Excel 2016 Pivot Table Data Crunching

Bill Jelen, Excel MVP and the host of MrExcel.com, has been using spreadsheets since 1985, and he launched the MrExcel.com website in 1998. Bill was a regular guest on Call for Help with Leo Laporte and has produced more than 1,900 episodes of his daily video podcast, Learn Excel from MrExcel. He is the author of 49 books about Microsoft Excel and writes the monthly Excel column for Strategic Finance magazine. Before founding MrExcel.com, Bill Jelen spent 12 years in the trenches, working as a financial analyst for the finance, marketing, accounting, and operations departments of a $500 million public company. He lives in Merritt Island, Florida, with his wife, Mary Ellen. Mike Alexander is a Microsoft Certified Application Developer (MCAD) and author of several books on advanced business analysis with Microsoft Access and Excel. He has more than 15 years of experience consulting and developing Office solutions. Mike has been named a Microsoft MVP for his ongoing contributions to the Excel community. In his spare time, he runs a free tutorial site, www.datapigtechnologies.com, where he shares basic Access and Excel tips to the Office community.

• &> IntroductionWhat You Will Learn from This Book .................................................................1What Is New in Excel 2016’s Pivot Tables ...............................................................2Skills Required to Use This Book .........................................................................3Invention of the Pivot Table........................................................................4Sample Files Used in This Book ...........................................................6Conventions Used in This Book ............................................................6Referring to Versions ..............................................................................7Referring to Ribbon Commands.................................................7Special Elements .....................................................................7 1 Pivot Table Fundamentals ............................................ 9Defining a Pivot Table .................................................................9Why You Should Use a Pivot Table .............................................10Advantages of Using a Pivot Table .........................................11When to Use a Pivot Table ......................................................12Anatomy of a Pivot Table .........................................................12Values Area ...........................................................................12Rows Area........................................................................................13Columns Area ...................................................................14Filters Area ........................................................................14Pivot Tables Behind the Scenes ..........................................14Pivot Table Backward Compatibility .................................................15A Word About Compatibility .................................................16Next Steps............................................................................17 2 Creating a Basic Pivot Table ........................................19Preparing Data for Pivot Table Reporting ..............................................19Ensuring That Data Is in a Tabular Layout..........................................20Avoiding Storing Data in Section Headings ...................................20Avoiding Repeating Groups as Columns .............................................21Eliminating Gaps and Blank Cells in the Data Source ...............................22Applying Appropriate Type Formatting to Fields .......................................22Summary of Good Data Source Design ........................................22How to Create a Basic Pivot Table ......................................................24Adding Fields to a Report .......................................................26Fundamentals of Laying Out a Pivot Table Report ........................................27Adding Layers to a Pivot Table ...........................................................28Rearranging a Pivot Table ...........................................................29Creating a Report Filter.......................................................31Understanding the Recommended Pivot Table Feature...........................31Using Slicers ......................................................................................33Creating a Standard Slicer ............................................................33Creating a Timeline Slicer ...............................................................36Keeping Up with Changes in the Data Source .............................................39Dealing with Changes Made to the Existing Data Source ............................39Dealing with an Expanded Data Source Range Due to the Addition of Rows or Columns ..............39Sharing the Pivot Cache .........................................40Saving Time with New Pivot Table Tools ............................................41Deferring Layout Updates ......................................................41Starting Over with One Click ..................................................42Relocating a Pivot Table .................................................43Next Steps.......................................................................43 3 Customizing a Pivot Table ................................................45Making Common Cosmetic Changes .................................................46Applying a Table Style to Restore Gridlines ............................................47Changing the Number Format to Add Thousands Separators ....................................48Replacing Blanks with Zeros .........................................49Changing a Field Name .....................................................51Making Report Layout Changes ..........................................52Using the Compact Layout .............................................52Using the Outline Layout ...................................................54Using the Traditional Tabular Layout ...........................................55Controlling Blank Lines, Grand Totals, and Other Settings ....................................57Customizing a Pivot Table’s Appearance with Styles and Themes ......................................60Customizing a Style .................................................................61Modifying Styles with Document Themes ........................................62Changing Summary Calculations ....................................................63Understanding Why One Blank Cell Causes a Count ..............................63Using Functions Other Than Count or Sum ...............................65Adding and Removing Subtotals ....................................................65Suppressing Subtotals with Many Row Fields ...........................................66Adding Multiple Subtotals for One Field .......................................67Changing the Calculation in a Value Field .......................................67Showing Percentage of Total .........................................................70Using % Of to Compare One Line to Another Line ......................................71Showing Rank ..........................................................................71Tracking Running Total and Percentage of Running Total .............................72Displaying a Change from a Previous Field ..........................................................73Tracking the Percentage of a Parent Item ..............................................73Tracking Relative Importance with the Index Option ...................................74Next Steps...............................................................75 4 Grouping, Sorting, and Filtering Pivot Data ..........................77Automatically Grouping Dates ...................................................77Undoing Automatic Grouping ...........................................78Understanding How Excel 2016 Decides What to Group ...................................78Grouping Date Fields Manually ....................................................79Including Years When Grouping by Months ....................................80Grouping Date Fields by Week ...............................................81Grouping Numeric Fields ............................................82Using the PivotTable Fields List ..............................................85Docking and Undocking the PivotTable Fields List ................................87Rearranging the PivotTable Fields List...................................87Using the Areas Section Drop-Downs ..................................88Sorting in a Pivot Table ................................................89Sorting Customers into High-to-Low Sequence Based on Revenue ..................89Using a Manual Sort Sequence ..............................................92Using a Custom List for Sorting ..................................................93Filtering a Pivot Table: An Overview ...................................................95Using Filters for Row and Column Fields .........................................96Filtering Using the Check Boxes ..................................................96Filtering Using the Search Box ......................................................97Filtering Using the Label Filters Option ......................................98Filtering a Label Column Using Information in a Values Column ..........................99Creating a Top-Five Report Using the Top 10 Filter ...........................................101Filtering Using the Date Filters in the Label Drop-down .........................................103Filtering Using the Filters Area ................................104Adding Fields to the Filters Area .............................................104Choosing One Item from a Filter ...................................................105Choosing Multiple Items from a Filter ....................................................105Replicating a Pivot Table Report for Each Item in a Filter ............................................105Filtering Using Slicers and Timelines .........................................107Using Timelines to Filter by Date .....................................................109Driving Multiple Pivot Tables from One Set of Slicers .......................................110Next Steps......................................................................................112 5 Performing Calculations in Pivot Tables ...........................113Introducing Calculated Fields and Calculated Items ............................................113Method 1: Manually Add a Calculated Field to the Data Source ..........................114Method 2: Use a Formula Outside a Pivot Table to Create a Calculated Field .............................115Method 3: Insert a Calculated Field Directly into a Pivot Table ............................116Creating a Calculated Field ...................................116Creating a Calculated Item ...........................................124Understanding the Rules and Shortcomings of Pivot Table Calculations ..................127Remembering the Order of Operator Precedence ......................................128Using Cell References and Named Ranges ...........................................129Using Worksheet Functions ....................................................................129Using Constants ...........................................................................129Referencing Totals ..........................................................................129Rules Specific to Calculated Fields ......................................................129Rules Specific to Calculated Items ...........................................................131Managing and Maintaining Pivot Table Calculations ......................................131Editing and Deleting Pivot Table Calculations ......................................131Changing the Solve Order of Calculated Items .........................................132Documenting Formulas ........................................................133Next Steps............................................................................134 6 Using Pivot Charts and Other Visualizations .........................135What Is a Pivot Chart...Really? ..........................................................135Creating a Pivot Chart ..........................................................136Understanding Pivot Field Buttons ..............................................138Keeping Pivot Chart Rules in Mind ....................................................139Changes in the Underlying Pivot Table Affect a Pivot Chart .................................139Placement of Data Fields in a Pivot Table Might Not Be Best Suited for a Pivot Chart .....................139A Few Formatting Limitations Still Exist in Excel 2016 ..................................141Examining Alternatives to Using Pivot Charts .......................................................145Method 1: Turn the Pivot Table into Hard Values ...................................145Method 2: Delete the Underlying Pivot Table ..........................................146Method 3: Distribute a Picture of the Pivot Chart ....................................146Method 4: Use Cells Linked Back to the Pivot Table as the Source Data for the Chart .............147Using Conditional Formatting with Pivot Tables ...............................................149An Example of Using Conditional Formatting ...........................................149Preprogrammed Scenarios for Condition Levels ........................................151Creating Custom Conditional Formatting Rules .............................................152Next Steps...................................................................................................156 7 Analyzing Disparate Data Sources with Pivot Tables ................................157Using the Internal Data Model ..................................................158Building Out Your First Data Model ............................................................158Managing Relationships in the Data Model ......................................162Adding a New Table to the Data Model .................................................163Removing a Table from the Data Model ...................................................165Creating a New Pivot Table Using the Data Model ........................................166Limitations of the Internal Data Model ...............................................................167Building a Pivot Table Using External Data Sources .............................................168Building a Pivot Table with Microsoft Access Data....................................................169Building a Pivot Table with SQL Server Data ......................................................171Leveraging Power Query to Extract and Transform Data .............................................174Power Query Basics..................................................................175Understanding Query Steps ..........................................................181Refreshing Power Query Data ....................................................183Managing Existing Queries ................................................................183Understanding Column-Level Actions ............................................185Understanding Table Actions ..........................................................187Power Query Connection Types ......................................................188Next Steps..........................................................................................192 8 Sharing Pivot Tables with Others ........................................193Designing a Workbook as an Interactive Web Page .......................................................193Sharing a Link to a Web Workbook ................................................................196Sharing with Power BI ...............................................................................196Preparing Data for Power BI ...........................................................197Importing Data to Power BI .........................................................................197Building a Report in Power BI ...................................................199Using Q&A to Query Data ........................................................200Sharing Your Dashboard ..............................................................202Next Steps........................................................................202 9 Working with and Analyzing OLAP Data ..........................203Introduction to OLAP .............................................................................203Connecting to an OLAP Cube .....................................................204Understanding the Structure of an OLAP Cube ...................................................207Understanding the Limitations of OLAP Pivot Tables .........................................208Creating an Offline Cube ...................................................209Breaking Out of the Pivot Table Mold with Cube Functions ................................211Exploring Cube Functions ............................................................212Adding Calculations to OLAP Pivot Tables .....................................................213Creating Calculated Measures ............................................................214Creating Calculated Members ..................................................217Managing OLAP Calculations ............................................................220Performing What-If Analysis with OLAP Data .....................................220Next Steps...............................................................................222 10 Mashing Up Data with Power Pivot ...................................223Understanding the Benefits and Drawbacks of Power Pivot and the Data Model ............223Merging Data from Multiple Tables Without Using VLOOKUP ..................................223Importing 100 Million Rows into a Workbook .....................................................224Creating Better Calculations Using the DAX Formula Language ...........................224Other Benefits of the Power Pivot Data Model in All Editions of Excel .........................224Benefits of the Full Power Pivot Add-in with Excel Pro Plus ...................................225Understanding the Limitations of the Data Model .................................225Joining Multiple Tables Using the Data Model in Regular Excel 2016 ..............................226Preparing Data for Use in the Data Model ..................................227Adding the First Table to the Data Model ...................................................228Adding the Second Table and Defining a Relationship ......................................229Tell Me Again–Why Is This Better Than Doing a VLOOKUP? ..............................230Creating a New Pivot Table from an Existing Data Model ....................................232Getting a Distinct Count ...........................................................232Using the Power Pivot Add-in Excel 2016 Pro Plus .....................................234Enabling Power Pivot ....................................................................234Importing a Text File Using Power Query ............................................235Adding Excel Data by Linking ..................................................................236Defining Relationships ...........................................................................236Adding Calculated Columns Using DAX ......................................................237Building a Pivot Table ....................................................................237Understanding Differences Between Power Pivot and Regular Pivot Tables ............................238Using DAX Calculations .............................................................239Using DAX Calculations for Calculated Columns ................................................239Using DAX to Create a Calculated Field in a Pivot Table ...........................240Filtering with DAX Calculated Fields ...............................................240Defining a DAX Calculated Field ..................................................240Using Time Intelligence .............................................................242Next Steps.....................................................................................243 11 Dashboarding with Power View and 3D Map ..........................245Preparing Data for Power View ....................................................245Creating a Power View Dashboard .............................................................247Every New Dashboard Element Starts as a Table ................................................249Subtlety Should Be Power View’s Middle Name .........................................249Converting a Table to a Chart .............................................................250Adding Drill-down to a Chart ........................................251Beginning a New Element by Dragging a Field to a Blank Spot on the Canvas ..............252Filtering One Chart with Another One ...............................................252Adding a Real Slicer ..............................................................................253Understanding the Filters Pane ..................................................................254Using Tile Boxes to Filter a Chart or a Group of Charts .....................................255Replicating Charts Using Multiples .................................................256Showing Data on a Map......................................................257Using Images ..........................................................................258Changing a Calculation ..........................................................................259Animating a Scatter Chart over Time .............................................259Some Closing Tips on Power View ......................................................261Analyzing Geographic Data with 3D Map ................................................261Preparing Data for 3D Map ............................................261Geocoding Data .........................................................................262Building a Column Chart in 3D Map ...............................................264Navigating Through the Map.......................................................264Labeling Individual Points ....................................................................266Building Pie or Bubble Charts on a Map............................266Using Heat Maps and Region Maps ........................................266Exploring 3D Map Settings ............................................................267Fine-Tuning 3D Map .....................................................................268Animating Data over Time ........................................................269Building a Tour ................................................................................270Creating a Video from 3D Map...................................................271Next Steps.........................................................................274 12 Enhancing Pivot Table Reports with Macros ................275Why Use Macros with Pivot Table Reports ................................275Recording a Macro ..................................................................276Creating a User Interface with Form Controls .................................278Altering a Recorded Macro to Add Functionality.................................280Inserting a Scrollbar Form Control ............................................281Next Steps......................................................288 13 Using VBA to Create Pivot Tables.................................289Enabling VBA in Your Copy of Excel .....................................289Using a File Format That Enables Macros ..................................290Visual Basic Editor .................................................................291Visual Basic Tools .........................................................291The Macro Recorder ..................................................................292Understanding Object-Oriented Code ................................................292Learning Tricks of the Trade ........................................................293Writing Code to Handle a Data Range of Any Size ..............................293Using Super-Variables: Object Variables .................................................294Using With and End With to Shorten Code ................................................295Understanding Versions .....................................................................295Building a Pivot Table in Excel VBA ......................................296Adding Fields to the Data Area ..............................................................298Formatting the Pivot Table ..........................................................299Dealing with Limitations of Pivot Tables .................................................301Filling Blank Cells in the Data Area ....................................................301Filling Blank Cells in the Row Area ............................................302Preventing Errors from Inserting or Deleting Cells ...............................302Controlling Totals ................................................................302Converting a Pivot Table to Values .................................................304Pivot Table 201: Creating a Report Showing Revenue by Category ..............307Ensuring That Tabular Layout Is Utilized....................................309Rolling Daily Dates Up to Years ........................................309Eliminating Blank Cells .............................................................311Controlling the Sort Order with AutoSort .........................................312Changing the Default Number Format ................................................312Suppressing Subtotals for Multiple Row Fields ...............................313Handling Final Formatting .............................................................................315Adding Subtotals to Get Page Breaks ..............................................315Putting It All Together .........................................................317Calculating with a Pivot Table .............................................................................319Addressing Issues with Two or More Data Fields ..................................319Using Calculations Other Than Sum ............................................................321Using Calculated Data Fields ......................................................323Using Calculated Items .................................................................324Calculating Groups ..........................................................................326Using Show Values As to Perform Other Calculations ...................................327Using Advanced Pivot Table Techniques .......................................329Using AutoShow to Produce Executive Overviews .........................................329Using ShowDetail to Filter a Recordset ..............................................332Creating Reports for Each Region or Model ................................................334Manually Filtering Two or More Items in a Pivot Field .....................................338Using the Conceptual Filters .................................................339Using the Search Filter .....................................................................342Setting Up Slicers to Filter a Pivot Table .............................................343Using the Data Model in Excel 2016 ...................................................345Adding Both Tables to the Data Model ..................................................346Creating a Relationship Between the Two Tables ............................................346Defining the Pivot Cache and Building the Pivot Table ........................................347Adding Model Fields to the Pivot Table ........................................................348Adding Numeric Fields to the Values Area ......................................348Putting It All Together ......................................................349Next Steps....................................................................351 14 Advanced Pivot Table Tips and Techniques .....................353Tip 1: Force Pivot Tables to Refresh Automatically........................................353Tip 2: Refresh All Pivot Tables in a Workbook at the Same Time ...................................354Tip 3: Sort Data Items in a Unique Order, Not Ascending or Descending ....................355Tip 4: Turn Pivot Tables into Hard Data .............................................355Tip 5: Fill the Empty Cells Left by Row Fields .........................................356Option 1: Implement the Repeat All Data Items Feature ..................................356Option 2: Use Excel’s Go To Special Functionality ..............................357Tip 6: Add a Rank Number Field to a Pivot Table ...........................359Tip 7: Reduce the Size of Pivot Table Reports .........................360Delete the Source Data Worksheet ......................................360Tip 8: Create an Automatically Expanding Data Range .................................361Tip 9: Compare Tables Using a Pivot Table ..........................361Tip 10: AutoFilter a Pivot Table .............................................363Tip 11: Force Two Number Formats in a Pivot Table ..................................364Tip 12: Create a Frequency Distribution with a Pivot Table ..................................366Tip 13: Use a Pivot Table to Explode a Data Set to Different Tabs .................... 367Tip 14: Apply Restrictions on Pivot Tables and Pivot Fields .........................................368Pivot Table Restrictions ......................................................368Pivot Field Restrictions ...................................................370Tip 15: Use a Pivot Table to Explode a Data Set to Different Workbooks .....................372Next Steps..................................................................373 15 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. GetPivotData ...................................................375Avoiding the Evil GetPivotData Problem ..........................................................376Preventing GetPivotData by Typing the Formula..................................379Simply Turning Off GetPivotData ..................................................379Speculating on Why Microsoft Forced GetPivotData on Us ............................380Using GetPivotData to Solve Pivot Table Annoyances .........................381Building an Ugly Pivot Table .............................................382Building the Shell Report ..............................................................385Using GetPivotData to Populate the Shell Report ..........................387Updating the Report in Future Months ..................................390Conclusion .................................................................391 Index .......................................393