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Efficiency and Effectiveness – Which Comes First?

There is a timeless quote attributed to Peter Drucker, “Efficiency is doing things right, while effectiveness is doing the right things”. First, we have to figure out what is the best solution or strategy to accomplish something, and then find the most efficient way to execute that solution. Since most organizations employ Microsoft Office 365, let us consider examples from those applications.

One outstanding way to increase efficiency is the use of an essential tool in Excel that helps our teams be efficient in accomplishing their goals-PivotTables. One of the most valuable resource an organization has is the data they collect, which could include customer, product, sales, inventory, or many others. By analyzing data efficiently, we get the answers needed to make effective business decisions such as which marketing campaigns are most successful, what purchasing decisions are most cost-effective, or what products are most profitable. Excel PivotTables is a standard of business analysis, and employees should be versed in its use unless other data analysis solutions are available to them.

Another efficiency tool is the template feature in Word. By creating templates for standard documents or reports, workers can eliminate repetitive tasks such as formatting, designing themes and layouts, and even adding text blocks for corporate information, helping them be much more efficient in their work. In this way, teams can produce professional looking documents across all Office 365 products and employ a company’s branding for a consistent, proprietary look and feel.

With PowerPoint, workers can reuse slides from existing presentations avoiding duplicating work. In addition, slide masters can significantly decrease the time designers spend formatting and creating thematic elements in presentations. The slide master allows an organization to efficiently employ the same branding strategy in their presentations, and a custom theme can be used in other documents to execute an effective identity strategy.

These are just a few of the efficiency features covered in our Office365 courses. Contact us today to ask how we can help your organization become more efficient so that you can quickly execute your most effective solutions.

Heard Recently in a RAMCO Excel Class...

"I appreciate having an instructor in the classroom. Thanks for answering my questions and the great tips!"

- Richard D., RAMCO SharePoint Student