Resources for advancing your Microsoft skills

Q. I wish to upgrade my basic PC and other device skills, especially with Excel and other Microsoft Office modules. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions?

A. Many resources are available to sharpen your Microsoft skills, and I admire you for wanting to do so. This is a wise investment of your time and one that, in the long run, could certainly cut the amount of time you have to spend doing certain tasks.

Undoubtedly, the correct path of resources will depend on your current understanding of Microsoft and how proficient you would like to be. Let’s walk through some options, and you can decide which are best for you.

LINKEDIN LEARNING

If your organization subscribes to LinkedIn Learning, you can access numerous tutorials to guide you in expanding your understanding of Microsoft, including video courses designed to help you pass Microsoft certification exams. A couple of my favorites were Microsoft Office Specialist Certification Levels for Office 365 and Office 2019 and Cert Prep: Excel Associate – Microsoft Office Specialist for Office 2019 and Office 365. LinkedIn Learning offers many other videos for users of all levels. If you have access to this tool, you can receive all the education that your schedule allows.

MICROSOFT LEARN

Microsoft Learn is a website that offers free modules on Microsoft-related topics including Get started with Microsoft data analytics and Introduction to GitHub Copilot. Learn attempts to tailor-make your learning experience by gathering information about roles you are in, your skill level, the types of technology you are interested in using, etc. This is a great resource to hone the skills you need.

MICROSOFT UPDATE HISTORY

The Microsoft update history webpage lists every update made in Microsoft 365 Apps for business and enterprise and for the subscription version of the desktop apps for Project and Visio. This allows you to stay on the cutting edge of any big developments. Keep in mind that it also informs you of very small developments. Check out the website at least monthly to stay current on the latest updates. Microsoft seems to always have something exciting to share!

These resources are great, but you will make much better use of them if (1) you know what problem you need to solve, (2) you learn what tool is best equipped to assist with that task, and (3) you identify the pertinent data that needs to be entered into the tool.

Last, but perhaps most importantly, you must be able to properly process the results the tool produces. It doesn’t do much good to learn how to run a tool if you don’t understand how it works or what to do with the results. To hone these skills, use your Microsoft applications as much as you can. When you run into questions, track down the answers. Remember, the best way to develop your skills is to keep learning and using them.

About the authors

Kelly L. Williams, CPA, Ph.D., MBA, is an associate professor of accounting at the Jones College of Business at Middle Tennessee State University.

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