Worksheet Remodeling, Part II

Rearranging for Clarity

In the previous installment of our short series on data manipulation tools, we focused on paring down a worksheet to its bare essentials in order to make it easier to work with. However, sometimes the problem doesn't lie in the volume of data, but in the way it's organized. For example, a format that simplifies the collection of data might later make it difficult to assess visually in the worksheet. And while Minitab is quite flexible in the data layouts it will accept, some are more readily analyzed than others.

Because you can't always control the way your data is collected, Minitab offers numerous data manipulation tools (primarily contained in the Data menu) to help you sort, stack, and order your data in a way that you find logical and easy to use. In this short article, we'll cover some of these tools to show you just how easy it is to have it your way.

Know your options

How do you want your data to be organized? The same data arranged differently can be easier to read, easier to handle, and even more meaningful.

Stacking and Unstacking

This data is "unstacked," with observations from each group in different columns. However, a stacked data is required for the analyses that will use it.	Using Data > Stack the data is assembled into a single column of measurements ('Hardness') with a grouping variable ('Model'), and the data is ready for analysis.

Sorting

This data was recorded in the order it was reported by individual plant managers. If you needed to find a particular observation from any one plant you'd have to scan through the entire list.	With Data > Sort the data is easily reordered alphabetically by the values in Location, and finding the right observation is a snap.

Merge Worksheets

Two inspectors recorded information on the same items but used separate worksheets. Now all of the data needs to be analyzed together.	Using Data > Merge Worksheets, the data is brought together according to serial number into a single worksheet.

Try it yourself

Now let's see how easy it is to use these tools to simplify and even inform your analysis.

Suppose you've been given this worksheet of customer service data collected from four call center locations. Because you'd like to use call center location as a grouping variable (to make comparisons among call centers), you decide to stack the data.
Choose Data > Stack > Columns. In Stack the following columns, enter Portland-Buffalo. Under Store stacked data in, choose Column of current worksheet and enter Time. In Store subscripts in, enter Location, and click OK.
Now the data is stacked with call completion times in one column and call center location in a second column. Next, you'd like to sort the data by time to see if certain service centers tend to have longer or shorter call times.
Choose Data > Sort. In Sort columns, enter Time Location. In By column, enter Time. Under Store sorted data in choose Original columns and click OK.
With your data sorted in order of increasing time you can see at a glance that the bulk of low times were recorded at the Buffalo location.

Putting It to Use

Whether it's to make a data set clearer for your own understanding or to enable analysis, changing your worksheet layout can offer big returns on a small time investment, and reordering your data with these simple tools can make those analyses quicker and easier to execute. So the next time you're faced with an unruly data set, remember these helpful little problem-solvers from Minitab's Data menu.

Next time, we'll wrap up our short series on Minitab data manipulation with tips and tricks on coaxing more information out of the data you already have.

Visit Accessing the Power of Minitab for additional tutorials on the many time-saving features and functionality available in Minitab Statistical Software.

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