Wayne Winston - Microsoft Excel 2019 Data Analysis and Business Modeling

Whether you work for a Fortune 500 corporation, a small company, a government agency, or a not-for-profit organization, if youre reading this introduction, the chances are you use Microsoft Excel in your daily work. Your job probably involves summarizing, reporting, and analyzing data. It might also involve building analytic models to help your employer increase profits, reduce costs, or manage operations more efficiently.

Since 1999, Ive taught thousands of analysts at organizations such as Abbott Labs, Booz Allen Hamilton consulting, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Broadcom, Cisco Systems, Deloitte Consulting, Drugstore.com, eBay, Eli Lilly, Ford, General Electric, General Motors, Intel, Microsoft, MGM Hotels, Morgan Stanley, NCR, Owens Corning, Pfizer, Proctor & Gamble, PWC, Sabre, Schlumberger, Tellabs, 3M, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Navy, and Verizon how to use Excel more efficiently and productively in their jobs. Students have often told me that the tools and methods I teach in my classes have saved them hours of time each week and provided them with new and improved approaches for analyzing important business problems.

Ive used the techniques described in this book in my own consulting practice to solve many business problems. For example, I have used Excel to help the Dallas Mavericks and New York Knickerbockers NBA basketball teams evaluate referees, players, and lineups. During the last 20 years, I have also taught Excel business modeling and data analysis classes to MBA students at Indiana Universitys Kelley School of Business, the University of Houstons Bauer College of Business, and the Wake Forest Professional MBA Program. (As proof of my teaching excellence, I have won more than 45 teaching awards and have won the schools overall MBA teaching award six times.) Also, I would like to note that 95 percent of MBA students at Indiana University took my spreadsheet modeling class even though it was an elective.

The book you have in your hands is an attempt to make these successful classes available to everyone. Here is why I think the book will help you learn how to use Excel more effectively:

• The materials have been tested while teaching thousands of analysts working for Fortune 500 corporations and government agencies.

• Ive written the book as though I am talking to the reader. I hope this approach transfers the spirit of a successful classroom environment to the written page.

• I teach by example, which makes concepts easier to master. These examples are constructed to have a real-world feel. Many of the examples are based on questions sent to me by employees of Fortune 500 corporations.

For the most part, I lead you through the approaches I take in Excel to set up and answer a wide range of data analysis and business questions. You can follow along with my explanations by referring to the sample worksheets that accompany each example. However, I have also included template files for the books examples on the companion website (MicrosoftPressStore.com/Excel2019DataAnalysis/downloads). If you want to, you can use these templates to work directly with Excel and complete each example on your own.

Generally, the chapters in this book are short and organized around a single concept. You should be able to master the content of most chapters with at most two hours of study. By looking at the questions that begin each chapter, youll gain an idea about the types of problems youll be able to solve after mastering a chapters topics.

In addition to learning about Excel formulas, you will learn some important math in a painless fashion. For example, youll learn about statistics, forecasting, optimization models, Monte Carlo simulation, inventory modeling, and the mathematics of waiting in line. You will also learn about some recent developments in business thinking, such as real options, customer value, and mathematical pricing models.