Keith’s Training Hub

LESSON 16 OF 16 · ABOUT 15 MINUTES

Improve the design without changing the message

Keep a readable chart and a short, evidence-based explanation.

Need the practice files?

Keep using your working copy if you have started the programme.

Practice workbook (.xlsx)

Learn the skill

Design should make the evidence easier to read, not exaggerate differences or hide uncertainty.

Worked example

Use a calm, high-contrast style, readable text and a simple 2-D layout.

North has the highest cost at £250; total cost is £540. This does not prove North is inefficient.

Avoid 3-D effects, decorative backgrounds and colour-only meaning.

Follow these steps

  1. Save your finished practice copy.
  2. Try one chart style and inspect text contrast and labels.
  3. Check the source range and values again after the style change.
  4. Review at a normal screen size and in File > Print preview. Do not print unless you need to.
  5. Write one supported observation and one limit of the data.

Try it yourself

Keep your chart and a two-sentence handover: what the data shows, and what it cannot establish. Reconcile the chart back to the eight source orders.

Check your practical result
  • The chart remains 250, 200, 90 with total £540.
  • The design is readable without relying on colour.
  • Your interpretation does not turn cost differences into unproven performance claims.

This is your own review, not an automatic inspection of Excel.

If it does not work

If a style hides labels or adds clutter, revert to a simple 2-D style. If the numbers changed, stop and inspect the source before formatting further.

Optional knowledge check

This check is for practice. It is not saved or required to continue.

What is supported by these figures?

Continue whenever you are ready. No test or recorded score is required.

Course guide and Microsoft helpDownload the whole course guide (.txt)

Steps primarily use Microsoft 365 desktop Excel for Windows. Other versions can differ. Formulas use English names and commas; your region may use semicolons. Work only on the fictional practice copies.

Microsoft: Create a chart (opens in a new tab). Guidance checked 3 November 2026.

Browser knowledge checks do not execute Excel. This programme does not change your saved progress in other courses.

All 16 lessons and the day programme

Welcome and setup: 09:30–09:40. Evaluation and close: 16:15–16:30.

The four session windows match the supplied programme. Lesson times below are approximate independent practice times. Facilitators can use the remaining time for demonstrations, questions and breaks, including lunch within Session 2.

SESSION 1 · 09:40–11:40

More functions

Count, total, classify and work with dates.

  1. Count matching orders with COUNTIF · 15 min
  2. Add matching costs with SUMIF · 15 min
  3. Use IF to label a result · 15 min
  4. Use TODAY without losing a reporting date · 15 min

SESSION 2 · 11:40–14:30

Managing datasets

Keep records together, find what matters and control new entries.

  1. Sort whole records safely · 15 min
  2. Sort by team, then amount · 15 min
  3. Put priorities in a custom order · 15 min
  4. Filter a list and restore every row · 15 min
  5. Make a safe dropdown with data validation · 20 min

SESSION 3 · 14:30–15:30

Linking

Reuse values across cells, sheets and files with clear checks.

  1. Link cells instead of retyping · 10 min
  2. Link sheets inside one workbook · 10 min
  3. Link a value from another file · 15 min
  4. Inspect, repair and safely remove a link · 15 min

SESSION 4 · 15:30–16:15

Charts

Choose a chart, label it and improve its design.

  1. Choose a chart for the question · 15 min
  2. Label the chart so someone else can read it · 15 min
  3. Improve the design without changing the message · 15 min

Final practical task and evaluation →