Definition
In the context of finance and Excel, slicers are a visual tool used for filtering data in PivotTables or PivotCharts, thereby allowing for easier segmentation and analysis. Slicers provide buttons that you can click to filter the data, and visual indicators for filtering, which makes understanding the filtered data intuitively clear. Essentially, they help users control which data they want to see on their reports.
Key Takeaways
- Slicers in Excel are visual filters or interactive buttons that allows you to filter the data in a PivotTable report or PivotChart report in a visually appealing and interactive manner.
- Through the use of slicers, you can quickly segment and filter the data to display just the information you need, without having to use drop-downs or write complex formulas. This makes the data analysis process more simplified and efficient.
- Slicers also enhance the visual appearance of your report and make it easier for others to understand. They offer a high level of customization in terms of colors, style, and setting apart from choosing the category of data to be displayed.
Importance
Slicers in Excel are important in finance for a multitude of reasons. Primarily, they enhance the efficiency of data analysis by allowing users to segment and filter data in a visually interactive manner.
This feature is useful for finance professionals who are often tasked with sifting through large volumes of data to procure necessary financial insights. Slicers can easily narrow down data based on multiple criteria in pivot tables, pivot charts, tables, or Excel cubes, which aids in generating comprehensive financial reports.
Furthermore, the visual and easy-to-use nature of slicers makes interpreting complex data simpler, facilitating effective decision-making within financial scenarios. Thus, their significance lies in increasing data accessibility, streamlining financial analysis, and providing better comprehension of critical financial data insights.
Explanation
Slicers in Excel are essentially visual filters or interactive buttons that allow you to filter the data in a PivotTable report or PivotChart, without the need to open drop-down lists to find the items that you want to filter. Initially introduced in Excel 2010, slicers have been significantly enhanced to work with table data since Excel 2013, making it a handy tool in financial data analysis.
Slicers make your data more interactive and provide you a quick and effective way to filter and present your data in an engaging way. In finance, Slicers can be put to manifold uses.
For instance, if you have large financial datasets, slicers can help you analyze specific sections of data without having to sort through unnecessary information. They are extremely constructive in large spreadsheets where one needs to prepare various reports based on the same dataset.
Slicers can also be used to build interactive dashboards for financial reporting and to filter transaction data, budgeting, or forecasting reports for specific departments, periods, regions, etc. It’s a powerful tool that aids in manipulating the visibility of your data, thereby assisting in informed decision making.
Examples of Slicers in Excel
Budget Tracking: A user might have a large Excel spreadsheet that details their company’s expenses across different departments and for various projects. This dataset includes columns like department name, project ID, date of expense, amount, category of expense (like travel, supplies, salaries), etc. A slicer can be added for the ‘department name’ to easily filter and display the data for one or more specific department. It helps in efficient and effective tracking of budget and controlling of costs.
Sales Analysis: In a retail business, an Excel spreadsheet could contain sales data with columns such as item name, category, region of sale, date, quantity sold and revenue. Slicers could be created for ‘item name’ and ‘region of sale’ to quickly display and analyze sales data for certain items or a particular region.
HR Payroll: In a company’s HR department, a large Excel spreadsheet might exist with employee’s payroll information including fields like employee ID, position, department, date of payment, hours worked, rate, overtime, and total pay. Slicers can be used to filter data by ‘department’ and ‘date of payment’, making it easier to track the payroll of certain departments and see changes over time.
FAQs about Slicers in Excel
What are Slicers in Excel?
Slicers in Excel are a visual filter in form of an interactive button. They are used to filter an Excel data table or PivotTable to visually indicate what data is shown.
How do I add a Slicer in Excel?
To add a slicer in Excel, first select your data table or PivotTable. Go to the “Insert” tab on the ribbon, click on “Slicer” in the filters group. From the pop-up box, check the column to use in your slicer and click OK.
Can I use Slicers on multiple tables?
Yes, you can. Excel allows you to connect a slicer to multiple PivotTables. You just need to select the slicer, go to the slicer tab on the ribbon, click on “Report Connections”. From the pop-up, you can select the PivotTables to connect the slicer to.
How do I customize Slicer style?
You can customize the style of slicer in Excel by selecting the slicer and then clicking on the options that appear under the “Slicer Tools” tab on the menu.
How do I delete a Slicer in Excel?
To delete a slicer in Excel, select the slicer and press the Delete key on your keyboard.
Related Entrepreneurship Terms
- Pivot Tables in Excel
- Data Analysis in Excel
- Dashboard in Excel
- Data Filtering in Excel
- Conditional Formatting in Excel
Sources for More Information
- Microsoft: Microsoft’s homepage offers a wealth of information about all their products, including Excel. You can find multiple user guides, tutorials, and forums discussing various aspects of Excel.
- Excel Easy: Excel Easy offers free tutorials (including illustrated spreadsheets as examples) on Excel basics as well as advanced topics like slicers.
- Excel Campus: Excel Campus is a blog and online learning platform made for users to become more efficient and proficient with Excel.
- Dummies: The Dummies series of books and online content includes extremely user friendly and easily understandable information on a wide range of topics, including how to use slicers in Excel.
