Course Details

Advanced Excel for M&E Professionals Training Course

INTRODUCTION

This essential training course provides comprehensive knowledge and practical skills for leveraging advanced Microsoft Excel functionalities specifically for Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) professionals. Recognizing that Excel remains a ubiquitous and powerful tool for data management, analysis, and reporting in diverse M&E contexts, this program equips participants with sophisticated techniques to handle large datasets, perform complex calculations, generate insightful visualizations, and automate routine tasks. Participants will gain deep insights into advanced formulas, pivot tables, data validation, and dashboard creation, all crucial for streamlining M&E workflows, enhancing data quality, and effectively communicating project progress and impact. This course is ideal for M&E specialists, data analysts, project managers, and anyone regularly working with M&E data in Excel.

DURATION

10 days

TARGET AUDIENCE

This course is specifically designed for M&E, program, and data professionals who already have a basic understanding of Excel and wish to significantly enhance their data management, analysis, and reporting capabilities, including:

• Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Specialists.
• Data Analysts and Data Managers.
• Project and Program Coordinators.
• Researchers and Consultants.
• Finance and Grants Managers dealing with M&E data.

OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Master advanced Excel formulas for complex M&E data manipulation.
• Efficiently manage and clean large and messy M&E datasets.
• Create dynamic PivotTables and PivotCharts for in-depth data analysis.
• Design interactive and professional M&E dashboards for effective reporting.
• Automate routine M&E tasks using advanced Excel features.

MODULES

Module 1: Advanced Formulas for M&E Data Analysis

• Understand nested functions and array formulas for complex calculations.
• Explore advanced logical functions (e.g., IFS, AND, OR, XOR) for conditional analysis.
• Discuss powerful lookup functions (e.g., XLOOKUP, INDEX-MATCH, VLOOKUP) for data retrieval.
• Learn about text functions (e.g., CONCAT, TEXTJOIN, FIND, REPLACE) for data cleaning.
• Examine date and time functions for analyzing M&E timelines and frequencies.

Module 2: Data Cleaning and Validation Techniques

• Master techniques for identifying and removing duplicate records in M&E datasets.
• Understand data validation rules to ensure data entry accuracy and consistency.
• Discuss methods for handling missing values and inconsistencies effectively.
• Explore text-to-columns, flash fill, and remove duplicates for quick data transformation.
• Learn about conditional formatting for highlighting data quality issues.

Module 3: Advanced PivotTables and PivotCharts for M&E Reporting

• Create dynamic PivotTables from complex M&E datasets for multi-dimensional analysis.
• Understand calculated fields and calculated items within PivotTables for custom metrics.
• Explore advanced PivotTable options and settings for customized reports.
• Design impactful PivotCharts to visualize M&E trends and comparisons.
• Learn about Slicers and Timelines for interactive filtering of PivotTables.

Module 4: Working with Large M&E Datasets (Power Query)

• Understand the basics of Power Query (Get & Transform Data) for robust data import and cleaning.
• Explore how to connect to various M&E data sources and combine data from multiple files.
• Discuss advanced data transformation steps within Power Query Editor.
• Examine techniques for unpivoting data and transforming messy M&E formats.
• Learn about refreshing queries for updated M&E data without manual re-processing.

Module 5: M&E Dashboard Design Principles

• Understand the principles of effective dashboard design for M&E reporting.
• Discuss layout, navigation, and user experience considerations for M&E dashboards.
• Explore different dashboard components (e.g., charts, tables, KPIs, slicers).
• Examine techniques for selecting appropriate visualizations for different M&E indicators.
• Learn about best practices for dashboard aesthetics and clarity.

Module 6: Building Interactive M&E Dashboards in Excel

• Apply advanced Excel features to build interactive M&E dashboards.
• Understand the use of form controls (e.g., scroll bars, option buttons) for dynamic inputs.
• Explore dynamic charts and conditional formatting to highlight key M&E insights.
• Discuss techniques for connecting multiple elements on a dashboard using formulas.
• Practice creating a comprehensive M&E dashboard from start to finish.

Module 7: Introduction to Macros and VBA for M&E Automation

• Understand the concept of Macros and Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) for automation.
• Explore the Macro Recorder for automating repetitive M&E tasks (e.g., data cleaning, report generation).
• Discuss basic VBA concepts and the VBA Editor interface.
• Examine simple VBA code for common M&E operations.
• Learn about saving macro-enabled workbooks and security considerations.

Module 8: Advanced Data Protection and Collaboration

• Understand techniques for protecting M&E worksheets and workbooks (e.g., cell locking, password protection).
• Discuss methods for auditing formulas and tracking changes in M&E spreadsheets.
• Explore options for collaborating on Excel files (e.g., shared workbooks, co-authoring in Excel Online).
• Examine techniques for optimizing M&E Excel files for performance.
• Learn about common Excel errors in M&E and how to troubleshoot them.

CERTIFICATION

• Upon successful completion of this training, participants will be issued with Macskills Training and Development Institute Certificate

TRAINING VENUE

• Training will be held at Macskills Training Centre. We also tailor make the training upon request at different locations across the world.

AIRPORT PICK UP AND ACCOMMODATION

• Airport pick up and accommodation is arranged upon request

TERMS OF PAYMENT

Payment should be made to Macskills Development Institute bank account before the start of the training and receipts sent to info@macskillsdevelopment.com