Why do so many of us use E
xcel? Everyone at some or other time in their career has to use Excel. Job applications, job descriptions and job prerequisites require Excel. Companies, personal agencies and the like ask for Excel specific skills and or Excel specific skill-sets.
Big organisations, spend a lot of money buying Microsoft licences for Operating System and the Microsoft Office Suite of programs/applications. Professionals develop many of their productivity skill sets in and around Windows tools which is great. Excel however stands out and here are 8 reasons why you need to up your Excel game more than ever. We are firmly in the age of technology and Excel is a big feature.
1. Excel is a universal language
Whatever field you work in Excel is a given. The business world relies on spreadsheets for decision making at all levels. It can be internal, external across borders and continents, Excel is everywhere! Exce
2. Excel is not just a spreadsheet
It is a problem solving tool. It serves all industries from accountants, financial analysts, scientists and a whole heap more. How often do you use it as a traditional spreadsheet? Nothing wrong with that however this is just a fraction of what it is capable of. Have you ever thought about harnessing the awesome power of Excel?
3. Create more time
Time is precious to everyone and cannot be replaced. The better you become at leveraging Excel, the more you will be able to achieve.
Once you start using Excel to solve problems and find solutions you will speed up your daily workload and save hours on tasks. It will free up your own time to help develop your team and you will have more time to improve yourself in other ways.
4. Excel is here to stay
Excel will be around for a very long time. Big companies cannot easily migrate to other spreadsheet software applications, its a very costly exercise. What would be a good alternative? Excel is part of our working culture and is able to integrate with most other applications.
5. Data – Small and Big
Data is facts and statistics collected together for reference or analysis. Data has grown substantially over the past few years and businesses are spending big money on Content Relationship Management (CRM) and database systems. You need to be able to gather data, analyze it and draw an intelligent conclusion that is presentable to decision makers. Data is the backbone of any organization, and your ability to organize, analyze, interpret, and present that data is important.
Data is limitless and present everywhere in the universe. Don’t get left behind
6. Excel is like an analytical sketchpad
Excel is a super professional analyzing tool for storing, organizing and manipulating data. Your ideas on measurements, stock, finance, budgets and all sorts of reporting can be translated into Excel.
7. Value networking
A spreadsheet is full of meaningful data to suit the need and is the best way of networking. Yes you can learn how to use Excel on the job, many jobs don’t want or don’t have time to teach employees. So, if you come in knowing how to proficiently use Excel you’ll save your employer tons of time and be much more marketable as a new hire. You can add a huge amount of value to the business, your peers will notice your Excel abilities.
8. More Excel skills make you more marketable
Excel is a great skill to have on your CV, it represents a huge category of skills. Have you ever wondered whether Excel is worth your time? Are you marketable to a variety of positions? Formulas and functions are the heart of spreadsheets, so your skill with them can help you in many ways.
Pivot Table, VLOOKUP, Macros, VBA, Conditional Formatting, Charting and Filtering…These are far more telling of your ability to an employer then writing Excel. Someone who writes VLOOKUP, Pivot Table, Filtering demonstrates an ability to analyse data and so has eliminated a potential barrier in the mind of the hiring manager reviewing the CV. Simply writing ‘Excel’ on your CV shows you can work with Excel, writing Pivot Table shows you can work with Excel and make it analyse data for you. Excel skills progression correlates well with earnings; the more you improve your Excel skills in a meaningful way to add value in an organisation, the more your earning power goes up.
Conclusion
Excel may not be perfect for all scenarios but it’s incredibly good. As a professional in any organization and if you’re looking for career development then improving your Excel will go a long way to improving your overall offering.