Microsoft Excel is one of the top-ranking spreadsheet programs on the available today. It holds one of the top spots thanks to the extensive list of formulas and functions it can perform as well as the user-friendly nature of the program. Simple and advanced functions combine to create a powerhouse program that works for simple spreadsheets as well as advanced financial documents. There are a number of books and seminars that allow users to learn, or increase, their Microsoft Excel skill set.
Learning on Your Own
If you can learn by reading on your own, there are numerous books on the market that teach the basics of Microsoft Excel. A quick search of Amazon’s website indicated hundreds of books available for purchase. Some books follow the popular Dummies format, Excel 2016 All-in-One for Dummies, while others are more in line with a schoolbook, Microsoft Excel 2016 Step-by-Step. The early chapters are devoted to entry-level Excel formatting, teaching the user how to format cells and the simple functions used to balance a bank account or calculate grades. Those building blocks are essential to the more advanced uses, creating conditional formatting that changes the color of a cell that meets a certain criteria or creating a chart to add visual interest to a spreadsheet. Some books include online access to websites that provide an example spreadsheet to go along with the chapter.
Small Group Learning
If you are someone who needs to learn in a group setting, or you prefer to be able to ask questions to an instructor, There are many companies that offer business-centred courses in different levels of Microsoft Excel that might meet your needs. One day seminars start with the basics of Excel and take the learner through a variety of examples that can relate to different industries. A benefit to taking a course with a Microsoft training company is learner can skip the basic levels, if necessary, and move on the either intermediate or advanced levels or even cater the course to a specific industry.
Hiring a Consultant
If you decide that neither learning on your own nor taking a course is right for you, hiring an Excel consultant is a viable option. Excel consultants work with small to medium-sized businesses and provide expert advice when needed. To find an Excel consultant, seek recommendations from other business owners or networking groups.
The Power of Excel
Microsoft Excel has a variety of uses. Simple functions add columns or rows together to calculate total number of products in inventory or sold as well as the value of each. Excel can maintain a directory of customers on one sheet that shows the account totals that are added from other sheets or workbooks. Every industry can benefit from an experienced Excel user.
Whether you decide to study on your own or take a course with others, a key element to becoming a Master of Microsoft Excel is to use the program as much as possible. Only when you use the program frequently will you start to learn the value of the various formulas and functions.
