VBA Training & Classes for Employees: Review Corporate Training Options

VBA, which is short for Visual Basic for Applications, is the programming language that’s integrated into most Microsoft 365 applications. VBA allows users to customize elements of their Office 365 experience, such as automating various computer processes and making user-defined functions. Corporate training is an excellent way to help your employees learn to work with VBA to perform tasks in Excel and other Office apps more efficiently. Read on to learn what to consider when looking for corporate VBA training options and to find out about the available options for onsite and online training.

What is VBA?

VBA, which is short for Visual Basic for Applications, is the standard programming language Microsoft created to be used in several Office programs, such as Excel, PowerPoint, and Word. VBA provides Microsoft users additional customizable features beyond those typically included in Office apps. Although VBA isn’t a stand-alone program, it can alter various graphical-user-interface features, including menus, dialogue boxes, and toolbars. Additionally, VBA has applications for automating different computer calculations and processes, accessing Windows APIs, and designing user-defined functions.

Because VBA is an event-driven tool, it can tell the user’s computer to execute one or more actions. To do so, you create custom macros (which is short for macroinstructions) by entering commands into a module devoted to editing. Macros are comprised of various characters whose input causes an output (an additional series of characters) that is capable of accomplishing different computing tasks. When using a Microsoft app, VBA allows users to perform various functions that extend beyond word processing or spreadsheet management. By using macros, Microsoft users can make repetitive tasks easier to accomplish. There’s no need to purchase VBA software separately since it’s included with Microsoft Office.

Read more about what VBA is and why you should learn it. 

What Can You Do with VBA Skills?

VBA, or Visual Basic for Applications, is Microsoft’s internal programming language for apps like PowerPoint, Word, and Excel. This versatile language allows users to further customize Office applications beyond the options typically available using host apps. VBA functions by manipulating features of the graphical user interface, like dialogue boxes, menus, and toolbars. It also has applications for creating user-defined functions and automating computer calculations and processes. 

Because it is an event-driven tool, you can use VBA to instruct the computer to perform one or multiple actions. By entering commands into an editing module, Office users can create custom macros or sets of characters that, when entered, result in a new output that can perform specific computing tasks. A few examples of repetitive tasks VBA can automate are data cleaning and formatting, capitalizing text, creating a table of contents, merging multiple worksheets, and solving complex calculations.

Benefits of VBA Corporate Training

Microsoft 365 applications like Excel are commonly used by professionals working in various industries and fields. Corporate VBA training is a great way to help the employees at your workplace get the most out of their Office 365 experience and streamline the tasks they regularly perform. One of the main uses of Excel VBA is to automate functions in this spreadsheet app. Those with VBA skills can create a VBA program in Excel to generate reports and automate any repetitive tasks. This programming language can also create, format, and print useful documents like monthly sales reports that include data visualizations like bar charts. Employees with VBA training can also execute programs in this spreadsheet app using a single click, and Excel will automatically create a report that adheres to the organization’s needs.

Any employees who regularly use Excel will benefit from corporate VBA training. Those who know how to program with VBA can complete a range of spreadsheet tasks in a fraction of the time it would take them to do so without automation. With VBA, they can design custom Excel add-ins that provide improved functionality, as well as offer functions that aren’t typically available in Excel. This coding language also can help your employees execute complicated functions, such as merging two or more programs’ functions, creating languages to use in Office apps, or replicating long lines of code. When used in the finance sector, professionals can work with VBA to design macros capable of simulating different investment scenarios to better understand the potential impacts of mergers and acquisitions.

Not only does VBA training benefit your employees individually who acquire this skill, but it can help your company as a whole perform better. Organizations that use VBA have the power to automate important internal business processes and procedures, such as processing sales orders in real-time, performing accounting tasks, executing complex data calculations, and tracking minutes. In addition, VBA helps organizations consolidate their data into the cloud. This ensures the information your employees need can be accessed from anywhere in the world. 

Who Benefits Most from VBA Corporate Training?

Corporate VBA training offers your employees a skill set that can help them take their Excel knowledge to the next level. A LinkedIn Learning survey recently found that 94% of employees value working for an employer that invests in their ongoing professional development. Because so many professionals work with Excel and other Office 365 apps on a daily basis, the more power those at your workplace have to automate repetitive tasks and customize their user experience, the more productive they will be. This is why providing VBA training to any employee at your organization who uses Excel or Office 365 is an investment that will not only help them grow professionally but will improve how the organization as a whole operates. VBA training is a transferable skill that employees can carry with them as they expand into new roles within your organization and beyond. 

New Skills or Upskilling?

The decision to provide corporate VBA training for your employees is an investment in their intellectual capital and is likely to benefit everyone within your organization. You may, however, be unsure which employees would benefit the most from this training. If everyone at your workplace uses Office 365 apps like Excel, training all employees with VBA makes sense. Financial institutions often require Excel skills as a workplace requirement, making VBA training essential for professionals in this role.

You may also choose to customize training so that some employees receive basic Excel instruction, whereas other learn VBA and more advanced skills. You also may wish to train one or several employees from each department or team to work with VBA, and they can then share their insights with others. If one department primarily handles spreadsheet tasks, you may instead opt to train just those individuals to work with VBA. Whether it’s reskilling or upskilling employees, the more they know about using VBA for automating Excel tasks, the more well-rounded and productive they will be professionally. They can work faster using VBA, which will help free their time for more pressing tasks at your organization. This, in turn, cuts down on operational costs. Whether you train some or all employees to use this programming language, their acquired knowledge will benefit your organization, its clients and customers, and all who work there.

Onsite or Online?

Once you decide which employees would benefit most from learning to program with VBA, your next decision is likely which training format is best for them. You can select from in-person or virtual training options. In-person training occurs at your workplace. An expert with VBA will come directly to your employees and provide training in a designated computer lab or similar space where they can access computers. The instructor shares their real-world VBA and Excel knowledge with students in real-time. Participants in onsite corporate training can raise questions and receive guidance as they learn to use VBA and write macros. 

Live online corporate VBA training is also available from Noble Desktop. E-learning is becoming a popular training format across industries, especially those in which employees perform most of their work tasks on computers. The corporate E-learning industry is projected to expand by 250% by 2026 and be worth almost $50 billion. Since professionals who use Office 365 work on computers, corporate training in the virtual environment lends itself well to VBA. Virtual VBA training takes place using a teleconferencing platform, such as Teams or Zoom. A live instructor with real-world VBA experience leads the discussion remotely. Participants have the opportunity to ask any questions they have, as well as to receive immediate feedback and guidance as they work. 

One of the main benefits of virtual VBA training is that it provides flexibility that in-person study does not. Your employees won’t have to drive across town in rush hour to study VBA. Instead, they can complete their corporate training remotely from any location with an internet connection. This learning format is a good option for individuals who may not live near a major metropolitan area or close to a college or university. 

Training Options for Employees

If you’re interested in providing corporate training in Excel and VBA for your employees, Noble Desktop offers corporate and onsite VBA training. All current class listings are available on Noble’s schedule. You can select from in-person and live online training options for your employees so they’ll have a working knowledge of Excel’s range of features and functions. 

Noble can also create a tailored curriculum that ensures you’ll have the flexibility to decide which training option or options will best help those at your workplace acquire the skills they need to perform everyday tasks. Customized VBA training is also a good option because it allows them to receive instruction appropriate to their existing skill set and knowledge base rather than repeating information they already know. For example, those who already work with Excel may not need basic spreadsheet instruction but would benefit from more advanced training with VBA.

Several short corporate training options are available for your employees to study Excel and VBA. Excel Levels 1, 2, and 3 offer beginner, intermediate, and advanced Excel instruction, respectively. You can enroll employees in one or more of these classes as needed to ensure they master the spreadsheet skills most needed at your workplace. Each of these classes can be completed in just one day. In addition, Excel Programming with VBA is also available from Noble. This course is slightly longer than Excel Levels 1, 2, and 3 and provides real-world training using macros and Excel automation to create new worksheet functions and customized commands.

Supplemental Training Options

If your employees have busy work schedules or must balance their VBA study with other personal commitments like family and travel, alternative training options are an excellent option. You can purchase vouchers for your employees to use for bulk enrollment classes. This training option offers employees the flexibility of deciding the time that works best for them to learn VBA. The flexibility provided by supplemental VBA study options ensures those at your workplace can receive hands-on VBA training, even if it occurs outside of normal business hours. For employers who’d like to train multiple employees to use VBA, group class vouchers are an excellent option. They’re available at a discount when they’re purchased in bulk. Employers who buy group class vouchers have the flexibility of deciding which coursework would be most useful for those at their workplace.

If you want to learn more about the options available for corporate VBA training for your employees, contact Noble today.

Key Takeaways

• If the employees at your workplace would benefit from learning to program with VBA, corporate training is a great way to help them acquire this skill. VBA knowledge will help them perform repetitive tasks faster and more efficiently, which will help them be more productive employees.
• When you select which kind of corporate VBA training format would be most beneficial to your employees, you can select from in-person and online options. In-person training involves an instructor with real-world VBA training coming directly to your office or workplace to provide training. Virtual training options take place using a teleconferencing platform like Teams or Zoom.
• Customized corporate training options can also be scheduled around your employees’ personal or professional commitments. 
• Let Noble Desktop provide your employees with corporate training in the in-person or live online format so they can work with VBA and better contribute to your organization.