Introduction 1

XP

Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office 2003

Introduction to Problem Solving with Microsoft Office 2003

“You’ve got to seize the opportunity if it is presented to you.” — Clive Davis

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XPAbout This Book andMicrosoft 2003

• Focus of book How to use Microsoft Office 2003 to:

• Organize ideas and information

• Solve business problems

• Manage data

Problem-solving concepts and tasks

• Microsoft 2003 Suite of programs including Word, Excel, Access, and

PowerPoint

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XPSections of the Book

1. Organizing and Communicating Information

2. How to Solve Problems with Excel

3. How to Solve Problems with Access

4. Integration

5. Capstone Projects

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XPSection 1: Organizing and Communicating Information

• Managing files

• Conducting business research on the Web

• Composing, formatting, and distributing business documents (Word) and presentations (PowerPoint)

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XPSection 2: How to Solve Problems with Excel

• Spreadsheet program used to display, analyze, and manipulate numeric data

• Widely used in business to support decision making

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XPSection 3: How to Solve Problems with Access

• Database program used to maintain, organize, and retrieve related data, and then sort, filter, and display the information to serve business needs

• Supports decision making

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XPSection 4: Integration

• The ability to share information among programs Main advantage of using Office

• How to make data transportable and universal by using HTML and XML documents on their own and incorporated into Access databases and Excel spreadsheets

• How to integrate information from Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Access to create sophisticated documents

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XPSection 5: Capstone Projects

• Pose realistic business problems

• Ask you to use the tools described in the book to solve the problem

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XPTaking aProblem-Solving Approach

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XPProblem Recognition

• Recognize and identify the problem

• Describe and analyze the problem

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XPAnalyzing the Problem

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XPAnalyzing the Problem

• Data gathering Consider credibility, reliability, and accuracy

• Pre-processing Manipulate data into appropriate format

• Cleansing Identify and correct data corruption

• Filtering Remove data that isn’t useful or necessary

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XPProblem Statement

• Key characteristic Some missing piece of information is identified that is

required to solve the problem or make a decision

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XPAnalyzing the Solution

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XPUnderstanding the Problem

• What data is needed and what data or information is already known?

• Is the data or information reliable and accurate?

• What is the likely range of potential solutions?

• What types of output are required? (e.g., single value, table, printed report, Web page)

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XPFormulating a Solution Plan

• Plan how to use Office by considering the steps you need to take to solve the problem Numerical calculation Determining if data meet specific criteria Organizing information or results in a specific format Combining several of these steps

• Place data in well-organized, easy-to-understand layouts

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XPImplementing the Solution

• Input data

• Process data Depends on the problem and the proposed solution

• Configure desired output

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XPImplementing the Solution:What You Must Know

• Spreadsheets How to correctly write formulas and functions and use

spreadsheet tools

• Databases What kind of information is stored in the database and

how it is organized

• Business documents and presentations How to organize and articulate the information so that it

meets the needs of your audience

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XPEvaluating the Solution

• Check the results to ensure they are correct

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XPProblem

• You work in the human resources department of McNamara Construction Inc. a construction company. Although employees receive complete benefit information when first hired , they frequently are unaware of the many benefits available to them other than health insurance. You task is to design a newsletter to keep employees informed of the many benefits provided.

• Benefits available Vacation and sick days accrual policy Flexible spending accounts 401 K and retirement benefits Maternity and Family Paid Leave Online training for OSHA certifications