Academy’s terms, refunds and privacy page explains the applicable policy. Review those terms before completing your purchase.
Terms, refunds and privacy · Team pricing · Contact the Academy
Put Copilot to work on familiar finance tasks.
Build your skills through guided exercises, completed examples and practical review checks you can return to in your role.
A$649 including GST · One-time payment