DATA ANALYSIS
What Are Spreadsheets, and Should Data Analysts Care?
Spreadsheets are simple enough that anyone can use them but powerful enough that they’re often considered an excellent tool for storing and manipulating data
Spreadsheets are an excellent tool for storing data and manipulating it.
You may be a data analyst who is tasked with making sense of the numbers that flood your company’s inbox every day, or a financial analyst trying to put together a report for clients. No matter what you do, you are likely going to make use of spreadsheets.
But what exactly is a spreadsheet? Why do they matter to data analysts? And how can we improve our use of spreadsheets in order to become more efficient at data analysis?
To help you maximize your spreadsheet use as a data analyst, we will cover the following spreadsheet concepts
- What are spreadsheets
- How are spreadsheets used as a data analysis tool?
- Spreadsheet skills data analysts should have
- The most common spreadsheet mistakes data analysts should avoid
- Should data analysts learn about spreadsheets in 2022?
What are SpreadSheets
A spreadsheet is a tool for organizing and analyzing data. A spreadsheet is composed of rows and columns arranged in a table format that can contain text strings or numeric values.
Spreadsheets are very useful when it comes to gathering information from various sources in one place and organizing them in a way that makes sense to each other. It allows you to easily organize your data into rows and columns to see trends and patterns easily.
For example, if you have five different files containing attendance data for all departments in an organization and wish to get a quick overview without having to open all these different files, it would be much easier to combine all the data into a single workbook instead of separate files.
Microsoft Excel is today’s most popular and widely used spreadsheet program, but many alternatives exist. Below is a list of spreadsheet programs.
- Google Sheets: This is online and free
- iWork Numbers: Apple Office Suite
- LibreOffice
How are spreadsheets used in data analysis?
Spreadsheets are among the most useful tools in a data analyst’s toolbox because they allow them to manipulate and organize data, which helps them draw insights.
They are very convenient for storing data from different sources side-by-side so you can compare them easily, for example, when comparing sales numbers from different months, regions, or years.
Data from spreadsheets can also be analyzed and then imported into databases or other analysis programs like R.
Whether it’s cleaning up messy data or visually presenting results, spreadsheets are the backbone of any organization’s data management workflow. They are great for data cleaning because they can quickly collate, sort, and filter through data.
Spreadsheet Skills That Data Analysts Should Have
Excel, Google Sheets, or iWork Numbers are probably familiar spreadsheet programs if you’re a data analyst. It is, however, important to have more than the basics of formulas and charts if you are going to work with data from other sources, analyze data, and look for patterns.
You don’t need to be an “expert,” but you should be comfortable with most of these skills:
1. Make use of the AutoFilter feature -This feature allows you to filter out unnecessary data so that you can focus on what matters most to you. You can also sort your data by criteria like date, name, or value using this feature.
2. You also need to be able to visualize your results so you can easily explain them to your team and clients.
3. Use conditional formatting when necessary — This will allow you to highlight specific areas where there might be problems with your data analysis or where there might be inconsistencies between values (e.g., if there are too many decimal places).
4. Getting information from another source (like an API) and putting it into an Excel spreadsheet
5. Applying formulas to create dynamic tables and charts and manipulate data points
5. You should be able to use pivot tables and pivot charts.
6. You should be able to connect multiple sheets together
7. You should be able to use VLOOKUP formulas correctly (and not just as another way to find values in a single column).
I know this sounds obvious, but I’ve seen a lot of people make the mistake of thinking they can make do with spreadsheets that are too basic for their needs.
Should data analysts learn about spreadsheets in 2022?
Yes.
Data analysts must have a solid understanding of spreadsheets and databases. Their ability to extract a story from a giant spreadsheet of data is vital to businesses of all sizes.
That’s when spreadsheets come in, which function as the foundational tool for analyzing your data. As a beginner, you may start out with basic spreadsheet skills, but it is important to learn more as you go in order to make your analysis more effective.
