Throughout my professional experience, I have realized that Excel is more than just a tool—it is often the difference between getting a job or being left behind. Employers increasingly look for candidates who can not only manage information but also transform it into insights. In practice, Excel knowledge means greater dexterity at work: from downloading and organizing large datasets, to manipulating them into charts, reports, and results that guide decision-making.
Knowing Excel is the step that allows someone to move from supporting a project to leading one. During my time at PLAi, even basic Excel skills gave me the ability to keep track of the courses under development. Later, in TecNM Virtual, I saw firsthand how my colleague Dr. Livier Chávez Bonnet’s intermediate Excel expertise made an enormous difference: while basic knowledge allowed us to track progress, intermediate mastery meant we could actually manage, compare, and interpret data to improve the quality of our outcomes. That leap showed me that Excel is not simply about formulas, but about unlocking an entirely new level of leadership.
One of the most memorable moments was using Excel dashboards to consolidate and monitor the status of multiple courses being designed simultaneously. What could have been a confusing collection of documents became a single view of progress, bottlenecks, and risks. That clarity gave our team the confidence to make better decisions and to adjust in time. It was a reminder that a single tool, when mastered, can transform complexity into order.
Today, learning Excel is easier than ever—you can ask an AI assistant how to do something and it will guide you step by step. But while technology facilitates access, the responsibility to go beyond the basics still rests with us. My own goal is to deepen my knowledge of Excel to be ready for the projects that lie ahead, receiving them with both arms open and the right skills at hand.
If we want higher education to truly prepare students for the world of work, we cannot treat Excel as optional. It must become part of the digital culture of our universities. Because in the end, Excel is not just about numbers—it is about empowering people to take control of information, to lead with evidence, and to build futures with clarity.