Why does the World Need-Excel Data Analysis, Modeling, and Simulation? When spreadsheets ?rst became widely available in the early 1980s, it spawned a revolution in teaching. What previously could only be done with arcane software and large scale computing was now available to the common-man, on a desktop. Also, before spreadsheets, most substantial analytical work was done outside the classroom where the tools were; spreadsheets and personal computers moved the work into the classroom. Not only did it change how the analysis curriculum was taught, but it also empowered students to venture out on their own to explore new ways to use the tools. I can't tell you how many phone calls, of?ce visits, and/or emails I have received in my teaching career from ecstatic students crowing about what they have just done with a spreadsheet model. I have been teaching courses related to spreadsheet based analysis and modeling for about 25 years and I have watched and participated in the spreadsheet revolution.
Author Biography
Dr. Guerrero is a professor at Mason School of Business at the College of William and Mary, in Williamsburg, Virginia. He teaches in the areas of decision making, statistics, operations and business quantitative methods. He has previously taught at the Amos Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, and the College of Business of the University of Notre Dame. He is well known among his students for his quest to bring clarity to complex decision problems. He earned a Ph.D. Operations and Systems Analysis, University of Washington and a BS in Electrical Engineering and an MBA at the University of Texas. He has published scholarly work in the areas of operations management, product design, and catastrophic planning. Prior to entering academe, he worked as an engineer for Dow Chemical Company and Lockheed Missiles and Space Co. He is also very active in consulting and executive education with a wide variety of clients-- U.S. Government, International firms, as well as many small and large U.S. manufacturing and service firms. It is not unusual to find him relaxing on a quiet beach with a challenging Excel workbook and an excellent cabernet.
