TECHNOLOGY EXCE L - Strategic Finance · 2012-10-01  · VBA Code When creating macros, the easi-est way to generate the code is to simply perform the needed task in a separate Excel

Let’s say that each month we receive a

travel expense data feed similar to Figure

1. Column A shows the description, and

column B contains the amount. Our task

is to assign an expense type, such as

“Air,” “Lodging,” etc., in column C. As

the number of items grows, this would

quickly become a tedious, laborious task.

Rather than going through each item

individually and assigning a value, we

can create a macro that will take a first

pass through the data and use wildcards

to look for records that are clearly a cer-

tain type of expense. This will leave few-

er entries for us to categorize. Over time,

the macro can be adjusted for new wild-

card searches, thus improving its perfor-

mance and efficiency.

The first step is to create the macro.

First save the workbook with any file

extension except .XLSX. Open the VBA

editor—either type ALT+F11 or go to the

Developer tab and click on Visual Basic.

In the VBA editor, select Insert, Module

to create a blank programming window.

Type the following lines in the module:

Sub TravelMacro()

For Each cell In Application. Intersect

(Range(“A:A”), ActiveSheet.Used

Range)

Application.StatusBar = “Do not

touch. Processing row “ &

cell.Row

If cell.Value Like “*Air*” Then

cell.Offset(0, 2).Value = “Air”

ElseIf cell.Value Like “*Amtrak*”

Then cell.Offset(0, 2).Value =

“Train”

ElseIf cell.Value Like “*Hotel*”

Then cell.Offset(0, 2).Value =

“Lodging”

End If

Next cell

Application.StatusBar = False

Msgbox “Program complete!”

End Sub

The second line in the code (beginning

“For Each cell”) creates a loop that cycles

through each cell in the used range of

column A. Line 3 (Application Status

Bar...) makes the Status Bar display a

message at the bottom of the Excel

screen to show you that the macro is

processing. And the last three lines of the

program clear the message in the status

bar and display a message indicating that

the macro is completed.

Lines 4 (If cell.Value…) through 11

(End If) are the lines that actually per-

form the main task in the macro. For

example, line 4 searches for the word

“Air” in column A. If it’s found, “Air”

is added to column C of the same row.

These lines would need to be changed

if the macro is deployed for other

tasks.

You’ll find some records don’t get

marked with an expense type. Over time,

you might notice other indicators in the

travel description to seach for. You can

update the macro to search for these by

adding more lines after line 11. For

example, you can search for specific air-

lines or hotels names:

ElseIf cell.Value Like “*SWA*”

Then cell.Offset(0, 2).Value =

“Air”

ElseIf cell.Value Like “*Marriott*”

Then cell.Offset(0, 2).Value =

“Lodging”

It takes 60 seconds to add a new pair

of lines, but it’s well worth the effort if it

saves you from typing “Lodging” 100

times every month. Continue adding

new pairs of lines before the End If

statement as you refine the search.

Some of the rows in Figure 1 are

blank. If you want to hide them, add

TECHNOLOGY

EXCELUsing a Macro to Minimize Processing Times

By Mo Ali, CMA, CPA, PMP

54 S T R AT E G IC F I N A N C E I O c t o b e r 2 0 1 2

these two lines before the End If line:

ElseIf cell.Value = “” Then

cell.EntireRow.Hidden = True

Once the code has been entered into

the editor, create a Macro button in the

Excel sheet and link it to the new macro.

To do this, toggle back to the Excel

sheet. Select cell D1. Insert a shape in

the cell. Right-click the shape and

choose “Edit Text.” Label the shape as

“Run Macro.” Right-click the shape

again, select “Assign Macro,” and

choose the new macro. Figure 2 shows

the final result.

VBA CodeWhen creating macros, the easi-

est way to generate the code is

to simply perform the needed

task in a separate Excel work-

book while using the Macro

Recorder. Then you can copy

the VBA lines from that into the

new macro. This works best for

simple tasks such as formatting

text and typing data and is the

quickest way for beginners to

understand the basics of a VBA

program. The code generated

by the Macro Recorder is usually more

than what is needed, but it can be

scrubbed and used for simple tasks.

For more complex tasks where you

can’t record your actions to create the

code, an Internet search is the best place

to begin. For example, if you want to

create a message box, a search for

something like “Excel VBA code for mes-

sage boxes” will result in a range of free

code offerings. It takes a bit of experi-

ence to select the most suitable code to

use, but there are numerous message

boards where you can find willing volun-

teers to answer specific questions about

VBA code.

The overall trick for creating macros is

to properly assemble the code from the

Macro Recorder and other sources in a

program and apply it to the situation

rather than writing code from scratch.

Always test programs with data prior to

deployment to ensure they work correctly.

An Excel VBA class can be helpful, but it

usually isn’t enough by itself. For users

who want to create advanced programs

in Excel, a detailed Visual Basic class is a

better investment. SF

Mo Ali, CMA, CPA, PMP, is an executive

consultant at Morgan Clarke Enterprises

in New York City. He is also a member of

the Princeton Chapter of IMA®. You can

contact Mo at [email protected].

O c t o b e r 2 0 1 2 I S T R AT E G IC F I N A N C E 55

Figure 1

Figure 2