Certificate Course in Business Reporting Using Excel

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Business Analyst, Reporting Analyst and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-BI-119

Before you join: Participants should be comfortable using Excel worksheets, basic formulas, sorting, filtering and charts.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Business reports often fail because data is manually copied from multiple files, KPI definitions differ between teams, and workbooks cannot be refreshed or checked quickly. Managers need reports that show what changed, why it changed and where action is required. This course addresses the practical reporting work behind monthly management packs, sales reports, operational dashboards, budget variance analysis and risk reporting using Microsoft Excel.

Participants learn to turn raw extracts into controlled reporting datasets, build repeatable calculations and present findings through PivotTables, charts and dashboards. The course covers Excel Tables, Power Query, data models, lookup and aggregation formulas, DAX measures, time comparisons, exception reporting and visual design. Participants also learn how to document KPI definitions, reconcile totals, control refreshes and protect critical formulas so reports can be used with greater confidence.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with guided case work based on realistic reporting scenarios, including branch performance, customer retention, procurement spend and budget monitoring. Participants build and review reporting components, identify data-quality issues and practise explaining variances to decision-makers. They leave with a reusable Excel reporting pack structure, KPI specification template, data-preparation workflow and reporting control checklist. The five-day course is delivered in a classroom in 50+ cities or live online, with approximately 6.5 contact hours each day. Participants receive a certificate of completion.

The course suits professionals who already use Excel and need to produce more reliable, refreshable management information. It is particularly relevant for analysts, reporting officers, finance staff, operations teams and managers responsible for recurring performance reports.

What you will be able to do

  • Define KPI specifications with clear formulas, owners, sources and reporting frequencies
  • Prepare reporting data using Excel Tables, validation rules and reconciliation checks
  • Transform and combine source extracts using Power Query queries and parameters
  • Build relational Excel data models using fact tables, dimensions and calendar tables
  • Create reusable management calculations using XLOOKUP, SUMIFS, dynamic arrays and DAX measures
  • Produce PivotTable reports with controlled filters, drill-downs and period comparisons
  • Design dashboards and charts that communicate trends, variances and exceptions clearly
  • Establish a repeatable reporting process with refresh, review, sign-off and distribution controls

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Reduce time spent cleaning and consolidating recurring Excel extracts
  • Build management reports with traceable KPI calculations and reconciled totals
  • Present budget variances, trends and exceptions with clearer visual evidence
  • Troubleshoot formulas, data refreshes and report inconsistencies more systematically
  • Create a practical portfolio of reusable Excel reporting templates and controls

For your organisation

  • Shorten production time for monthly management packs and operational reports
  • Improve consistency of KPI definitions across finance, operations and commercial teams
  • Reduce manual copy-and-paste errors through query-based data preparation
  • Strengthen report assurance with reconciliations, validation rules and sign-off steps
  • Give managers clearer evidence for budget, performance and service-delivery decisions

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can translate management questions into defined KPIs and reporting requirements.

  • Reporting decisions linked to operational, financial, customer and risk questions
  • KPI definitions specifying numerator, denominator, owner, frequency and source
  • SMART reporting requirements translated into measurable stakeholder information needs
  • Audience, decision, cadence and action mapped in a reporting brief
  • Leading and lagging indicators distinguished using causal performance logic
  • Data grain identified before selecting measures, dimensions and comparisons

Participants can structure and check source data before building reports.

  • Excel Tables structured with names, calculated columns and automatic expansion
  • Data types, blanks and error values profiled before transformation
  • Source-to-report data lineage documented for recurring management reports
  • Field naming conventions established for measures, dates, categories and keys
  • Reconciliation checks compare record counts, totals and exception values
  • Control totals retained to validate imported and refreshed datasets

Participants can import, clean and combine recurring data extracts using Power Query.

  • Power Query imports CSV, workbook, folder and database extracts
  • Applied Steps clean headers, types, nulls and duplicate records
  • Merge and Append queries combine reference tables and periodic extracts
  • Parameters control file paths, reporting periods and reusable query settings
  • Query folding considerations identified when connecting to relational databases
  • Refresh errors diagnosed through step inspection and source validation

Participants can build an Excel data model that supports multi-table reporting.

  • Relational data models separate fact tables from descriptive dimensions
  • Primary keys and foreign keys tested for uniqueness and referential integrity
  • One-to-many relationships configured with appropriate cross-filter direction
  • Calendar tables support monthly, quarterly and year-to-date reporting
  • Star schema choices reduce ambiguity in multi-table PivotTable analysis
  • Data Model loading decisions balance workbook size, refresh and access

Participants can create controlled, reusable formulas for common reporting requirements.

  • SUMIFS, COUNTIFS and AVERAGEIFS calculate criteria-based management measures
  • XLOOKUP retrieves controlled attributes using exact-match and fallback handling
  • INDEX-MATCH supports flexible lookups where column positions change
  • IFERROR, LET and dynamic arrays simplify reusable reporting formulas
  • Structured references maintain formula readability within Excel Tables
  • Formula auditing traces precedents, dependents and inconsistent calculations

Participants can create DAX measures for KPI, ratio and period-comparison reporting.

  • Measures distinguish aggregation logic from row-level calculated columns
  • DAX CALCULATE modifies filter context for controlled KPI definitions
  • Time intelligence measures calculate MTD, YTD and prior-period comparisons
  • DIVIDE handles zero denominators in percentages and ratio measures
  • Distinct counts and conditional measures support customer and risk reporting
  • Measure names and display formats standardise business interpretation

Participants can produce interactive summary reports that support controlled analysis.

  • PivotTables summarise model data by hierarchy, segment and reporting period
  • Slicers and Timelines provide governed interactive report filtering
  • Value Field Settings apply counts, percentages and custom calculations
  • Sort, filter and drill-down controls expose exceptions behind headline totals
  • GETPIVOTDATA retrieves stable values for formatted management report layouts
  • PivotChart selection matches comparison, composition, trend and distribution questions

Participants can design Excel dashboards that direct attention to material performance signals.

  • Dashboard wireframes prioritise decisions, exceptions, trends and required actions
  • Chart selection matches metric type, audience question and comparison task
  • Bar, line, waterfall and variance charts communicate performance accurately
  • Conditional formatting highlights thresholds, outliers and overdue actions
  • Layout, whitespace and visual hierarchy direct attention to material signals
  • Colour, labels and scales follow accessible reporting design conventions

Participants can analyse performance changes and communicate their business implications.

  • Actual-versus-budget analysis separates price, volume, mix and timing drivers
  • Variance waterfalls reconcile opening position, movements and closing position
  • Period comparisons calculate absolute, percentage and annualised performance changes
  • Exception rules identify breached thresholds, missing data and unusual movements
  • Scenario inputs model base, upside and downside reporting assumptions
  • Commentary structures connect findings, causes, implications and recommended actions

Participants can establish a controlled recurring reporting process and improvement plan.

  • Workbook protection controls input cells, formulas, sheets and file access
  • Data validation lists prevent invalid categories and uncontrolled user entries
  • Refresh, reconciliation and sign-off steps form a reporting operating procedure
  • Version naming and distribution logs maintain report traceability
  • Monthly reporting calendars assign owners, deadlines and escalation points
  • Personal application plans define report improvements, stakeholders and first actions

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. KPI specification template
  2. Power Query data-preparation workflow
  3. Excel reporting data model
  4. Management dashboard wireframe
  5. Variance analysis and commentary template
  6. Reporting refresh and sign-off checklist

Who should attend

  • Business Analyst — needs repeatable reports that convert operational data into management decisions
  • Reporting Analyst — needs stronger controls, refresh processes and dashboard design methods
  • Financial Analyst — needs reliable budget, forecast and actual-versus-budget reporting
  • Operations Manager — needs visible performance measures, exceptions and action tracking
  • Data Analyst — needs Excel-based reporting methods for business users and recurring packs
  • Project or PMO Officer — needs consistent status, milestone, resource and risk reporting

Skills and tools covered

KPI specificationPower Query transformationExcel data modellingDAX measure designDashboard reportingReporting governance

Tools and standards

Microsoft Excel, Power Query, Power Pivot Data Model, DAX

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings followed by guided case work, group exercises, report reviews and reporting simulations. Participants work with realistic business extracts to prepare data, define measures, build PivotTables and present variances. Trainer feedback focuses on calculation logic, source controls, chart selection and decision usefulness. Throughout the course, participants relate methods to their own recurring reports and complete an application plan for improving a current reporting process.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should be comfortable using Excel worksheets, basic formulas, sorting, filtering and charts. Experience preparing recurring reports, working with operational or financial data, or supporting management decisions is useful. The course assumes confidence with common Excel tasks such as entering formulas and managing files. Prior experience with Power Query, Power Pivot, DAX, relational data modelling or dashboard design is not required. Programming, SQL, statistics and prior business intelligence platform experience are not required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should already be comfortable with worksheets, basic formulas, sorting and filtering. Power Query, Power Pivot, DAX and data-model experience are taught from the beginning and are not prerequisites.

Bring a laptop with a current desktop version of Microsoft Excel, ideally Microsoft 365 for Windows. A Windows desktop installation provides the strongest support for Power Query, the Data Model and related reporting features.

The course is designed for analysts, reporting officers, finance professionals, operations staff, PMO personnel and managers producing recurring reports. It is suitable for people who need stronger reporting methods rather than introductory spreadsheet skills.

General Excel courses usually focus on spreadsheet features, while this course concentrates on the reporting process from source data to management decision. It also differs from Power BI training by using Excel as the primary environment for data preparation, modelling, analysis and report delivery.

Participants can apply the methods to monthly packs, budget reports, sales dashboards, service-delivery reports and project status reports. The templates and controls support immediate improvements to existing workbooks, especially where manual consolidation and inconsistent KPIs are causing delays.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and includes about 6.5 contact hours. Time is divided between instructor input, guided case work, group review, reporting simulations and application planning across ten modules.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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