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Excel Interactive Dashboards and Data Analysis

Name: Excel Interactive Dashboards and Data Analysis
Rating: 4.5 (7098 reviews)

Build interactive Excel dashboards with PivotTables, slicers and charts - answer business questions in minutes

Created byIan Littlejohn

Last updated 8/2026

English

English [Auto],Spanish [Auto],

What you'll learn

Build a complete interactive Excel dashboard from raw data using PivotTables, PivotCharts and slicers
Structure your source data correctly first, so your PivotTables do not break when new data arrives
Filter and group data with Excel slicers, including one slicer driving more than one table at once
Run comparison, trend, ranking, contribution, variance and pareto analysis without writing a single formula
Follow a practical activity brief in every section, then check your work against a full video walkthrough
Use conditional formatting - highlight rules, top and bottom rules, data bars, color scales and icon sets
Apply best practice for table and graph design, so a manager can read your dashboard without you in the room
Build Sales, Human Resource and Finance dashboards end to end, from raw data to a working dashboard

Course content

13 sections • 71 lectures • 3h 54m total length

Introduction to the Course1:24
Meet your instructor and see what you will build: interactive Excel dashboards driven by PivotTables, slicers, charts and conditional formatting, with no formulas and no VBA.
About the Course1:23
How to get the best from the course: setting the video quality to full HD, changing the playback speed to suit you, and where to go for Udemy support and your certificate.
Please download the Training Data Sets0:04
Download the two training workbooks used through the course - the sales training sample and the employee master - so you can build every dashboard yourself.

Introduction to Starting with Pivot Tables0:38
What this section covers: getting your data into the right shape, then building PivotTables with multiple dimensions and multiple measures, and sorting the results.
Structuring Data Correctly3:58
Get your source data ready for PivotTables: one header row, no blank rows or columns and no totals inside the data, so the PivotTable reads every record.
Creating Pivot Tables8:29
Create your first PivotTable from the sales data: drag fields into rows and values, sort the result and set the number format.
Working with Multiple Dimensions5:00
Add fields to both rows and columns to break a total down by more than one dimension at a time, and control the grand totals.
Working with Multiple Measures3:48
Put several measures in the values area of one PivotTable and format each one, so a single table carries all the figures the dashboard needs.
Your turn: create pivot tables0:28
Your turn: build PivotTables from the training sample with the dimensions and measures your dashboard will need.
Walkthrough: the pivot tables exercise6:51
Walkthrough of the Creating Pivot Tables exercise: laying out the fields, sorting, number formatting and a first look at conditional formatting.

Introduction to Filtering and Grouping Data with Pivot Tables0:47
What this section covers: filtering PivotTables with slicers - including one slicer driving several tables - methods of aggregation, grouping, and PivotTable design.
Filtering Data with Excel Slicers4:33
Add a slicer to a PivotTable so the report filters with buttons, the control that makes a dashboard interactive.
Your turn: add slicers0:27
Your turn: add slicers to your PivotTables and check the report filters as you click.
Walkthrough: the slicers exercise4:12
Walkthrough of the Using Slicers exercise: inserting the slicers, formatting them and checking the filtered figures.
Filtering Data with Slicers from more than One Table4:11
Use Report Connections to connect one slicer to several PivotTables, so a single click filters every table on the dashboard.
Different Methods of Aggregation7:40
Change how a PivotTable summarizes a field - Sum, Average, Count, Max and Min - and show several aggregations of the same field side by side.
Your turn: use the methods of aggregation0:16
Your turn: summarize the sales data with several methods of aggregation in one PivotTable.
Walkthrough: the methods of aggregation exercise3:27
Walkthrough of the Methods of Aggregation exercise: setting each field's aggregation and formatting the numbers.
Grouping Data in Pivot Tables3:31
Group items in a PivotTable into your own categories and control the subtotals that appear for each group.
Review of the Pivot Table Design5:25
Work through the PivotTable Design tab - report layout, table styles, subtotals and grand totals - so tables look right on a dashboard.

Introduction to Creating the Interactive Dashboard0:36
What this section covers: assembling your PivotTables, charts and slicers into a single interactive dashboard sheet.
Your turn: create the interactive dashboard0:16
Your turn: build the interactive dashboard - lay the PivotTables out on one sheet and wire the slicers to all of them.
Walkthrough: the interactive dashboard exercise8:54
Walkthrough of the Interactive Dashboard exercise: arranging the PivotTables, adding the slicers and checking that one click filters everything.

Introduction to Trend and Time Analysis1:04
What this section covers: trend and time analysis - grouping dates, adding your own date fields, trend charts and trend lines.
Trend and Time Analysis using Date Groups3:31
Group a date field into years, quarters and months so a table of transactions becomes a trend, and control the subtotals it shows.
Your turn: analyze the trend0:21
Your turn: group the order dates and build the trend view for your dashboard.
Walkthrough: the trend analysis exercise4:44
Walkthrough of the Trend Analysis exercise: grouping the dates, sorting the periods and formatting the trend table.
Trend and Time Analysis with Fields6:05
Add your own year and month fields to the source data when date grouping is not enough, then refresh the PivotTable to pick them up.
Trend and Time Analysis with Graphs3:49
Chart the trend as a PivotChart, connect it to the slicers, and add a trend line to show the direction of travel.
Trend Lines4:17
Add a trend line to a chart, including a moving average, to show the underlying direction behind a noisy series.

Introduction to Asking Questions of your Data0:59
What this section covers: asking questions of your data with label filters, value filters, Top 10 analysis and date filters.
Filtering Text Data3:21
Use label filters on a text field to answer a question - rows that begin with, contain or equal a value - without changing the PivotTable layout.
Filtering Values2:02
Use value filters to show only the items above, below or between the figures you specify.
Top 10 Analysis5:33
Use the Top 10 filter to pull out the best and worst performers, by value or by percentage of the total, and chart the result.
Your turn: ask questions of your data0:29
Your turn: answer a set of questions about the sales data using label filters, value filters and Top 10.
Walkthrough: the asking questions exercise3:20
Walkthrough of the Asking Questions exercise: applying each filter and reading the answer straight off the PivotTable.
Filtering Date Data4:16
Filter a PivotTable by date, including relative periods such as last month or this year, and refresh as the data moves on.

Introduction to Creating a Sales Dashboard0:37
What this section covers: building a sales dashboard that brings the PivotTables, charts, Top 10 and slicers together on one sheet.
Your turn: create a sales dashboard0:22
Your turn: build the sales dashboard from the training sample - the layout first, then the interactivity.
Walkthrough: the sales dashboard exercise, part 1 - the layout9:00
Walkthrough of the Sales Dashboard exercise, part 1: building the PivotTables and charts, including the trend line, and laying them out on the sheet.
Walkthrough: the sales dashboard exercise, part 2 - the interactivity3:32
Walkthrough of the Sales Dashboard exercise, part 2: adding the slicers and using Report Connections so one click drives every chart.

Introduction to Percentage Calculations0:34
What this section covers: contribution analysis - showing values as a percentage of the total, and charting the split as a pie.
Percentage Calculations4:22
Use Show Values As, % of Grand Total to turn values into a contribution analysis, and sort so the biggest contributors come first.
Pie Graphs5:45
Build a pie PivotChart to show contribution, and compare it against column and line charts to see which tells the story best.

Introduction to Calculations0:52
What this section covers: the Show Values As calculations - % Of, Difference From, running total and rank - and a worked financial example.
Percentage of Calculation1:57
Use Show Values As, % Of to compare each item against a chosen base item rather than against the total.
Difference from Calculation2:46
Use Show Values As, Difference From to show the change against the previous period, as a value or as a percentage.
Financial Example4:48
Build a financial report inside a PivotTable: running totals, ranking and difference from the previous period, formatted for reporting.
Your turn: add pivot table calculations0:27
Your turn: add % Of, Difference From and running total calculations to your PivotTable.
Walkthrough: the pivot table calculations exercise5:41
Walkthrough of the Pivot Table Calculations exercise: choosing each Show Values As option and formatting the result.

Introduction to Conditional Formatting1:01
What this section covers: conditional formatting on a PivotTable - highlight cell rules, top and bottom rules, data bars, color scales and icon sets.
Highlight cell rules6:50
Apply highlight cell rules to a PivotTable so values above or below your threshold color themselves as the data changes.
Top / Bottom rules6:25
Use top and bottom rules to highlight the highest and lowest values, including above and below average.
Your turn: apply conditional formatting0:25
Your turn: highlight the figures on your dashboard with cell rules and top and bottom rules.
Walkthrough: the conditional formatting exercise4:31
Walkthrough of the Conditional Formatting exercise: setting each rule and choosing the cells it applies to.
Data Bars3:25
Add data bars to a PivotTable so the size of every value is visible inside the cell itself.
Color Scales3:23
Add a color scale to a PivotTable to shade every value from high to low across the whole range.
Icon Sets4:04
Add icon sets to a PivotTable - arrows, traffic lights and flags - so the dashboard shows status at a glance.

Requirements

Microsoft Excel on Windows. Everything in this course works in Microsoft 365, Excel 2021, Excel 2019 and Excel 2016. Excel 2016 reached end of support in October 2025, so Microsoft 365 or Excel 2021 is recommended.
You should be comfortable working in a spreadsheet - entering data, formatting cells, using a simple formula. No PivotTable experience is assumed.
No Microsoft 365 Copilot license is required. Everything in this course is built with standard Excel features.
This course uses Excel on the desktop. If you work mainly in Excel for the web, Complete Introduction to Excel Online Pivot Tables in 3 Hrs covers that ground instead.

Description

This course contains the use of artificial intelligence.

Every lesson in this course is written, created and recorded by me. AI is used only to help produce supporting images and written materials around the lessons.

Someone asks you which region is behind target, and which products are carrying it. You send a table. An hour later they ask the same question about a different quarter.

An interactive dashboard ends that loop. The person asking picks the region, the quarter and the product themselves, and the numbers move. You build it once.

This course shows you how to build one in Excel, using PivotTables, PivotCharts and slicers. No VBA, no add-ins, no code. If you can get your data into a table, you can build the dashboard.

WHAT YOU WILL BUILD

You start with raw transaction data and finish with a working Sales dashboard - key metrics across the top, a trend graph, a Top 10, contribution and variance analysis, and slicers that drive all of it at once.

COURSE CONTENT AND OUTCOMES

Structure your source data correctly, so your PivotTables do not break when new data arrives
Create PivotTables to summarize and aggregate data across several dimensions and measures
Filter with Excel slicers, including one slicer driving more than one table
Group data by date, value and text, and change the method of aggregation
Build trend and time analysis using date groups, fields, graphs and trend lines
Ask questions of your data - filter text, filter values, run Top 10 analysis
Run comparison, trend, ranking, contribution, variance and pareto analysis
Add calculations inside the PivotTable - percentage of, difference from
Use conditional formatting - highlight rules, top and bottom rules, data bars, color scales, icon sets
Apply best practice for dashboard layout, table design and graph design

HOW THE COURSE IS TAUGHT

Every section opens with a short spoken introduction, then works through the technique in videos of four to ten minutes. You then get a practical activity brief, you do it on the training data, and a full video walkthrough shows you how it was done. The training data files download in the first section, so you are working on the same data I am from the first lesson.

This course assumes you can already build a basic PivotTable. If you want PivotTables themselves in depth first, Complete Introduction to Excel Pivot Tables covers that ground.

ABOUT THE TRAINER

I have been training business people to work with data since 2008, and publishing on Udemy since 2013. Sixteen courses, more than 398,000 learners, and more than 139,000 reviews at an average rating of 4.6.

I specialise in training business users - not developers - to turn data into information they can act on, using Microsoft Excel, Copilot in Excel, Power Query, Power Pivot, Microsoft Power BI, Looker Studio and Amazon QuickSight.

Everything is downloadable, you can work at your own pace, and the dashboard you build is yours to point at your own data. Let's get started.

Who this course is for:

Analysts, managers and business owners who already send reports out of Excel and keep being asked the same question about a different quarter
Excel users who can build a basic PivotTable but have never turned one into a dashboard with slicers, charts and conditional formatting
People who have been asked for a Sales, HR or Finance dashboard by Friday and do not want to learn VBA or Power BI to deliver it
If you want PivotTables themselves in depth rather than dashboards, take Complete Introduction to Excel Pivot Tables first. This course assumes you can build a basic PivotTable and spends its time turning them into dashboards.

Excel Interactive Dashboards and Data Analysis

What you'll learn

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Course content

Introduction3 lectures • 3min

Starting with Pivot Tables7 lectures • 29min

Filtering and Grouping Data with Pivot Tables10 lectures • 34min

Creating the Interactive Dashboard3 lectures • 10min

Trend and Time Analysis7 lectures • 24min

Asking Questions of your Data7 lectures • 20min

Creating a Sales Dashboard4 lectures • 14min

Percentage Calculations3 lectures • 11min

Calculations6 lectures • 17min

Conditional Formatting8 lectures • 30min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: