Complex Transpose
I’ve called this tip ‘Complex Transpose’, which hopefully describes what I’m about to show you. Essentially, it’s about transposing a two column data set of related items into a multi-row and column data set.
The key technique employed utilises Array formulas, which I won’t go into detail about, mainly because plenty before me have (see links below). The quick 'how-to' is that you need to hold down the CTRL & SHIFT keys when pressing ENTER to commit the formula, instead of just hitting ENTER. Their other common name is a ‘CSE formula’ (Control, Shift, Enter). When committed, the formula is surrounded by curly {brackets}.
Replace IFERROR() with IF(ISERROR())
This tip relates to the technique of trapping and handling errors in a formula. Prior to Excel 2007 (e.g. Excel 2003, 2002, 2000), this was accomplished using a combination of the IF and ISERROR functions to test for an error in a formula, e.g. =IF(ISERROR(MyFormula),ReturnSomethingElse,MyFormula). This meant having to write your formula twice (think of your longest formula!).
In Excel 2007, trapping and handling errors in a formula was made easier with the introduction of the IFERROR function, which removed the need to specify your formula twice, e.g. =IFERROR(MyFormula,ReturnSomethingElse).