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

Simple example 4/8
Session Links
  • Model the productivity of new employees over a ten-week period
    • One week of classroom/laboratory training
    • One week of supervised checkout activity
    • 3 weeks of 80% productivity
    • 100% productivity thereafter
  • Model the load on trainers per new employee
    • 20% for two weeks
    • 5% for the next three weeks

Demonstration

The worksheet “Example” A class in trainingin the demonstration workbook illustrates this application of Convolution. Strictly speaking, though, this example doesn’t meet the linearity criterion required for convolution to be valid. Specifically, when a “negative hire” occurs — a layoff, firing, or resignation — the contribution to productivity has a somewhat different shape from the shape of a “positive” hire. For a termination, the curve just drops to zero immediately and directly. Thus, when we compute the effects of layoffs, we must use a different shape, and this is the essence of the violation of linearity in this case. But as long as there are no negative hires, we’re OK.

Most business applications of convolution do have this same problem. You can get around it pretty easily by handling negative hires separately, using a separate convolution operation with a separate base response.

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.