Automate Telecoms Dashboard Dates

Here’s a challenge we face all the time in Telecoms: we need a list of the most recent months of data in a table.  For example, a Telecoms Dashboard, which might show data for each of the most recent 12 months.   For example, your Dashboard for May 2018 might show data from May-18, April-18, March-18, …

What’s Abstract About Excel?

As a Telecoms Technical manager, your job is often about speed.  Make a report faster. Prepare a presentation faster.  Forecast usage faster.  Analyze a problem faster.  Create a budget faster.  See the pattern? Youʼll use Excel to create models in all these examples; make assumptions and build them into those models.  Often, there will be …

Excel Telecom Tricks – 2-Color Series

In Telecoms we deal with data.  Lots of data.  Tasks such as budgeting, analyzing, reporting and forecasting use this data. This data buries your desk.  You yourself might actually be stuffed with data.  We gorge on data and starve for information. Amidst all this data is a concerted search for information.  Ferreting out information and …

Find the Average of Non-Zero Values

I’ve been working on the BTS Project Tracker dashboard. I’ve found another capability that I needed to learn before I can complete the dashboard.  I need to find the average of non-zero values. I’m trying to track incomplete tasks whose duration exceeds the average duration for that task. The problem arises when calculating the average interval …

Excel Hierarchical List

Did you ever start working on an Excel spreadsheet and realize you needed it to do something you didn’t know how to do?  I’ve been working on the next article in my Excel BTS Project Tracker series.  I needed an Excel Hierarchical List, and I didn’t know how to do that.   I have to learn …

5 Myths about Automated Excel Telecom Dashboards

I spend a lot of time talking about Automated Excel Telecom Dashboards.  Why?  Because they have made a tremendous difference for me.  There are 4 main benefits. Save your time by instantly updating periodic charts, graphs, and reports Declutter your brain to focus only on important business metrics Maintain laser-focus on the important metrics in your …

Historical Forecasts for Your BTS Project Tracker

In writing about Historical Forecasts I want to know if you’ve been following this series?  I’ve written in detail about all the steps to put together a project tracker that was easy to update, quick to use, and did most of the work automatically.  It’s my strong belief that any Excel Workbook which you use …

Excel BTS Project Tracker – Forecasting

When I first began writing this article, I set out to create a Project Dashboard; a self-updating, all singing, all dancing dashboard that would automatically reveal everything anyone might possibly want to know about this project.  Having such a Dashboard would have fabulous consequences.  Like shortening all the project status meetings because the answer to …

Microsoft Excel for Telecom Managers

An interesting question was posted over on Stack Overflow recently.  The question presented a challenge which I’ll paraphrase thus: Based upon the accompanying billing system data, how would you use Excel to list the Base Station generating the highest revenue by Area, Region, and Product? First, let’s pause for a moment of thanks that this …

Excel BTS Project Tracker – Dynamic Named Ranges

We’ve never met before. But I already know a lot about you. You probably work in technology, maybe in a Mobile Network RAN. You already use Microsoft Excel, and you’d like to get better at it. You are not a manager and don’t have a team of people to supervise or manage. Lastly, you want …