> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.userlane.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.userlane.com/getting-started/orientation/visibility-assistance-and-intelligence.md).
# Visibility, Assistance, and Intelligence
The three parts of Userlane: Visibility shows which applications are in use, Assistance helps people inside each application, and Intelligence proves what changed.
Userlane is organized into three parts that work as one loop. Visibility measures which applications and AI tools people use across the organization. Assistance acts inside each application, where people get stuck. Intelligence proves what changed, against the starting point captured at launch. A shared platform sits beneath all three.
***
## Visibility
Visibility shows which browser-based applications and AI tools are in use across the organization, and whether they earn their license budget. It works from the browser extension[^1] alone, so it starts as soon as the extension is deployed and needs no content to be built first. Two capabilities make up Visibility.
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#### App Discovery
[App Discovery](/visibility/app-discovery.md) finds which browser-delivered applications and browser-based AI services are in active use, including underused licenses and unapproved tools. It produces the application inventory, license utilization signals, shadow IT detection, and AI service detection.
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#### Portfolio Overview
[Portfolio Overview](/visibility/portfolio-overview.md) is the executive view across the estate. It rolls up every tracked application into one screen and ranks where attention is needed.
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***
## Assistance
[Assistance](/assistance/what-assistance-is.md) helps people inside each application, at the moment they struggle. Instead of sending people to a training session or a help page, it puts guidance, answers, and checks directly on the screen where the work happens. Five capabilities make up Assistance.
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#### The Assistant
[The Assistant](/assistance/the-assistant.md) is an in-app helper that answers questions in the person's own words from the organization's published content, shows where each answer came from, and points to the next step or to support.
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#### In-app guidance
[In-app guidance](/assistance/in-app-guidance.md) walks people through a process step by step using guides, tooltips, and beacons. Use it when the task has a fixed sequence of steps.
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#### Validators
[Validators](/assistance/in-app-guidance/validators.md) check what a person enters in a form field and enforce data standards at the point of entry, so the error is stopped before submission rather than reported afterward. Three modes set how strictly the standard applies.
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#### Contextual Actions
[Contextual Actions](/assistance/in-app-guidance/creating-contextual-actions.md) trigger assistance when a defined condition is met, so help reaches people at the moment they need it.
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#### Announcements
[Announcements](/assistance/change-communication/announcements.md) deliver in-app messages to targeted audiences[^2], so a change reaches people without relying on email or a separate channel.
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***
## Intelligence
Intelligence shows how well each application works for the people using it, and proves what changed. It reads the tasks, validators, and surveys built for each application, so it works alongside Assistance there. Four capabilities make up Intelligence.
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#### HEART Score
The [HEART Score](/intelligence/heart.md) is a single number that shows how well an application is working for the people who use it. It is built from five dimensions: Happiness, Efficiency, Adoption, Risk, and Task Success. The model is standardized and not configurable, which is what makes comparison between applications possible.
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#### Goals
[Goals](/intelligence/goals.md) are time-bound targets tracked against Userlane data, tied to four outcome areas: cost, productivity, risk, and speed. Userlane captures the start value when you create a goal, and the target cannot change afterward.
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#### Tasks and Tags
The measurement definitions that tell Userlane what to watch. A [task](/intelligence/tasks.md) tracks a multi-step workflow and supplies the data the HEART Score reports on. A [tag](/intelligence/tags.md) tracks a single interaction on its own and does not feed the HEART Score.
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#### Surveys
[Surveys](/intelligence/surveys.md) collect feedback directly from users as standard surveys, Net Promoter Score (NPS), and customer satisfaction (CSAT). CSAT responses feed the Happiness dimension.
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***
## How the three connect
The three parts form a loop: measure, act, prove. Visibility shows which applications people use and where usage falls short. Assistance acts inside the applications that need it. Intelligence measures whether that action worked, and its results flow back into Portfolio Overview, so the next decision rests on what actually happened.
In practice, the loop builds on itself. App Discovery shows that a newly rolled-out application has low usage. In-app guidance on the main process produces completion data, which shows where people drop off. Fixing the drop-off point improves the HEART Score, and the score is the evidence that the rollout worked.
The HEART Score reports the results of the activity that Assistance generates.
***
## Relevant articles
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[Orientation](/getting-started/orientation.md)
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{% content-ref url="/pages/BZlabPX8YgDLI4SsmJwj" %}
[A tour of the Userlane portal](/getting-started/a-tour-of-the-userlane-portal.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}
{% content-ref url="/pages/OUb4HG9RxVliztfFeCLm" %}
[What Assistance is](/assistance/what-assistance-is.md)
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{% content-ref url="/pages/lVitXEqBKM8HoK5zj5yq" %}
[What Intelligence measures](/intelligence/what-intelligence-measures.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}
***
## FAQ
What does Visibility include?
Two capabilities: App Discovery and Portfolio Overview. Together they show which browser-based applications and AI tools are in use across the organization and where attention is needed.
What does Assistance include?
Five capabilities: the Assistant, In-app guidance, Validators, Contextual Actions, and announcements. They answer questions, walk people through processes, prevent data entry errors, reach people at the right moment, and communicate changes.
What does Intelligence include?
Four capabilities: the HEART Score, Goals, Tasks and Tags, and Surveys. Together they score how well each application works, track goals, define what gets measured, and collect user feedback.
Can Visibility be used on its own?
Yes. Visibility works from the browser extension alone, so it can run across the organization before anything is built inside individual applications.
Why do Assistance and Intelligence work as a pair?
Intelligence reads the content that Assistance provides in each application, such as tasks, validators, and surveys. Without that content, several HEART dimensions cannot report a score. Assistance without Intelligence has no way to prove its results.
Why does the HEART Score show Input Needed for some dimensions?
The Efficiency, Risk, and Task Success dimensions depend on tasks or validators being set up in the application. Until that content exists, those dimensions cannot report a score and show **Input Needed** instead.
Does Userlane work with desktop applications?
No. Userlane operates in the browser. Desktop applications, native mobile applications, and command-line tools are not visible for measurement or assistance.
[^1]: The browser extension is the Chrome or Edge extension that delivers Userlane and collects usage data from browser-based applications.
[^2]: An audience is a reusable group of end users defined by attribute rules, used to control who sees which content.
---
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