XP Introduction1 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office About This Book and Microsoft 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Sections 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Section 1: Organizing and Communicating Information Managing files Conducting business research on the Web Composing, formatting, and distributing business documents (Word) and presentations (PowerPoint)

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Section 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Section 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Section 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Section 5: Capstone Projects Pose realistic business problems Ask you to use the tools described in the book to solve the problem

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Taking a Problem-Solving Approach

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Problem Recognition Recognize and identify the problem Describe and analyze the problem

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Analyzing the Problem

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Analyzing 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Problem Statement Key characteristic  Some missing piece of information is identified that is required to solve the problem or make a decision

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Analyzing the Solution

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Understanding 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)

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Formulating 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Implementing the Solution Input data Process data  Depends on the problem and the proposed solution Configure desired output

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Implementing 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

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Evaluating the Solution Check the results to ensure they are correct

XP Introduction Succeeding in Business Applications with MS Office Problem 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