CPA Australia

•

Channel • 4 Shows

Education

Education

Updated 1 Jul
Business

Business

Updated 4 days ago
Business News

Business News

Every two weeks
Careers

Careers

Monthly

30/09/2024

How to add a user interaction into Power Query

Reports are crucial to your work, aren't they? Power Query is a valuable tool for importing many types of data into Excel to help you create these reports. However, it does have limitations. In this episode, you'll learn how to address one of Power Query's key shortcomings: user interactions. By using staging queries, reference techniques and range names, users can dynamically filter data within Power Query based on user-selected criteria. For fast access, use these timestamps: 0:17 – About the variable Power Query function 3:37 – Implementing the query function 5:46 – Using a range name for a table 7:07 – Using a query to read the variable input 9:43 – Refreshing the power query 10:11 – Recap and use cases Listen now to learn how to add a user interaction into Power Query. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator. He is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: INTHEBLACK INTHEBLACK Out Loud With Interest Excel Tips Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

30/09/2024

•

12 min
1 Jun

Why Excel macros still matter in 2026

Excel macros are far from obsolete. And here's why. This episode explores why VBAs (Visual Basic for Applications) still play an important role in workflow efficiency for accountants and finance professionals. Key learnings: Why macros still matter in modern Excel workflows How VBA compares with Power Query The limits of Power Query for in-situ data fixes How AI can help write and debug VBA code How to automate data cleansing tasks in Excel Why VBA is a useful entry point into programming How to store macros in the personal macro workbook Ways to run macros from the quick access toolbar Listen now to help level up your Excel skills with macros. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA. He has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator and is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. For more, check out the accompanying YouTube video of this episode. Read more of Neale's Excel articles on INTHEBLACK. Loving this content? Don't forget to subscribe to EXCEL TIPS and share this episode with your colleagues and friends in the business community. Would you like to listen to more Excel Tips and other CPA Australia podcasts like INTHEBLACK and With Interest? Head to CPA Australia's YouTube channel. And don't forget to subscribe to the channel. You can find a CPA at our custom portal on the CPA Australia website. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting: With Interest INTHEBLACK Excel Tips INTHEBLACK Out Loud Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

1 Jun

•

10 min
12/08/2025

Hays 2025 Salary Guide reveals top finance job trends

Today's finance job market trends are revealed with key findings from the Hays 2025 Salary Guide explored in this episode. Key takeaways include: Which finance roles and industries offer the best rewards in Australia and New Zealand Trends in finance job satisfaction across salary levels and generations The impact of AI on the recruitment process The gender pay gap Current skills shortages Advice for job seekers Whether you're a finance professional navigating career choices or a recruiter adapting to new hiring realities, this episode offers practical insights, advice and strategies. Host: Jacqueline Blondell, Content Editor, CPA Australia Guest: Shane Little, Managing Director, Enterprise Solutions APAC, Hays Links: The Hays 2025 Salary Guide is available online. And you can listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: With Interest INTHEBLACK INTHEBLACK Out Loud Excel Tips Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

12/08/2025

•

20 min
01/10/2025

Smarter, faster, easier: Here's what's new in Excel

In this episode of Excel Tips, we explore the latest Excel updates that can help to boost productivity and simplify workflows for finance and accounting professionals. Listeners will learn: How to use TRIMRANGE for flexible range selection What's new with pivot table formatting and an exciting update on auto-refresh How the TRANSLATE function works for multilingual data The simplified syntax for BYROW and BYCOL functions How three new Regex (regular expressions) functions can use patterns to identify data. Packed with practical insights, this episode helps you explore Excel's latest upgrades to save time, improve analysis and elevate decision-making. Tune in now. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA. He has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator and is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. The companion video and Excel file will go into more detail to demonstrate these techniques. Read more of Neale's Excel articles on INTHEBLACK. You can find a CPA at our custom portal on the CPA Australia website. Would you like to listen to more Excel Tips episodes? Head to CPA Australia's YouTube channel. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: With Interest INTHEBLACK Excel Tips INTHEBLACK Out Loud Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

01/10/2025

•

14 min
1 May

Template tips to boost workflows

Most finance professionals have made this mistake at least once. You open last month's file, update the numbers, hit save, and only then realise you should have saved it as this month's version of the file. This is where templates can help. In this episode, explore how Excel templates solve that problem while also improving consistency across your reporting. Main learnings: How Excel templates prevent accidental file overwrites The difference between workbook, sheet and task-based templates Where to find and manage built-in and personal templates How to create blank templates with pre-set formats and settings Using templates to embed headers, footers and branding Managing template storage, including system and shared folders How to apply templates across teams for consistency and control Tune in now. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA. He has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator and is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. For more, check out the accompanying video - https://youtu.be/RJdT6FF-w58 Read more of Neale's Excel articles on INTHEBLACK. Loving this content? Don't forget to subscribe to EXCEL TIPS and share this episode with your colleagues and friends in the business community. Would you like to listen to more Excel Tips and other CPA Australia podcasts like INTHEBLACK and With Interest? Head to CPA Australia's YouTube channel. And don't forget to subscribe to the channel. You can find a CPA at our custom portal on the CPA Australia website. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting: With Interest INTHEBLACK Excel Tips INTHEBLACK Out Loud Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

1 May

•

8 min
04/01/2024

How to master using different Excel techniques together

Do you want to improve your Excel skills in 2024? Start the new year on a positive note with these essential tips that can help you master a couple of Excel techniques together. In this episode, we show you how to build custom lists and use range names. For fast access, use these timestamps: Custom lists explained – 0:29 Creating custom lists – 1:34 Automating lists with range names – 4:08 Creating range names (method 1) – 4:52 Transpose function – 7:30 The downside of using range names (method 1) – 7:59 Using formatted tables for range names (method 2) – 8:33 Array based range names – 10:08 Special values keyboard shortcut – 11:37 Examples using the range names – 12:43 Using helper cells and the index function – 13:45 Repeating the range name sequence – 14:48 Recap and benefits of automated custom lists 15:46 Tune in now. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator. He is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: With Interest INTHEBLACK INTHEBLACK Out Loud Excel Tips Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

04/01/2024

•

17 min
29/02/2024

How to automate report building in Excel

Are you an accountant or finance professional looking to enhance your daily workflows? Don't miss this episode, which delves into the exciting capabilities of dynamic arrays, empowering you to effortlessly build automated reports. For fast access, use these timestamps: The tutorial example report, and companion file 1:50 Dynamic array calculation and spill ranges 3:12 Referring to a spill range 4:05 Building a structure to avoid spill errors 6:59 Dynamic array formula tips 8:22 Benefits of range formulas in limiting formulas 8:47 Changing table structure to suit ranges and reporting 9:35 Overview of the benefits of dynamic arrays 10:31 Tune in now to learn more about this exciting addition to Excel's subscription version. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator. He is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: INTHEBLACK INTHEBLACK Out Loud With Interest Excel Tips Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

29/02/2024

•

12 min
02/02/2025

New tool explained: boost your efficiency with checkboxes

Ready to unlock a hidden gem in your Microsoft Excel subscription? In this episode you'll discover the power of checkboxes with practical examples to explore how this new function can streamline your workflow. This includes how to use TRUE/FALSE values in formulas and conditional formatting to dynamically control calculations and visuals. Learn from examples such as inflation adjustments in a budget model and applying a strikethrough format to a to-do list. Additionally, gain insight into how checkboxes are used in the logical test of the IF function and learn essential keyboard shortcuts for an efficiency boost. For fast reference, use the episode timestamps: 00:21 Introducing the new checkbox feature  01:03 How checkboxes work in Excel  02:35 Using checkboxes in budget models  03:23 Keyboard shortcuts for checkboxes  04:19 Protecting checkbox cells 04:50 Checkboxes with the IF function 05:32 Using checkboxes for task management 07:55 Checkboxes in formatted tables 09:20 Conclusion and further resources You'll find the new checkboxes function in the insert ribbon between illustrations and charts in the subscription version. Level up your Excel game by tuning in now. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator. He is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: INTHEBLACK INTHEBLACK Out Loud With Interest Excel Tips Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

02/02/2025

•

10 min
01/09/2025

Unleash the power of Python in Excel

In this third and final episode of a three-part series, we explore how the integration of Python unlocks advanced tools for analysis, automation and visualisation. Listeners will learn: How Python connects with Power Query to extract and transform data Ways to preview and filter information using Pandas functions Techniques for reshaping horizontal data into usable formats with melt() Python in Excel can really help your data workflows. It allows you to work with connection-only Power Queries, cleanse and reshape messy datasets and generate dynamic charts in just a few lines of code. And with built-in libraries like Pandas and Matplotlib, you or your finance team can preview, filter and transform data in ways that are faster and more flexible than traditional Excel functions. Who doesn't love that? Packed with practical insights, this episode helps you harness Python in Excel to save time, improve analysis and elevate decision-making. Tune in now. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA. He has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator and is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. LINKS Listen to part one of this three-part series which covers the basics. Episode two discusses practical applications of Python in Excel. And you can read more of Neale's Excel articles on INTHEBLACK. You can find a CPA at our custom portal on the CPA Australia website. Would you like to listen to more Excel Tips episodes? Head to CPA Australia's YouTube channel. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: With Interest INTHEBLACK Excel Tips INTHEBLACK Out Loud Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

01/09/2025

•

9 min
31/08/2024

Learn a smart way to hide blank or zero rows

Looking to improve your report-building skills? If so, this is the episode for you. Uncover tips on how to leverage multiple Excel features to create a system that effortlessly hides blank and zero rows in your reports. Also in this episode, you'll discover the subtotal function's superpower and learn how you can use it to help identify if a filter needs reapplying. You can use these handy skills to boost your report-writing efficiency. For fast access, use these timestamps: 0:20 – Using formatted tables instead of macros for hiding rows 2:38 – About the example and tutorial file 5:10 – Applying the filter and slicer 6:35 – The subtotal function superpower Listen now. Host: Neale Blackwood CPA has more than 20 years of experience as a Microsoft Excel educator. He is the author of more than 200 INTHEBLACK articles as well as a book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants. CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting: INTHEBLACK INTHEBLACK Out Loud With Interest Excel Tips Search for them in your podcast platform. You can email the podcast team at podcasts@cpaaustralia.com.au

31/08/2024

•

10 min

CPA Australia podcasts provide commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting.

Website

CPA Australia

Top Shows

Top Episodes

About