Spreadsheet Models for Managers


Getting Access to Spreadsheet Models for Managers


If Spreadsheet Models for Managersyou use Excel to model businesses, business processes, or business transactions, this course will change your life. You’ll learn how to create tools for yourself that will amaze even you. Unrestricted use of this material is available in two ways.

As a stand-alone Web site
It resides on your computer, and you can use it anywhere. No need for Internet access.
At this Web site
If you have access to the Internet whenever you want to view this material, you can purchase on-line access. Unlimited usage. I’m constantly making improvements and you’ll get them as soon as they’re available.

To Order On Line

Order "Spreadsheet Models for Managers, on-line edition, one month" by credit card, for USD 69.95 each, using our secure server, and receive download instructions by return email.
Order "Spreadsheet Models for Managers, on-line edition, three months" by credit card, for USD 199.00 each, using our secure server, and receive download instructions by return email.
Order "Spreadsheet Models for Managers, downloadable hyperbook edition" by credit card, for USD 199.00 each, using our secure server, and receive download instructions by return email.

To Order by Mail

Make your check payable to Chaco Canyon Consulting, for the amount indicated:
  • For the download: USD 199.00
  • For access online for three months: USD 199.00
  • For access online for one month: USD 69.95
And send it to:
Chaco Canyon Consulting
700 Huron Avenue, Suite 19C
Cambridge, MA 02138

To use the course software you’ll need some other applications, which you very probably already have. By placing your order, you’re confirming that you have the software you need, as described on this site.

Spreadsheet Models for Managers

Approaches to modeling temporal response 4/7
Session Links
  • Two approaches to implementing convolution
    • Construct a table, one line for each unit delay
      Two approaches:
      • Hard-wired explicit cell references
      • Computed references
    • Use a macro (called Convolve)
      • You don’t have to write it, it is provided
  • Comparisons of the macro and table approaches:
    • Macro is slower to execute
    • Macro is easier to use
    • Tables use more memory and screen area
    • Tables are more difficult to maintain

There are two basic approaches to implementing convolution. Most people implement it using explicit cell references, not even realizing that what they’re doing is convolution. It’s laborious, fraught with opportunity for error, and difficult to maintain. But in the demonstrations, we’ll show you how it’s done, and perhaps you’ll recognize in it something similar that you’ve done in the past.

The second approach is to use a macro we provide called Convolve. By comparison to the method of explicit cell references, it’s much easier to implement. It executes more slowly, but the most important advantage is that it’s easier to understand, once you understand convolution itself.

By making the investment of understanding convolution, and the investment of learning how to use the macro, you make it easier to deal with all modeling situations that meet the conditions of the previous page.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 27-Apr-2016 04:15:26 EDT

Avoid Unnecessary Spaces in Formulas

The space character, in many cases, doesn’t change the value of a formula. For instance, these two formulas return the same value:

  • =A1 + 2
  • =A1+2

Some people think that well-placed spaces make formulas easier to read. Although that might be true, the practice is both inconvenient and extremely dangerous. More

Keyboard Power Tips

Excel’s online help, and many of the how-to books you can buy, provide long lists of keystroke shortcuts for carrying out specific operations, such as inserting rows, selecting regions, or deleting columns. And they are useful.

But the true power of the keyboard comes not from using these particular commands. Rather, it comes from learning combinations that are useful for particular situations that you encounter frequently.

For instance, there’s no command for deleting the rows that contain the selected cells, but there is a combination:

  • Shift+Space selects the rows that contain the selection.
  • Ctrl+- deletes the now-selected rows.

And so, Shift+Space Ctrl+- deletes the rows containing the selection.

Learning a vast array of keystroke commands is probably less useful than learning the keystroke combinations that do exactly what you need to do most often.