
I provide Excel training for finance teams which is tailored to your team’s needs. I’m based in Bristol but I’m happy to travel to other UK locations.
I can also deliver training via Microsoft Teams, Zoom or Google Meet. And I also train finance teams in Googlesheets.
How I design training for your finance team
You’ll probably have some ideas about where the gaps are in your team’s knowledge, or what you want them to be able to do better. I also have lots of ideas, having led finance teams myself for almost twenty years.
Once we’ve had an initial discovery call, I will send out a short online questionnaire to use with all potential delegates so I can understand their current skill levels and experiences.
I’ll then use this and our previous conversations to set out a syllabus for you. Once agreed, I’ll plan the training using examples that are relevant to you.
Why training a finance team together makes sense
Even if your team have very different roles and uses for Excel, there are some real advantages in training as a team. I find that training finance teams in Excel together brings “lightbulb moments” where people can quickly see new ways of doing things.
It also means that the learning is more likely to become embedded and continue after the initial Excel training course. If you’ve all been on a training journey together, you can reinforce each other’s learning, and share new skills with each other.
My professional experience tells me that when you have a finance team where everyone has a solid foundation in Excel and you have established shared good practice, you will make efficiency gains. More so than if you just train one or two superstars.
I commissioned Jess to provide a day’s Excel training for our finance team, including an introduction to Power Query.
Rob Jesson, Finance Director, Fair Ways
She drew on her experiences of managing finance teams to select examples that were relevant to us, and gave practical uses throughout the day for the formulas and functions that she covered.
Her style of training was ideally suited to our team and pitched at the right level, and has encouraged us to start thinking about how we can improve the way we perform current finance tasks
My finance team have really different levels of Excel skills or different roles – how does this work?
It’s entirely normal that within an accounts team there will be a range of abilities and experiences. I design my training with that in mind so that there are always “stretch” activities.
If there are really clear differences, then I can plan training at a couple of different levels. For example, I have organised courses where the morning session is slower and aimed at more foundational knowledge and the afternoon session goes more quickly through more advanced functions.
What do you typically include in an Excel course for finance teams?
It really does depend on the needs of the team. However, I will always ensure training includes a session on navigation and data entry shortcuts, and some exercises to understand key concepts in Excel, such as structured data and text vs numbers.
It’s also pretty common for me to include SUMIFS and XLOOKUP which I think are the two most important functions for many finance users.
I can also include an introduction to Power Query, which is a super useful tool for most finance team users.
How much does Excel training for finance teams cost?
I charge £850 to design and deliver a day’s training (plus reasonable expenses). This includes our initial conversation, scoping and questionnaire process. In return you’ll get a course that’s completely tailored to your team’s needs for considerably less than the price of sending a few team members on a general course.
Contact me to make an initial enquiry.
Image: Photo by Bruno Nascimento on Unsplash