Office automation is a general term that describes the different types of

computer systems and software that are used to collect digitally, store,
transfer, alter and utilize office information to execute tasks. In essence, office
automation helps to manage data.

Office automation allows data to move without human intervention. Since

humans are left out of the equation, there is no risk of manual error. What
once began with a typewriter has evolved into a myriad of automation and
electronic tools that have changed how people work.

Office Automation: The Basics

There are a lot of different aspects of office automation, but they can be easily
divided into the following categories:

 Information storage: This includes the recording of information, like forms,

documents, files, images and spreadsheets. Information storage generally
exists in formats of word processors or spreadsheets, but it can also be more
sophisticated like records in a CMS or automation software tool like SolveXia.

 Data exchange: Systems allow for the real-time exchange of information,

such as fax machines or emails. Automation software tools also fit into this
category as you can easily share information and send reports between
people.

 Data management: Office automation must also be easily manageable

between different parties and relevant information. As such, office automation
systems can handle short-term and long-term data, including financial plans,
marketing expenditures, inventory management, etc.

Types of Office Automation Tools :

1. Finance and Budgeting

2. Recruitment
3. Cloud Infrastructure Automation
4. Security
5. Task/Project Management
6. Procurement
 7. SaaS Management
8. Back-office Automation
9. Front desk Automation
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[Link] and Reporting
[Link] Workforce
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Over Automation

Types of Office Automation Tools :

Finance and Budgeting

Budgeting automation tools provide you with forward-thinking and planning

on financial matters with more transparency.

It weighs out every available resource with an integrated business planning

approach. An automation tool crunches your database and serves you with
business insights for strategic and functional planning.

With a proper automation tool, your organization’s finance department can

establish and layout your long- and short-term flexible financial goals
adequately.

Some budgeting, planning, and forecasting automation solutions are:

1. Float
2. FreshBooks
3. PlanGuru
4. Scoro
5. Xero

Recruitment

Automation in the HR department provides faster and accurate talent

recognition and recruits without any biases. You can automate job opening
posts and evaluate available candidates.
It furthermore, upholds your reputation and unlocks a rich talent pool while
creating a favorable candidate experience.

Depending upon the requirement, an automation tool may also consist of a

candidate tracking and assessment system. It would even help in improved
relationship management with applicants and interview scheduling.

5 office automation tools to help you with recruitment and selection process:

1. Beamery
2. HireHive
3. Indeed
4. Recruiterbox
5. Zoho Recruit

Also Read: 7 Ways to Improve the Recruitment and Selection Process

Cloud Infrastructure Automation

Having a sound cloud infrastructure automation system reduces toil and

operational costs.

Even before the cloud migration, all of your system and network needs to be
perfectly aligned to its configurational needs.

You can free up your resources and time by automating the provisioning and
configuration of any type of cloud infrastructure, followed by proper
management.

1. Ansible
2. Appcore
3. AWS CloudFormation
4. Kubernetes
5. Puppet

Security

Securing your data from cyber-attacks, as well as any internal threats, is

essential to protect any crucial information from abuse.
So, to protect your office credentials and other data from malicious insiders
and outsiders, it would be a wise decision to invest in a sound security
system for the office.

The vast data accumulated by a company can become a major security

threat if left unattended.

With a security automation tool on hands, your security analysts do not need
to perform any repetitive, time-consuming actions, and thus can contribute
their time on strategical, value-adding tasks.

Any type of negligence or vulnerabilities from employees or contractors

becomes easily traceable and helps address the issue on time.

Automation removes any possibility of a human error. It furthermore

determines the security action needed to be taken for any problems in the
office workflow.

1. Duo
2. Intruder
3. Kali Linux
4. SolarWinds Security Event Manager
5. Splunk

Task/Project Management

The distribution of work and resources and the perfect skill sets necessary
for a particular task becomes an added time hoarding event, for the
managers.

Automation evaluates, manages, and optimizes the procedures before and

even during the process. Task automation provides automated workflow data
capture and better work collaboration add-ons.
These tools analyze the available metadata and determine a straightforward
solution to the current business processes. It also reports on how the team is
performing on their individually assigned jobs.

1. ClickUp
2. Flow
3. com
4. Trello
5. Zapier

Also Read: Top 5 IFTTT Apps That Could Boost Your Business

Procurement

Procurement automation frees your employees of redundant tasks and puts

them to work that matches their skill set.

It balances the staffing costs while providing transparency, a sufficient

amount of time for strategic tasks, streamlines spend management, healthy
supplier relationships while looking out for any possible improvements
rigorously.

1. Coupa
2. e-Procure
3. Precoro
4. Procurify
5. Tradogram

SaaS Management

On average, a small-sized company uses 20 to 30 Software as a Service

product.

With the growth of the company, the number of SaaS applications grows too.

This SaaS adoption requires real-time visibility and analysis across the
organization, and that is done through automation.
The SaaS app management automation reports on the overall usage and
work done through those applications.

1. Torii
2. Blissfully
3. BetterCloud
4. Alpin
5. CloudExchange

Back-office Automation

Back-office automation tools provide better storage and documents access

to the teams.

These tools deal with a variety of office operations simultaneously; data

manipulation, exchange, and management while saving them time and
resources.

5 Best Back-Office Automation includes:

1. Another Monday
2. Automation Anywhere
3. Blue Prism
4. Linx
5. UiPath

Front desk Automation

Applying some modern changes in the long-rooted traditional practices

reacts like a catalyst to your office workflow.

Now, it has become an indispensable part of customer relationship

management to automate their interactions.

Front desk automation supports a variety of processes. The capabilities of

every front-office automation tool or software solution thus vary accordingly.
It may also include additional automation facilities for help-desk and call-
center management, salesforce, product configuration, and countless other
operations.

1. Envoy
2. LobbyGuard
3. Sine
4. SwipedOn
5. Welkio

Communication

Employee, team, project, or client – all of them are inter-dependant in an

organization.

For a constant flow of communication and collaboration, it’s crucial to have a

trustable uncomplicated inter-connected networking facility. It helps in
supervision and organization all the communication needs and ticketing
facilities.

Create a digital workplace environment that provides services like- NAS

device access integration and distribution, Social Intranet, private and group
chat rooms, discussion forum, Issue ticketing, and tracking, and audio and
video conferencing.

1. 8×8
2. Slack
3. Uberconference
4. Workplace
5. Yarooms

Facilities

Employ technology for general facility offerings and management for

employees – like correct lighting, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air-
conditioning), office inventory needs, and physical security.
You need a simple, robust automation software that is adaptive to build a
productive and comfortable office environment successfully.

1. Azzier
2. Corrigo CMMS
3. FMX
4. Hippo
5. Stockpile

Analytics and Reporting

Automation tools help gather insights on teams and ongoing or upcoming

processes and provides an easy way to monitor overall process flow.

Reporting software analyses provide useful information from the

accumulated database for proper decision making and visualization.

It also includes business intelligence, application performance, and

enterprise reporting

1. Zoho Analytics
2. Tableau
3. Answer rocket
4. SAP Crystal
5. Izenda Reports

Remote Workforce

Office workplace mobility has now become an essential aspect of an

organization and employee needs.

Once the office remote automation is completed, companies are ready to

reap its advantages in multiple ways; decreased operational costs, lower
absenteeism and stress levels, low carbon footprint, and reportedly
efficiency boost of up to 30%.

1. BaseCamp
2. Google Drive
3. KissFlow
4. ProofHub
 5. Zapier

eSignature Solution

An e-signature tool helps the organization with legally binding e-signatures

and signed user documents. These software and tools help you in appending
required signatures digitally.

Electronic signature tools help keep track and record any changes done after
sealing in the document. It prevents files and critical information from any
unauthentic manipulations.

This speeds up the process with high transparency and security—this way,
each individual has easy access to their contracts and another
documentation status.

1. Adobe Sign
2. DocuSign
3. HelloSign
4. Secured Signing
5. SignEasy

Over Automation
It’s important to know what automation tools you require, rather than what is
readily available in the market.

As much as automation is needed, it’s crucial to figure out what really needs
to be automated and what not. Learn to differentiate between strategic tools
and the strength of the human workforce.

Over-automation is not an option. For example, take considerations from a

customer standpoint. Create touchpoints for human supervision and
intervention. Sometimes fully automating processes is not a viable option.
 Opening and Closing Documents

Word automatically starts with a blank page. For opening a new file, click on
"New".

 To close a document, click "X" in the upper right corner of window.

Opening the document

To open an already existing document, follow the below steps.

 Click on the "File → Open".

 From the window opened, select a file you want to open and double click
on it or just right-click and select "open".
 Shortcut key is Ctrl + O.
Save and Save As
After finishing our work, we must save the document permanently, as it is useful
for future reference.

 As RAM is a temporary storage memory, we must save our file on the hard
disk.
 To save a document, go to "File" menu and select "Save" option
 Shortcut key is "Ctrl + S".
 Then the file gets saved under a default name.
Save As option is used to rename a file.

 If you want to save your document in another location with same or

different name, you can use "Save As" option.
 The shortcut key for Save As is "F12".
 To use Save As option in a document, follow the below steps −
o Go to File menu
o Click Save As
o Select the drive where you want to save the document.
o Then type any Name in the File Name box at the bottom of dialog
box.
o Then click Save option.
To Insert a Picture in Microsoft Word
Document
Microsoft Word is a software tool that allows us to create document files like
articles, office letters, projects files, and many more in a very simple and
easy manner. MS Word makes our document more attractive as compare to
paper or file work by providing different features like it has different size of
pages, fonts, colors, design, bullets, tables, chart, page borders/numbers,
and many more.
It also provides various features like editing, texting, formatting, graphics
designs, fonts color, and styles, inserting images, videos, printing
documents, etc.
This MS Word software saves our article/letters in a form of document and
saves it in the computer forever. Whenever it is required it can be shared or
can access the document.

Features of MS Word
1. Images: MS Word provides inserting of various images in our document.
2. Videos: We can insert videos in our document
3. Fonts Styles: It has a wide range of font styles for our text.
4. Colors: It also has different types of colors to make our document more
attractive.
5. Page number and size: You can set the size of the page of your
document
6. WordArt: It provides various writing styles for our documents.
7. Tables: Tables in MS Word are used to represent data in Tabular form
8. Graph and Charts: These are used to represent statistical data
9. Animations and Designs: MS Word allows the creation of Animations
and designs as per user needs
10. Page border/color: MS Word allows adding borders and colors to
pages.

Adding Pictures in MS Word

Adding pictures in our document is a very good way to have an interaction

with our audience. Images increase the understanding level to extremely
high. By the help of pictures, we can convey our messages, thoughts, ideas
in a very simple and a beautiful way. Pictures attract the audience to
understand our topic very easily.
MS Word has a feature that allows us to insert an image or picture file
directly from our computer into our projects. You’ll be able to edit the pictures
inside and also customize their look. So we should use different types of
pictures in our document.
How to insert pictures from Files in MS Word?
Step 1: Select the insert option from the navigation menu.
Step 2: Now select the picture option as shown:

Step 3: A insert picture from dialog box will open.

There are two ways to insert a picture:

1. This Device – You can insert a picture file from your computer.
2. Online Pictures – You can also insert pictures from online sites.
Step 4: Select this device option as shown:
Step 5: A insert picture dialog box will open.

Step 6: Select the drive or folder from the left panel menu where your
pictures are saved as shown:
Step 7: Next select the picture/image you want to insert in your document.
Step 8: Click on the insert option as shown:
Step 9: Now you can set or resize the size of your picture according to your
requirement using the dot button.
Step 10: To give styles to the picture click on the format option from the
navigation menu.

Step 11: Click on drop-down arrow as shown:

Step 12: Select picture style as per your choice.
Finally, pictures/images are added to your document.
Moving Text in Microsoft Word
MS-Word is a word processing application that allows users to use its
advanced feature for editing or creating files and documents in the best way.
It is easy to use and learn. It is also very popular because of the vast
features and tools provided by it to its user.

Moving the Text

Moving a text is one of the many features provided by MS-Word. For

example, a user is writing something(like an article or assignment) and after
completing that document or in the middle of writing, the user realizes that
he/she had written something or typed something, which needs to be placed
somewhere else in the document. Thus, in this situation Moving text is the
feature that comes to be very much handy and will do the work for the user
by moving that text to the place where it is required.
When a text is moved, it means that text is deleted or vanish from the current
place and pasted to the new place(where it is required) in the document. So,
for moving text we will use the “cut” operation and “paste” operation.
So, in this article, we will see how to Move a text, and we will learn it step by
step with the help of instruction and images:
Steps to follow for Moving the text:
Step 1: First open MS-Word on your PC.
Step 2: Now, Open the document or create a new one in which you want to
perform this operation.
Step 3: Now, Select the text you want to move. (For example, here we will
move “Let us learn about MS-word through Geeksforgeeks.”)
Step 4: Now, click on the “home tab“.

Step 5: Now, go to the “Clipboard Section” in the home tab.

Step 6: Now, In the “Clipboard Section“select the “Cut” option. (This will
make the text vanish from that place)

Step 7: Now, Put the cursor where you want the text to be placed.
(anywhere as per your choice)
Step 8: Now, select the “Paste” option from the Clipboard section. (To paste
the text there)

Step 9: So, the Selected text is successfully moved.

Shortcut way:
As for moving text, we have used operations like cut and paste. So there are
shortcut keys for both cut-and-paste operations.
The shortcut key for cut operation is “Ctrl + X” and the shortcut key for
Paste operation is “Ctrl + V”.
Selecting Text in MS Word
Selecting the text is a very common and frequently used operation. It is used
many times and in many ways. For example, If you need to delete text
(Specific or whole paragraph) then you need it to select first. Similarly, In
many operations Selection of the text is the basic operation or minimum
requirement first. So, In this article, we will see how to select the text in
different ways:
 Single-word: For selecting a single word in MS-Word quickly double-click
that word with mouse.
 Line of text: For selecting a line of text, place your cursor at the start of
the line and then press “Shift + down arrow”.
 Paragraph: For selecting a whole paragraph, place your cursor at the
start of the paragraph and then press “Ctrl + Shift + down arrow”.
Now, we will see the above-mentioned ways step-by-step with instructions
and images:
Method 1: For Selecting a Single Word
Steps to follow:
Step 1: First open MS-Word on your PC.
Step 2: Now, Open the document or create a new one in which you want to
perform this operation.

Step 3: Now, for selecting a single word, move the cursor to that word. (Here
we will select the word “Geeksforgeeks”)
Step 4: Now, quickly double-click that word with the mouse.
Step 5: That word is selected successfully. (the selected word is highlighted
in the below image.)
MS Word vs MS Excel – Key Differences
The table given below displays the major differences between MS Word and MS Excel
in a tabulated manner for comparison between the two programs.

Difference Between MS Word and MS Excel

MS Word MS Excel

Definition: MS Word is a word processor Definition: MS Excel is a spreadsheet program where

developed by Microsoft Used to make one can record data in the form of tables.
professional-quality documents, letters, reports,
etc.

File Extension: the file extension for a Microsoft File Extension: The file extension for a Microsoft Excel
Word file is “.doc” file is “.xls”

Uses: Uses:

 Writing letters, essays, documents  Manage complex data like information of staff in
 For a thesis or used by authors an office, list of students in a college, medical
  Creating and updating resumes
 Comprises of simple tools which can be history of patients in a hospital, salary details f
easily used by both, teachers and employees, etc.
students in the field of education
A new document in MS Word is a blank page A new spreadsheet in MS Excel is a tabulated page
where one can add text, images, etc. where rows and columns are given, forming different
cells
MS Excel tables can be inserted in a Word doc MS doc files cannot be inserted in an Excel spreadsheet
It has a feature where grammatical errors are In an Excel spreadsheet, grammatical errors are not
detected and can be corrected detected by itself
Statistical analysis and division of data is complex Filtering and editing od statistical data is simpler and an
important feature of MS Excel
A formula can be written manually but automatic Once a formula is entered in an Excel spreadsheet,
calculations cannot be done automatic calculations can easily be done
Advanced formatting features like WordArt, etc. Limited formatting features are available
are available
Easy and properly formatted print outs can be Print out of spreadsheets can also be taken but the
taken for an MS Word document formatting and line spacing cannot be modified while
printing the sheet

To Insert SmartArt or Creating diagram in

Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word has a special feature called SmartArt in which you can use
different types of SmartArt graphics to convey your ideas and information to
others. In simple words, SmartArt is a visual representation of your thoughts,
communications, and ideas. SmartArt creates a virtual image in our minds so
that we can correlate the topic very easily.
With the help of SmartArt graphics, you can create diagrams that can say so
much more than words alone. You can choose different types of layouts
such as lists, circles, blocks, pyramids, cycles, matrices, charts, Venn
diagrams, etc.
Some examples of SmartArt are:
Steps to Add SmartArt to your document

Step 1: On the navigation menu select the insert option.

Step 2: Now click on the SmartArt option as shown in the figure:

Step 3: A SmartArt dialog box will open where you can choose different
types of SmartArt graphics.
As you see on the left-hand side there is a list of topics for SmartArt.
Step 4: Select the SmartArt of your choice from the left side menu bar as
shown in the figure:
Note: You can also select more SmartArt graphic structures
from [Link].
There are 9 types of SmartArt:
1. List
2. Process
3. Cycle
4. Hierarchy
5. Relationship
6. Matrix
7. Pyramid
8. Picture
9. [Link]
Some SmartArt designs are:
Step 5: Now choose the structure of your SmartArt according to your
requirement as shown in the figure:
Step 6: Next click on the OK option.
Step 7: A rough SmartArt structure is added to your current page. You have
to modify or edit it with the help of text, designs, color, size, etc.
Step 8: Under the design section, select the change color option to change
the color format of your SmartArt as shown in the figure(You can also
change the color manually).
Step 9: Now click on the drop-down arrow to give the style to SmartArt.

Step 10: A menu will open where you can select the style.
Step 11: Now set the size of the SmartArt by simply just drag the button as
shown in the figure:
Step 12: Select the left arrow to enter the text.
Step 13: A type your text here dialog box will open.
Step 14: Enter the text in the textbox.
Step 15: Now close the text box.
Step 16: On the navigation menu select the format option to change the
background color of the SmartArt blocks.

Step 17: Click on the drop-down arrow and select the color from the color
panel.
To make it more beautiful you can change the font style of the text, color,
and many more.
Finally, SmartArt is added to the document.
These are some of the steps to insert or create SmartArt graphics in our
document.

To Find and Replace Text in MS Word

Sometimes it is difficult to look for a certain item from a list of different items
from a document. It might be time taking to look for that word within each line
of the document. To make this process easier, Microsoft provides its users
with a tool called ‘Find’ to search for a specific word.
Example:
Teacher Mrs. Desai got a Word document from her school to verify and
update her information in the document, which has enormous tabular data of
more than 300 teachers. She found it very challenging to see her name. But
then she remembered that it can be quickly done by using the “Find”
function in Microsoft Word. Find function helped her find her information
which was at row number 233.
She checked the data and found that everywhere her middle name was
misspelled, the changes required at 7 places. She applied the “Replace”
function from Microsoft Word. She quickly replaced the incorrect middle
name with the correct one in a fraction of seconds. Great!!! Let us learn how
did she do that?
Following are the steps to find and replace the word in Microsoft Word 2010:
Step 1: Go to the Home tab.

Step 2: Select the Replace option from the Editing category.

Step 3: After clicking on Replace following window will appear

Step 4: Click on the Find Tab

And enter the word or phrase to be searched and click on Find Next. Select
Find Next until you come to the word you want to update.

Step 5: Select Replace. To find and replace the text. To update all instances
at once, choose Replace All.
Step 6: To Exit from Find and Replace, click on the Cancel button or the
close button available in the upper right corner.
Mail Merge in MS Word
Many day-to-day applications require similar documents containing similar
text to be sent to a number of persons. These documents also have a typical
common layout. Invitation letters sent to guests have a more-or-less
common content and layout. Only the names of the recipients are different in
these letters. One obvious way to generate such letters is to type all of them
individually, putting the same amount of effort again and again. Another
solution could be to copy the same block of text again and again onto the
new letters. The names and addresses etc., which are different from each
letter, can be entered separately in the documents. Though this method
saves a lot of effort, it still requires proper caution. There should be a way
where these kinds of documents can be prepared automatically. This task
can be easily automated if we use the mail merge feature of a word
processor. So, it is time we learnt the mail-merge feature of the word.
Components of mail merge:
The three main components of the merging process are the main document,
the data source, and the merged document.
1. The main document contains the main body of your letter, field names,
and merges instructions. The basic information within the main document
remains equivalent.
2. The data source (or Recipients’ list) stores the knowledge that changes
for every document. This information is inserted in the main document
one by one. An example of the data source is a name and address list
from which the program gets what you want to include in the main
document.
3. The merged document contains the main text from the main document
and data from a data source.
Steps for mail merger:
Step 1:
 Open MS Word and click on the command sequence: Mailings tab →
Start mail merge group → Select recipients button → Type new List.

 A dialog namely “New Address List” will pop up(as shown in the below
image). Type here the desired data under the given headings. To add a
new record, click on the “New Entry” button at the bottom of the dialog
and click OK when you are done.
Step 2: Prepare Master Letter
The second step is to prepare our master letter for use in the mail merge.
Before we enter all the letter text we’d like to link this Word file to our list of
names.
 Create a blank word document.
 Click Mailings tab → Start Mail Merge group → Start Mail Merge →
Letters command.
 Then click the Mailings tab → Start Mail Merge group → Select
Recipients button → Use Existing List command.

 Now we can start typing the letter.

 Now we would like to add the name and address and other details for the
people on the list.
 Mailings tab→ Write & Insert Field group → Insert Merge Field button.
 A pop-down will appear showing all the table headings, so choose Title
and press the spacebar to create a space.

Then do this again and choose FirstName, followed by a space (i.e., press
only spacebar key and no other key); then choose LastName but this time
press the Enter key to create a new line. Then repeat the steps to choose
the Address field, and press enter key.
Step 3:
Before we actually carry out the merge, we must first preview what the
merged letters will look like.
 Mailings tab→ Preview Results group → Preview Results button

 Once we are happy with the preview, you can carry out the actual mail
merge.
 To do this you click the Mailings tab → Finish group → Finish & Merge
button and choose Edit Individual Documents.
 In the Merge to New Document panel, click All to create a separate letter
for each person on the Names list. Word then creates a fresh document
with as many pages as there are names on your list, and every page
contains a wonderfully merged letter with all the correct individuals’
details.

MS Excel
Microsoft Excel is a software application designed for creating tables to input
and organize data. It provides a user-friendly way to analyze and work with
data. The image below provides a visual representation of what an Excel
spreadsheet typically appears like
Excel Interface
What is a Cell
A spreadsheet takes the shape of a table, consisting of rows and columns. A
cell is created at the intersection point where rows and columns meet,
forming a rectangular box. Here’s an image illustrating what a cell looks like:

What is Cell Address or Cell Reference

The address or name of a cell or a range of cells is known as Cell reference.
It helps the software to identify the cell from where the data/value is to be
used in the formula. We can reference the cell of other worksheets and also
of other programs.
 Referencing the cell of other worksheets is known as External
referencing.
 Referencing the cell of other programs is known as Remote referencing.
There are three types of cell references in Excel:
1. Relative reference.
2. Absolute reference.
3. Mixed reference.

Filters in MS Excel
The filter is a powerful feature of Excel that allows users to sort through and
display some specific subsets of data from a larger dataset based on user-
defined criteria. When we apply Filter to a column, it creates a small drop-
down arrow that appears in the column header. These arrows reveal a list of
unique values or numerical values of the column. Users can select specific
items to display various filter options to show only the data that meets the
chosen data.
This reduces the burden of scrolling each record to find the best match plus
saves a lot of time. Excel filter is the most preferred feature among
professionals to rely on when making crucial decisions.
Filters are often used to narrow down the info in your worksheet, allowing
you to look at only the information you want.

example, a filter is applied to an equipment log worksheet to display only the

laptops and projectors that are available for checkout.
Step 1: For filtering to work correctly, your worksheet should include a
header row, which is used to identify the name of each column.
Step 2: Select the Data tab, and then click the Filter command.

Step 3: A drop-down arrow will appear in the header cell for each column.
Step 4: Click the drop-down arrow for the column you want to filter. In our
example, we will filter column C to view only certain types of equipment.

Step 5: The Filter menu will appear.

Step 6: Uncheck the box next to Select All to quickly deselect all data.
Step 7: Check the boxes next to the data you want to filter, and then
click OK. In this example, we will check Laptop and Tablet to view only those
types of equipment.
Step 8: The data will be filtered, temporarily hiding any content that doesn’t
match the criteria. In our example, only humanities stream are visible.

Filtering options can also be accessed from the “Sort & Filter” command on
the Home tab.
To Create a Data Entry Form in Excel or
Entering data in selecting cell
In the dynamic world of Microsoft Excel, there’s an often-overlooked gem
that can revolutionize how you input, manage, and validate data within your
spreadsheets – the Excle Data Entry form. Whether you’re a novice user,
you can unlock the power of data entry forms and streamline your
spreadsheet operations.
Excel Data Entry Form
Data Entry Form is a form that helps to enter the data with the help of a form
in which the data can be added, searched, and previous data can be
deleted. Data entry in Excel without forms can be very time-consuming.
There are two major issues faced while conducting data entry without forms
in Excel:
1. Time-consuming: Without forms, data needs to be entered in one cell at
a time, then go to the next cell and enter the data for that cell, and so on.
Sometimes, due to confusion, the user might need to scroll up and see
which column is it and what data needs to be entered and then come
back to the current position. Similarly, in the case when the user needs to
scroll right and then come back to the beginning.
2. Error-prone: If there is a huge dataset that needs 100 entries to be
entered in the form. In that case, there may be a possibility that the user
unintentionally enters the wrong data in the cell.
Data entry using forms in Excel helps to overcome all these limitations and
makes the task of entering data less time-consuming and less error-prone. ,
Data Entry Forms in Excel.

Step 1: Select Any Cell in Your Dataset > Press the Ctrl+T keys together to
Convert it to a table.
Step 2: Now Click on the Form Button in the Ribbon
Step 3: Pressing the Form button generates a data entry form for your table,
featuring fields corresponding to the Column headings.
Statistical Functions in Excel
Excel is the best tool to apply statistical functions. As discussed above we
first discuss the basic statistical function, and then we will study intermediate
statistical function. Throughout the article, we will take data and by using it
we will understand the statistical function.

1. Basic statistical Function

2. Intermediate Statistical Function.

Basic statistical Function

These are some most common and useful functions. These include the
COUNT function, COUNTA function, COUNTBLANK function, COUNTIFS
function. Let’s discuss one by one:
1. COUNT function

The COUNT function is used to count the number of cells containing a

number. Always remember one thing that it will only count the number.

Formula for COUNT function = COUNT(value1, [value2], …)

Example of statistical function.

Thus, there are 7 textbooks that have a discount out of 9 books.

2. COUNTA function

This function will count everything, it will count the number of the cell
containing any kind of information, including numbers, error values, empty
text.
Formula for COUNTA function = COUNTA(value1, [value2], …)
 Example of statistical function.

So, there are a total of 9 subjects that being sold in the store

3. COUNTBLANK function

COUNTBLANK function, as the term, suggest it will only count blank or

empty cells.
Formula for COUNTBlANK function = COUNTBLANK(range)
 Example of statistical function.

There are 2 subjects that don’t have any discount.

4. COUNTIFS function

COUNTIFS function is the most used function in Excel. The function will
work on one or more than one condition in a given range and counts the cell
that meets the condition.
Formula for COUNTIFS function = COUNTIFS (range1, criteria1,
[range2], [criteria2], ...)
Intermediate Statistical Function
Let’s discuss some intermediate statistical functions in Excel. These
functions used more often by the analyst. It includes functions like
AVERAGE function, MEDIAN function, MODE function, STANDARD
DEVIATION function, VARIANCE function, QUARTILES function,
CORRELATION function.

1. AVERAGE value1, [value2], …)

The AVERAGE function is one of the most used intermediate functions. The
function will return the arithmetic mean or an average of the cell in a given
range.
Formula for AVERAGE function = AVERAGE(number1, [number2], …)

Example of statistical function.

So the average total revenue is Rs.144326.6667

2. AVERAGEIF function

The function will return the arithmetic mean or an average of the cell in a
given range that meets the given criteria.
Formula for AVERAGEIF function = AVERAGEIF(range, criteria,
[average_range])

3. MEDIAN function

The MEDIAN function will return the central value of the data. Its syntax is
similar to the AVERAGE function.
Formula for MEDIAN function = MEDIAN(number1, [number2], …)
 Example of statistical function.

Thus, the median quantity sold is 300.

4. MODE function

The MODE function will return the most frequent value of the cell in a given
range.
Formula for MODE function = [Link](number1,[number2],…)
 Example of statistical function.

Thus, the most frequent or repetitive cost is Rs. 250.

5. STANDARD DEVIATION

This function helps us to determine how much observed value deviated or

varied from the average. This function is one of the useful functions in Excel.
Formula for STANDARD DEVIATION function = STDEV.P(number1,
[number2],…)
 Example of statistical function.

Thus, Standard Deviation of total revenue =296917.8172

6. VARIANCE function

To understand the VARIANCE function, we first need to know what is

variance? Basically, Variance will determine the degree of variation in your
data set. The more data is spread it means the more is variance.
Formula for VARIANCE function = VAR(number1, [number2], …)
 Example of statistical function.

So, the variance of Revenue= 97955766832

7. QUARTILES function

Quartile divides the data into 4 parts just like the median which divides the
data into two equal parts. So, the Excel QUARTILES function returns the
quartiles of the dataset. It can return the minimum value, first quartile,
second quartile, third quartile, and max value. Let’s see the syntax :
Formula for QUARTILES function = QUARTILE (array, quart)
 Example of statistical function.

So, the first quartile = 14137.5

8. CORRELATION function

CORRELATION function, help to find the relationship between the two

variables, this function mostly used by the analyst to study the data. The
range of the CORRELATION coefficient lies between -1 to +1.
Formula for CORRELATION function = CORREL(array1, array2)
 Example of statistical function.

So, the correlation coefficient between discount and revenue of store =

0.802428894. Since it is a positive number, thus we can conclude discount is
positively related to revenue.

9. MAX function

The MAX function will return the largest numeric value within a given set of
data or an array.
Formula for MAX function = MAX (number1, [number2], ...)
The maximum quantity of textbooks is Physics,620 in numbers.

10. MIN function

The MIN function will return the smallest numeric value within a given set of
data or an array.
Formula for MIN function = MIN (number1, [number2], ...)

The minimum number of the book available in the store =150(Sociology)

11. LARGE function

The LARGE function is similar to the MAX function but the only difference is
it returns the nth largest value within a given set of data or an array.
Formula for LARGE function = LARGE (array, k)
Let’s find the most expensive textbook using a large function, where k = 1

Example of statistical function.

The most expensive textbook is Rs. 420.

12. SMALL function

The SMALL function is similar to the MIN function, but the only difference is it
return nth smallest value within a given set of data or an array.
Formula for SMALL function = SMALL (array, k)
Similarly, using the SMALL function we can find the second least expensive
book.
 Example of statistical function.

Protecting Excel Worksheets

Protect an entire workbook from editing: A workbook can be protected by
encrypting the workbook with a password, making the workbook read-only,
or protecting the structure of a workbook.
Encrypt a workbook with a password:
To prevent other people from accessing your Excel files, protect them with a
password. Head on to the file menu and do the following:
Step 1: Select File > Info.
Step 2: Select the Protect Workbook box and choose Encrypt with
Password.
Step 3: Enter a password in the Password box, and then select OK.

Step 4: Confirm the password in the Re-enter Password box and then
select OK.
TIP: Excel can’t retrieve your password once forgotten hence it’s advised to
keep it easy to remember.
Making a workbook Read-only :
By making a workbook read only the user can read the content of the file and
then enable editing if the user wishes to make changes, it gives the user a
hint to be cautious about editing the file.
To make a workbook read-only open the Excel file you want to protect and
then :
Step 1: Head on to File>info
Step 2: Select the Protect Workbook box and choose Always open Read-
Only.
Step 3: Open the file and a warning will be displayed stating the author
prefers the file to be opened in read-only mode. This makes the user aware
of the author’s concerns.
Protecting the structure of a workbook:
To prevent other users from viewing hidden worksheets, adding, moving,
deleting, or hiding worksheets, and renaming worksheets, you can protect
the structure of your Excel workbook with a password.
Step 1: Click on Review tab>Protect workbook (under Changes ).

Step 2: Enter a password in the password box.

 Step 3: Click ok and re-enter the password to confirm and hit OK again.
To remove the password from the workbook Head on to Review > Protect
Workbook > type in the password and the workbook will be free from the
password.
Excel VBA | count() functions
Last Updated : 29 Sep, 2022

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Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the programming

language of Excel and other offices. It is an event-driven
programming language from Microsoft.
With Excel VBA one can automate many tasks in excel and all other
office software. It helps in generating reports, preparing various
charts, graphs and moreover, it performs calculation using its
various functions.
Let’s see Count() functions in Excel.
1. COUNT: It allows to count the number of cells that contain
numbers in a range. One can use the COUNT function to calculate
the total number of entries in an array of numbers.
Syntax:
=COUNT(value1, value2…)
value1: The very first item required to count numbers.
value2: It can be specified upto 255 other entries which you
want to count.
 Note:
-> Only those arguments are counted that are numbers or text
enclosed between quotation marks, as, “2”.
-> Arguments like logical values and text representation of
numbers that are typed directly are counted.
-> Any values that cannot be translated to numbers are ignored.
Example:

Output:

2. COUNTA: This counts only those range of cells which are not
empty.
Syntax:
=COUNTA(value1, value2…)
value1: It is the first argument to be counted.
value2: All additional arguments can be represented that has to
becounted. This can be specified upto 255 arguments.
Note: This will count cells that contain any kind of information
that includes error values or empty text also, but not empty cells.
Example:

Output:
3. COUNTIF:This will allow user to count the number of cells which
meet a certain criteria.
Syntax:
=COUNTIF(where to look, what to look criteria)
Example:

Output:

4. COUNTIFS: It will map criteria to cells in multiple ranges and the

number of times all criteria met are counted.
Syntax:
=COUNTIFS(criteria_range1, criteria1, [criteria_range2,
criteria2]…)
criteria_range1: First range to evaluate criteria.
criteria1: Criteria in any form that defines which all cells to be
counted.
criteria_range2, criteria2, … : Additional range with their
criteria. Specified upto 127 range/criteria.
Remarks:
-> Wildcard characters can be used.
-> If criteria meets an empty cell, it will be treated as 0 value.
-> Count increases by 1 as the first cells meet their criteria, then
the second cell meet and count again increases by 1 and so on.
 Example:

Output:

Autosum in Excel is a built-in summation feature that is used to automatically

add up the numbers in a few clicks, saving time. When you enter numeric
values in a column, the results are presented in a cell immediately below the
range of cells. For numeric numbers in a row, the total shows to the right of
the cell range.
What is Autosum?
AutoSum is a helpful feature of Excel that allows for time-saving calculations.
The autosum shortcut in Excel makes adding up several objects quick and
easy. The Alt+= keyboard shortcut makes using the AutoSum command
significantly more efficient. It can be located under the Home or Formulas
tabs. To activate this shortcut, simply hold down the Alt key and tap the
equals symbol on your keyboard. For example, the figure below depicts an
office inventory list, with cells B2 through B5.
to calculate the average of numbers
Step 1: Select the cell where you want to display the average result.
Step 2: Now type “=” sign in the cell and type “average” then
type opening parenthesis “(“ in the cell.
Step 3: Now select the data, cells from H3 to H13 as shown in the figure:
Step 4: Next hit the ENTER button.
As you see in the figure the Average marks are calculated and
displayed on the cell.
These are some methods to calculate the sum and average of a group
of numbers using formulas in MS Excel.
a Pivot Table in Excel
A PivotTable is a helpful tool in Excel that lets you calculate, summarize, and
analyze your data. It helps you see comparisons, patterns, and trends. How
PivotTables work can vary slightly depending on the version of Excel you are
using.
Creating a Pivot Table in Excel can transform the way you analyze and
summarize data. If you’re dealing with large datasets, Pivot Tables provide
a dynamic and powerful tool to effortlessly organize and extract meaningful
insights. Whether you’re managing sales figures, tracking project
timelines, or analyzing survey responses, Pivot Tables help you
make data-driven decisions quickly.
Step 1: Open MS Excel and Select a Cell
Step 2: Go to the Insert tab

Go to the Insert Tab

Step 3: In the Tables group, click on the Pivot table tool

Create Pivot Table >> Ok

Step 4: Fill the Dialog Box

A dialog box would open where we have to fill in the two choices for the
data to be analyzed and the place where we wish to have the pivot table.
After filling in the options, click on OK.
Note: By default the data location of the pivot table will be a
new worksheet.
Step 5: In the new sheet, we can see the pivot table and other
options

Pivot Table Created

How to Build a Pivot Table Report

On the left side of the sheet, a new empty pivot table has been created
where the summary would be shown. On the right side, we can see
the FIELD NAME which are the headers of the columns of our data
set. FIELD NAME is to be dragged to empty
boxes i.e. Filters, Columns, Rows, and values to show their corresponding
values in the Pivot Table.
Let’s drag the FIELD NAME into the boxes and see their effects
individually.
 Drag the Field Name

Step 1: Add Pivot Table Fields

Values sum up all the entries in the FIELD NAME dragged in it. Here,
as Sales are dragged here, our pivot table shows the sum of all the
sales that took place.
Drag the Fields between areas
Step 2: Sum of Sales Appeared
 Sum of Sales Appeared

Step 3: Add More Fields

We can add as many FIELD names as we require in Values. Individual
sums would be shown then.
 Add More Fields

Step 4: Drag to Get Sum

Dragging fields into values will give you the sum of values as a result.

Sum Calculated

Step 5: Returned to Total Count

If the entities in the column can’t be summed, it will give us the total
count of the entries present in that column. Here
as Country and Product do not contain numeric values, it returned the total
count of each column.
 Total Count

Step 6: Drag Fields into Values

Dragging Fields into Values.
 Drag Fields into Values

Step 7: Count Not Found

In the below image, you can find the Count of the Values.
Count Not Found
Step 8: Data Gets Grouped
The data in the pivot table gets grouped (Row-Wise) by the Field
Names dragged to the Rows Area.
In this example, we have grouped the sales by the countries.
 Data Gets Grouped

Step 9: Fields dragged to Rows

In the below image, the fields are dragged to Rows.

Fields dragged to Rows

We can drag as many Fields as we require in this region.
How to Create Pivot Table Columns Area in Excel
Creating Pivot Table using the Column Area in Excel
Step 1: Use Discount Band
The data in the pivot table gets grouped by(Column-Wise) by the Field
Names dragged to Columns Area. As here, row-wise, our data is grouped
by Countries and column-wise, it is grouped by Discount Band.
 Use Discount band

Step 2: Fields Dragged to Columns

The Fields are dragged to Columns in the below image.

Fields Dragged to Columns

This area can accommodate many Fields.

Filter Area in Excel
The filter is an important feature in the pivot table. using which we can filter
out the data based on the Field dragged into it.
Step 1: Filter the Total Sales
Here, we have filtered the total sales based on one particular
product that is only that product is considered while calculating the sales.
 Filter the Total Sales

Step 2: Apply Features

You can also apply many features to the Product fields as shown below.
 Apply features

Step 3: Final Output

Below is the final output of the above steps. In this way, using pivot tables, a
summary of the data is achieved in the form of a matrix. There are many
other tools and features of the Pivot Tables which can be explored.

Final Output

How to Refresh a Pivot Table in Excel

Refreshing your pivot table is crucial to keep your data up-to-date. This
simple step ensures that any changes or additions to your original
dataset are reflected in your pivot table. Here’s how to do it:
Refresh the Pivot Table data manually
To manually refresh the data in a Pivot Table, follow these steps in Excel:
Step 1: Click inside the Pivot Table
Step 2: Go to the “Data” tab
Step 3: Click on Refresh Button
Look for the “Refresh” button in the “Data Tools” group. It may also be
labeled as “Refresh All” if you have multiple Pivot Tables in your workbook.
 Click on Refresh Button

Refreshing a Pivot Table automatically when opening the workbook

in Excel
You can also automatically refresh data.
Step 1: Click inside the Pivot Table
Step 2: Go to Pivot Table
Go to the “PivotTable Analyze” or “Options” tab on the Excel ribbon,
depending on your Excel version.
Step 3: Go for Option group
Look for the “Options” group, and within that group, locate and click on
“Options” (or “PivotTable Options” in older versions).
Step 4: Select the Data Tab
In the PivotTable Options dialog box that appears, select the “Data” tab.
Step 5: Check the Box
Check the box that says “Refresh data when opening the file.”
Step 6: Click “Ok”
Click “OK” to save your changes and close the dialog box.
Click “Ok”