1. Brad Yundt byundt@alum.mit.edu
Excel Basics
Brad Yundt

2. Important Features of Excel
Useful Functions
COUNTIF, COUNTIFS, SUMIF, SUMIFS
Data manipulation
Data importing & conditioning
Text to Columns
Sorting
Filtering
Grouping, Subtotaling
What if analysis
Data Table
Goal Seek, Solver
Visualization
Conditional Formatting
Charts
Pivot Tables
Macro recording & editing

3. Excel Proficiency (self test)
Novice
OK with Data Entry tasks.
Novices formulas: SUM, IF, AVERAGE, COUNT, ROUND
Intermediate
Comfortable building formulas to manipulate text and dates
This category includes most users who claim to know Excel very well.
Intermediate Formulas: SUMIF, COUNTIF, VLOOKUP, CHOOSE, MID
Advanced
Knows what array formulas are and how to use them.
Can create and modify macros with or without the macro recorder.
Advanced Formulas: SUMPRODUCT, INDIRECT, INDEX, MATCH, OFFSET
Expert
Can build add-ins for distribution and widespread use.
If you can think it, they can build it with Excel.
Expert Formulas: A true expert knows the strengths & weaknesses of every single function
Guru
Probably just a handful of them in the world.
If you're an Expert, you probably know their names.

4. Condition Imported Data
Web or mainframe data may not fall into neat columns when pasted into Excel
Data...Text to Columns menu item is primary tool for splitting data into columns
Dates and numbers are stored as text
Copy a blank cell, select the data and Paste Special...Add
Use the CLEAN function to remove non-printing characters
Use SUBSTITUTE to remove specific characters. Nest formula.
Use TRIM to remove leading and trailing spaces

5. Counting & Summing with Criteria
SUMIF, COUNTIF, SUMIFS and COUNTIFS
Critieria are case insensitive—CIGNA vs. cigna.
Only the used cells will be searched. This makes these functions much more efficient than SUMPRODUCT or array formulas.
Wildcard characters in the criteria.
? matches any single character
* matches 0 or more characters
Tricks with criteria
Concatenate operators with a cell value in the criteria
Put the date in a cell, use the DATE or DATEVALUE function, or else preface a string with two minus signs

6. SUMPRODUCT & Array Formulas
Array formulas have array arguments where normally a single value would be used
Embedded IF function
Boolean expression
Array formulas avoid need for helper columns
Control + Shift + Enter
Array formulas are surrounded by curly braces { }
SUMPRODUCT uses Boolean expressions, but does not need to be array-entered
Less important now because of COUNTIFS & SUMIFS

7. Filtering
AutoFilters provide both filtering and sorting functionality.
Tables inherit AutoFilters on each column
Custom filter, which affords some simple logic to the filtering.
Auxiliary column formulas can determine whether the row should be hidden or displayed by the filter.

8. Sorting The Data...Sort menu item sorts one or more columns
Options button allows sorting horizontally as well
You may sort in numerical or alphabetical order
You may also sort according to a Custom List
Sorting also possible using AutoFilter, Table, or PivotTable
Auxiliary column formulas can determine how the row should be sorted

9. Conditional Formatting
Change appearance of cells based on the values they contain
Display a bar graph (data fill) proportional to cell value compared to other cells
Add a highlight color to cells containing an unusual value
Change formatting based on the results of a formula
Formula should return TRUE or FALSE. TRUE is 1, FALSE is 0
May have more than one conditional format, either singly or in combination
Absolute and Relative addressing

10. Charting Many chart types possible. Choose wisely!
Scatter chart vs. Line chart
Bar & Column charts
Eschew 3D and pie charts
Text on a chart can be linked to a cell via a formula
Trend lines can also show equation & R-squared
Microsoft changed charting in Excel No macro recording (restored in Excel 2010)
Improved discoverability with Excel 2013 chart wizard

11. Data Tables
One-variable and two-variable data tables perform repetitive calculations.
Better to think of them as taking one or two direct inputs
Many input/many output problems using indirect inputs in a lookup table
Underutilized way of performing repetitive calculations
Especially useful when the "calculation engine" is complex
Details & formulas need be defined only once
Calculation engine may include worksheet formulas and VBA functions
Can be integrated with Solver

12. Goal Seek & Solver Goal Seek Solver
Drive one target cell towards a specific value
Change only one cell in model
Solver
Drive one target cell to a minimum, maximum or specific value
Change one or more cells in model
May add constraints like integer, binary, non-negative
Optional install of Solver add-in
Solver.com for tech support

13. Grouping & Subtotals Group sorted data by one or more fields
At each change in value, one or more fields in each group will be counted, summed, etc. using the SUBTOTAL function.
SUBTOTAL can also be used to find the mininum, maximum, average, variance of the group
SUBTOTAL functions 1 through 11 will ignore values hidden by a filter
SUBTOTAL functions 101 through 111 will ignore values hidden either by a filter or by manual user action

14. PivotTables
PivotTables summarize numeric data, typically by count or sum
Examine different alternatives with slicers or making dropdown selections
Raw data must be normalized
Each column must have a header label
Use either a Table or a dynamic named range as the source for your PivotTable
Formatting changes to PivotTable get overwritten after Refresh. Don’t fight it!

15. VBA Code Subs do things (e.g. formatting or data manipulation)
Functions return values
VBA code is readable, even by people with little experience
Need to display Developer menu
“Disable all macros with notification”
ALT + F11 toggles between VBA Editor and worksheet
ALT + F8 displays macro selector
May record a macro (sub)
Good way to learn objects, methods and properties
After editing, a recorded macro can be reused in future