Project Sales: Excel Forecasting Functions

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Project Sales: Excel Forecasting Functions

This course is part of multiple programs.

Instructor: LearningMate

Included with

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2 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

2 hours to complete

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

2 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

2 hours to complete

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

What you'll learn

Analyze historical sales data and create financial forecasts for different growth scenarios using key Excel functions.

Skills you'll gain

Tools you'll learn

Microsoft Excel

Details to know

Shareable certificate

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There are 2 modules in this course

Ready to move beyond basic data entry and unlock the predictive power of Excel? This intermediate course, Project Sales: Excel Forecasting Functions, is designed for aspiring financial analysts, business planners, and data-driven professionals who want to build robust financial forecasts. You’ll learn to transform historical sales data into meaningful insights by calculating key performance metrics like Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) and moving averages to understand underlying trends.

The course dives deep into scenario-based forecasting, a critical skill for strategic planning. You will master the application of Excel’s AVERAGE function for stable, "flat" projections and the GROWTH function for dynamic, "trend-based" scenarios. Through expert-led screencasts, hands-on exercises, and real-world case studies, you will build a complete sales forecast from start to finish. To succeed in this course, you should have a basic familiarity with Excel functions and an understanding of concepts like revenue and sales data. You will leave with the ability to not just calculate the future, but to model multiple futures, communicate your findings, and drive data-informed decisions with confidence.

In this module, you will lay the essential groundwork for any credible forecast by learning to analyze and interpret historical data. You will move beyond surface-level numbers to find the real story they tell by calculating key performance metrics like Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) and moving averages in Excel. This will enable you to smooth out volatility and identify stable, underlying trends in your sales data.

What's included

2 videos2 readings2 assignments

2 videosTotal 14 minutes

Why Historical Analysis Matters7 minutes
Calculating Historical Trends in Excel7 minutes

2 readingsTotal 14 minutes

The Analyst's Toolkit: Understanding and Calculating Performance Metrics8 minutes
Step-by-Step Guide: CAGR and Moving Average in Excel6 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 20 minutes

Hands-On Learning: Analyzing Sales Data15 minutes
Knowledge Check: Historical Metrics5 minutes

In this module, you will translate your analytical insights into actionable, scenario-based financial forecasts. You will master Excel’s AVERAGE and GROWTH functions to model both "flat" and "trend" growth scenarios. The module culminates in a final project where you will build a complete forecast from scratch and justify your modeling choices, proving your ability to not only create projections but also to communicate them effectively to stakeholders.

What's included

2 videos1 reading3 assignments

2 videosTotal 10 minutes

Why One Forecast Is Never Enough: The SaaS Growth Story5 minutes
Building Forecasts: The AVERAGE and GROWTH Functions5 minutes

1 readingTotal 7 minutes

Choosing Your Model: Flat vs. Trend Scenarios7 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 50 minutes

Project: Sales Forecast and Recommendation30 minutes
Hands-On Learning: Building a Sales Forecast Model15 minutes
Knowledge Check: Forecasting Functions5 minutes

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Instructor

LearningMate

246 Courses16,579 learners

Offered by

Coursera

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