What's An Excel 'Model'? (AND 5 EXCEL MODEL-BUILDING FORMULAE!)

‘Can you send me the model?!’ It’s a phrase we often hear in organisational life. And, for the Excel analyst, modelling is certainly important. At the same time, however, not all Excel files are models. In fact, only a small subset of Excel files can be accurately described as ‘models’. So, what makes an Excel file a ‘model’? What are the defining features of Excel models, and how might Excel models help us? And, in order to get started, what are the basics of Excel model building?

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Welcome back to Day 13 of 30 Day Excel Analyst – transforming your analytical skillset in 30 days.

After a quick mental teaser to get the cognitive juices flowing, Excel modelling week begins with a conceptual explanation of what an Excel model actually is. It’s a term that’s often misunderstood – many professionals use the word ‘model’ to describe any Excel file, which isn’t technically accurate. An Excel model, in the technical sense, consists of input, process and output and a non-trivial calculation chain. And, it provides insight on a situation to help professionals make decisions. So, if you’re file simple contains data, you don’t necessarily have a model!

With this in mind, we identify some of the principles of Excel modelling, discuss some applications, highlight examples of good practice, and point out things to avoid. Yes – long Excel formulae are a definite no-no, sorry! Planning is so important and solid conceptual understanding allied to effective model layout creates helpful Excel models – and eases stress in the model-building phase. As we’ll see later in the 30 Day Excel Analyst programme, visual tools better built outside of Excel such as input-process-output tables and dependency diagrams can make the difference here.

Though the topic of Excel modelling can seem complicated, particularly to the Excel beginner, most Excel models are built using just a few formulae. In this session, I’ll reveal the ‘Big 5’ Excel formulae I focus on when building Excel models. I’ll share a beginner Excel skills file for you to begin to build confidence with Excel modelling formulae. Welcome back to 30 Day Excel Analyst!

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