Spreadsheets and data basics
AI turns ‘I don’t know the formula’ into ‘done’. Great for formulas and tidying data — as long as you check the maths and protect the data.
Your goals
- Get and understand spreadsheet formulas.
- Clean and reformat messy text data.
- Protect confidential data and check the maths.
Formulas, explained
Describe what you want: “Excel formula to sum column B where column A is ‘paid’”. Or paste a formula and ask “what does this do?”. AI is a patient tutor for Excel and Google Sheets.
Clean and convert
AI is excellent at tedious text jobs: split full names into first/last, standardise dates, turn a messy list into a tidy table, reformat addresses. Paste the mess, describe the tidy result.
A great AI spreadsheet job is…
Two hard rules
Check maths · guard data
1. AI can miscalculate — always sanity-check totals. 2. Never paste personal or confidential data into public AI tools (more in Module 7).
The messy contact list
Sana has 500 rows of jumbled contacts to tidy. She’s tempted to paste the lot — including phone numbers and emails — into a public AI tool.
What should they do? Think, then reveal.
Reveal the answer
Tidy the format, not the personal data.
For the method, she asks AI with dummy data or just the steps. She does the actual clean in her spreadsheet — real personal data never goes into a public AI tool.
End-of-module quiz
3 questions. You need 2 to pass. Retake as often as you like.
Question 1
AI is genuinely useful for…
Question 2
With numbers from AI you should…
Question 3
Confidential/personal data and public AI…
Remember this
- AI writes and explains formulas — a patient Excel/Sheets tutor.
- Brilliant for cleaning and reformatting messy text.
- Check the maths; never paste confidential data into public AI.
Finish all 8 modules and pass each quiz to earn your AI Skills for Work certificate of completion — shareable on your CV and LinkedIn. CPD accreditation is being arranged.