Case Study: California Academy of Sciences achieves real-time analytics and streamlined reporting with Workday Adaptive Planning

Nonprofit Museum Displays Data Solidarity Using Adaptive Insights

The California Academy of Sciences, a San Francisco–based nonprofit housing an aquarium, planetarium and natural history museum, needed better visibility into exhibits, programs, ticketing, memberships and donors. Its on‑premises financial planning system had limited reporting, required IT/SQL writers for reports, and used complex tools that discouraged nonfinancial managers from accessing the data they needed.

By adopting the cloud‑based Workday Adaptive Planning platform, the finance team created a single, intuitive hub for data contribution and self‑reporting. Managers across the organization now access real‑time analytics, produce timely senior‑level reports without SQL support, and the improved data solidarity shifted strategic planning back to finance, generating positive user feedback.

California Academy of Sciences

Stacy Robson

Director of Finance