Though MS Excel 2007 is one of the most widely used applications across the globe, it is often under used by many. One such area that many people could benefit from are pivot tables. Ordering data in a simplified way, they help organize things far better than simple spreadsheets allow. Here is a quick introduction to them.

To use pivot tables, you will first need a spreadsheet of course. It is likely you will already have one ready to interrogate, or have just created one. Having done this, select the data you wish to analyze; including all relevant column headings.

From the Toolbar, select Insert, PivotTable. A window will open; in order you can check the data selection is correct. If this needs changing, you can overtype the information in the Table/Range field, or use the creation wizard to select the fields required.

There will be an option to create a new worksheet in the workbook you are presently working on, or open in another sheet on your system. Select this as relevant and a new worksheet will open.

The page will open which will present a split screen, with the headings listed in the PivotTable Field List. Select the ones you wish to add the table, which will automatically assign to Report Filter, Column Labels, Row Labels or Values. You can then drag and drop these to where you wish to view them.

The main area of the page, the table itself, will be updated according to where you place the information. The look of the table can be changed too, using the layout options.

These are only the very first steps to using MS Excel pivot tables; and there are many advanced features to play around with. However, it is important to note that any changes made in the source data, will only reflect once you Refresh the data.