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Having been around the data analysis and visualization field for some time now, I’ve found some great resources and materials that I would like to share here.
Peltier Technical Services (PTS)
Jon Peltier at PTS has gone to great lengths to create very useful utilities (add-ins) that help increase efficiency and let people do their jobs better versus having to figure out Excel workarounds. Jon offers an unconditional 90 day guarantee and is very responsive. Below you will see three utilities that I use and I would like to let you know about. Click on each utility to learn more about its features.
If you have been around board meetings or have been using Excel for some time, I’m sure you have seen a Waterfall chart. A Waterfall chart is one of the most effective ways to display a company’s profits. The Excel workaround to get a properly displayed Waterfall chart can be very tricky and not straightforward. Jon’s waterfall utility creates the chart using your data without having to manipulate it. In my opinion this is one type of chart that can be impressive to a superior or take a presentation to the next level.
I’m not quite sure why Excel never included Box and Whisker charts, but not to worry because this utility does the heavy lifting for you. The Box and Whisker chart is so powerful because it shows 5 important pieces of data for each category; max, min, lower quartile (Q1), middle quartile (median or Q2) and upper quartile (Q3). No longer will you have to rely on the average or mean to tell the story.
With the Dot Plot chart add-in you will be able to turn your line chart on its side. Also, this add-in will let you put non-numeric labels on the y-axis to quickly and easily create great looking and impressive charts.
There are a few other utilities that Jon has created and can be found by clicking the image above (Marimekko Chart, Cluster Stack Column Chart and Cascade Chart)
Chandoo – Pointy Haired Dilbert
Chandoo, an Excel MVP, has created a simple to follow and understand guide to learning many of the essential Excel formulas. This workbook contains 75 of the most frequently used formulas that are explained in plain wording. If you are new to Excel, want to brush up on some rusty formulas or want to learn some new ways to look at data, buy this e-book today.
Charley Kyd – Excel User
Charley Kyd, an Excel MVP, has an excellent collection of e-books on Excel. This e-book kit below teaches you how to create your own Excel dashboard reports, starting from scratch. Learn how to create mini-charts, how to use Excel’s Camera tool, how to set up Excel databases, and a lot more. The Dashboard Reporting with Excel e-book along with many others Charlie has to offer is an essential part of any advanced Excel user’s library.
Microcharts by Bonavista is a great tool for creating professional dashboards in Excel. This add-in includes the ability to create sparklines, bullet graphs and in-cell charts within Excel.
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