January 2026
Beginner to intermediate
272 pages
6h 31m
English
Content preview from Python in Excel Step-by-Step
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Chapter 8Working with Data Tables
This chapter builds on everything you’ve learned so far to work with entire tables of data.
A hypothetical data analysis scenario is used in this chapter to provide context to how and why you will change, combine, and pivot your dataframes.
8.1 ADVENTUREWORKS DATA ANALYSIS
Imagine you’re a newly hired Analyst at AdventureWorks. Your first project is to analyze why reseller sales’ profitability is down in Canada and the United States.
AdventureWorks executives are particularly interested in why large resellers in the United States and Canada have decreased profitability. Their interest is due to a recent campaign to attract larger resellers as part of AdventureWorks’ growth strategy.
This hypothetical data analysis scenario is used as context for the Python formulas you write in this chapter and the next. As you work through this chapter you will likely think that everything covered could be done using out-of-the-box Excel features (e.g., PivotTables).
You would be correct in this thinking.
However, think of building skills with Python in Excel as the gateway to capabilities that are difficult, or impossible, to achieve with traditional Excel features.
You will see an example of this in the next chapter on data visualization. Other examples of where you need a Python foundation to be successful are cluster analysis and crafting machine learning predictive models, which are briefly touched on in the last chapter of the book.
8.2 CHANGING ...
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I'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.