Use of MS Excel to interpret data in the context of organizational management - Essay Example

Use of MS Excel to Interpret Data in the Context of Organizational Management Microsoft Excel is a tremendous resource for managers of organizations. Many large companies use it to guide decision-making processes (Michel, 2006). It can be used to organize and interpret data in ways that reveal significant data patterns that might not otherwise be evident, thereby directly impacting the quality of decision-making. Among the useful features of Excel for data interpretation are the graph and chart wizard, data sorting and filtering, and formulae.

These are just a few examples of the robust features that have made Excel a virtually indispensable tool for managers in today's business environment. The graph and chart wizards arguably have the greatest "wow" factor of all of the tools of Microsoft Excel. This feature enables the user to develop graphical representations of numbers that make trends and relationships among data visually obvious. For example, a manager can utilize this feature to make a trend chart that plots increases and decreases and projects future performance of the organization based on the data fed into a spreadsheet.

Also, the feature can be used produce pie and bar charts that clearly delineate percentages of a whole that are represented by pieces of data. The feature also produces scatter charts and Venn diagrams illustrating the fallout of related statistics. Data sorting and filtering is another very useful feature of Excel for managers. This allows the user to quickly sort data by prioritized categories, then by value in order to float the highest priority values to the top of a spreadsheet. Filtering then allows the user to easily zero in on particular data sets within a spreadsheet and hide irrelevant data.

These features enable organizational managers to quickly access the data they need to make better decisions faster. Finally, the use of formulae is turns spreadsheets into automatic calculators. Managers can enter a formula that will automatically compute outcomes as numbers are entered into a spreadsheet. This enables the drawing of quick conclusions as disparate pieces of data become known. For example, a manager who needs to track percent attainment of a goal can input a formula that divides attainment by the goal and formats the designated cell as a percentage.

Then, as each month's revenue is typed in, the percent attainment will show up automatically on the spreadsheet. Legal and Ethical Implications of Profiling Potential Employees There are significant legal and ethical implications associated with using surveys to gather characteristics in order to create an ideal profile of potential employees. Not only might a company overlook candidates who are actually right for the position, but they can also get themselves into trouble. In an environment where cost containment is essential, the prospect of expensive litigation or fines is likely not worth the risk involved with collecting dubious data for hiring decisions.

The most glaring of these issues is the potential to engage in racial, ethnic, religious or other prohibited types of profiling of potential employees. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 expressly prohibits employment discrimination based on any of these factors. Not only would it be illegal to make hiring decisions based upon these kinds of considerations, but it would also arguably be unethical. Age is another factor that should be handled delicately under the law. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act expressly protects employees age 40 and older from discrimination.

Therefore, if the survey concluded that ideal candidates for the position should be younger, then this can present a serious legal problem for the organization. Another consideration that may not be legally prohibited, but certainly could have ethical implications, is the potential invasion of privacy that goes along with any kind of data collection and compilation. The survey would invariably ask respondents to provide some personal information about them in order to draw useful conclusions about desirable characteristics.

Such questions could easily cross a fuzzy boundary of inappropriateness. For example, asking lifestyle questions in order to determine characteristics best suited to an employment position could be considered unethical. Works Cited Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C.A. Sec. 621 (1967). Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C.A. Sec. 2000 (1964). Michel, R. (2006, April). Tools invoke return on IT spend. Manufacturing Business Technology, 24(4), 38.