Excel Functions and Pivot Tables
Geof Hileman, FSA
Kennell & Associates, Inc
June 4, 2012
FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Overview
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Cell Function Extravaganza
Pivot Tables
Miscellaneous Tips & Tricks
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Will not cover VBA
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Excel Cell Functions
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3
IF
Purpose: do two different calculations, depending on the value of
a cell
Syntax: =IF(condition, what to do if it’s true, what to do if it’s
false)
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Can nest up to seven IF statements within a single formula, but
your formula will start to get very confusing
Before Excel 2007, ISERROR(calculation) could be used to return
blanks in case of errors:
IF(ISERROR(calculation),calculation,””)
Excel 2007 introduced IFERROR, which accomplishes the same
thing without typing your calculation twice
IFERROR(calculation,””)
Excel Cell Functions
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Logical Operators
Purpose: through OR/AND/NOT, can simplify formulas and
eliminate intermediate columns
Syntax: =OR(argument 1, argument 2, …) {returns T/F)
=AND(argument 1, argument 2, …) {returns T/F)
=NOT(argument 1) {returns the opposite Boolean}
Can help to simplify a formula (or to prevent maxing out the
number of allowed nested IFs):
IF(arg1, IF(arg2, IF(arg3,”All Are True”,””),””),””)
OR
IF(AND(arg1,arg2,arg3),”All Are True”,””)
Excel Cell Functions
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String Manipulation
Purpose: rearrange strings into more useful data elements
Syntax: Concatenation: “AA” & “BB” = “AABB”
or CONCATENATE(“AA”,”BB”)
MID(text, start, length)
MID(“ABCDE”,3,2) = “CD”
LEFT(text, length) {or RIGHT}
LEFT(“ABCDE”,2) = “AB”
LEN(text)
LEN(“ABCDE”) = 5
Case Converters: LOWER(), UPPER(), PROPER()
Excel Cell Functions
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String Manipulation
FIND(what you’re looking for, what you’re looking in, where to
start looking {default is position 1})
(12/7/1787) Delaware
=FIND(")",A1) =MID(A1,B1+2,LEN(A1)-(B1))
(1/2/1788) Georgia
(6/21/1788) New Hampshire
TRIM(text) returns the same text but without trailing spaces – can
be very useful when doing VLOOKUPs
TEXT(text, format) can convert to different formats
TEXT(4421,”00000”) = “04221)
TEXT(6/4/2012,”mmm dd, yyyy”) = Jun 04, 2012
Excel Cell Functions
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SUMPRODUCT
Purpose: calculate the sum of a series of matched pairs
(or more than pairs)
Syntax: =SUMPRODUCT(list1, list2, … list n)
There is no weighted average function in Excel, so
calculating a SUMPRODUCT and dividing by the sum
of the weights is usually the preferred approach.
Age Group Days/1000 Enrollees
0-1
22
23
2-14
10
140
15-24
23
204
25-34
40
180
35-44
65
175
45-54
74
142
55-64
92
90
Excel Cell Functions
43,961 =B2*C2+B3*C3+B4*C4+B5*C5+B6*C6+B7*C7+B8*C8
43,961 =SUMPRODUCT(B2:B8,C2:C8)
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VLOOKUP/HLOOKUP
Purpose: find a value from a reference table corresponding to an
index value. VLOOKUP (more common) is for vertical tables,
HLOOKUP for horizontal.
Syntax: =VLOOKUP(what you’re looking for, where to look for
it, which column to bring back, is an approximate match ok?)
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Index value always has to be in the first column of the lookup
table
Sometimes data types can get confused and the item you are
searching for needs to be converted such as in
=VLOOKUP(TEXT(B6,0),Sheet2!$A$2:$D$41476,2,FALSE)
If nothing is found, #N/A will be returned.
Excel Cell Functions
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INDEX and MATCH
INDEX and MATCH … the elegant solution to VLOOKUP’s
refusal to look backwards!
INDEX(data range, row number, column number) returns the
value in a specified relative row and column of a block of data
MATCH(value to look for, single column data range where you
expect to find the value, FALSE)
By using MATCH as the second argument within INDEX, you
can mimic VLOOKUP by look in columns to the left of where
you are searching.
=INDEX(full data range, MATCH(what you’re looking for,
column where the index value lives, FALSE), column where the
value you wish to return resides)
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Excel Cell Functions
Rounding Functions
ROUND(number, digits): rounds like you learned in elementary
school – 5 and over get rounded up; 4 and lower are rounded
down
ROUNDDOWN -> always rounds toward zero
ROUNDUP -> always rounds away from zero
INT -> rounds down to the next integer
TRUNC -> rounds to the next integer closest to zero
ODD -> rounds away from zero to the next odd number (or
EVEN)
And more …
Bottom line – Excel will let you round any way you like; just
make sure you’re doing it correctly.
Excel Cell Functions
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SUMIF
Purpose: calculate a sum only where a certain condition
is met
Syntax: =IF(where your conditional data is, the
condition, what you want to sum)
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Year
Quarter
Admissions
2006
1
39
2006
2
36
1
67
2006
3
28
2
66
2006
4
38
3
63
2007
1
28
4
67
2007
2
30
2007
3
35
2007
4
29
Excel Cell Functions
Qtr
COUNTIF works in a similar
=SUMIF($A$2:$A$21,"="&E3,$C$2
manner as SUMIF, but counts the
number of instances. The last
:$C$21)
Admits
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argument is not needed, because
there’s nothing to sum.
COUNTIF can even be used to
count the number of errors in a
column.
Simple replacement for basic
pivot table – less overhead, easier
to fit into a worksheet.
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The INDIRECT Function
Purpose: Use variable text to build a cell function.
- Example of use: data is in different sheets by year (“2009”, “2010”,
“2011”) and a summary table needs to reference each year
individually.
Syntax: =INDIRECT(string representing the cell you wish to
reference)
- Don’t forget the & for concatenation
Example:
- =INDIRECT(H13&"!A1") will return whatever is in cell A1 of the
worksheet named in cell H13 of the current worksheet
- =INDIRECT(“’”&H13&“’!A1") is even safer in case worksheet
name has a space.
Excel Cell Functions
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The OFFSET Function
Purpose: Reference a cell a variable number of cells away from an
index position
Syntax: =OFFSET(where to start, how many rows down to go,
how many columns over to go)
Example:
- One worksheet has data by month (in rows) and you wish for a user
to be able to enter a month number (in cell C3) and return the value
for that month.
- =OFFSET(‘Monthly Data’!A1,C3,0) will return the appropriate
value.
Often paired with INDIRECT for very flexible formulas.
Excel Cell Functions
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TREND
Purpose: Compute a least-squares simple linear regression and
apply result to a forecast
Syntax: =TREND(historical dependents variables, historical
independent variables, future independent variable value)
Example:
=TREND(B1:B5,A1:A5,A6)
Excel Cell Functions
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INFO
The INFO function will return various data about the
environment you’re operating in:
INFO(“directory”) – pathname of current file
INFO(“release”) – current version of MS Excel
INFO(“osversion”) – operating system version
INFO(“system”) – returns “mac” or “pcdos”
INFO(“recalc”) – returns calculation method
- Automatic or Manual
Excel Cell Functions
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Pivot Tables
FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
17
Why Use Pivot Tables?
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Pivot tables are used to provide a simple way to cross-tabulate
large datasets in n dimensions.
Intuitive generation interface makes creating pivot tables very
“point-n-click” friendly
Can easily collapse across unnecessary levels of detail (raw data
are summarized by facility, but unit of analysis is region)
Required elements for a pivot table:
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Data in rectangular format
Field names across the top
No blank columns
Excel Best Practices
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Pivot Table Basics
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To create, select data block and choose INSERT -> Pivot
Table
The “Pivot Table Field List” allows the report to be customized
to your needs.
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In sample file, we can create pivot tables to quickly answer three questions:
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Four elements: Report Filter, Row Labels, Colum Labels, Values
“Defer Layout Update” allows you to completely build the pivot table without
the display refreshing (and the table recalculating)
How many tournaments has each of the French women ranked in the top 100
participated in? Sort by current ranking.
What is the average ranking by country among women in the top 100?
Who are the top players born after 1992? What is their nationality?
When data source changes, need to REFRESH pivot table.
Excel Best Practices
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GETPIVOTDATA
Starting with Excel 2003, when you build a formula referencing a cell
within a pivot table, the formula becomes “non-copyable” …
=GETPIVOTDATA(...)
Easy workaround: type the cell references directly into your formula
(=C4/D4)
Permanent workaround:
- Click in your pivot table, then “PivotTable Tools”, Options,
Options, Generate GetPivotData, Uncheck:
Pivot Tables
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Excel Best Practices
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21
One Million Rows of Data!
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The flagship feature of Excel 2007 (from a data person’s
perspective) was the elimination of the old 64,000 row by 256
column limit.
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New limits are over one million rows and sixteen thousand
columns. That’s 17 billion numbers on each worksheet. Use
them wisely!
New format has made it very easy to overload a workbook with
calculations.
Do not format or reference entire columns.
Hint: for static calculations being applied to many rows of data,
leave the formulas in the first row only, copying values overtop
of the rest of the rows. Just don’t forget that you did.
Excel Best Practices
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Build for the next user
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It is often difficult to recall what you yourself did in building a
spreadsheet; much more challenging to read someone else’s
mind.
Make everyone’s life easier:
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No hard coded values within formulas
Group your assumptions, inputs, outputs (color code the inputs)
Use multiple sheets where appropriate
Hide worksheets with data that the end user doesn’t need
Eliminate “dead DNA”
Name ranges that you use frequently (“trend” is easier to follow
in a formula than ‘2010 Data’!$AB$4)
Avoid highly nested formulas; break complex calculations into
multiple steps
Excel Best Practices
Other Tips
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The “ribbon” has a lot of stuff, but it also uses valuable real
estate. Consider hiding the ribbon (CNTL-F1) and adding a
few items to your “Quick Access Toolbar”.
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You can still use your old keyboard shortcuts (ALT-E-S-V-E?)
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The “Watch Window” – on the “Formulas” ribbon –
is a fun new way to debug your models.
Excel Best Practices