Spreadsheet Models for Managers


Getting Access to Spreadsheet Models for Managers


If Spreadsheet Models for Managersyou use Excel to model businesses, business processes, or business transactions, this course will change your life. You’ll learn how to create tools for yourself that will amaze even you. Unrestricted use of this material is available in two ways.

As a stand-alone Web site
It resides on your computer, and you can use it anywhere. No need for Internet access.
At this Web site
If you have access to the Internet whenever you want to view this material, you can purchase on-line access. Unlimited usage. I’m constantly making improvements and you’ll get them as soon as they’re available.

To Order On Line

Order "Spreadsheet Models for Managers, on-line edition, one month" by credit card, for USD 69.95 each, using our secure server, and receive download instructions by return email.
Order "Spreadsheet Models for Managers, on-line edition, three months" by credit card, for USD 199.00 each, using our secure server, and receive download instructions by return email.
Order "Spreadsheet Models for Managers, downloadable hyperbook edition" by credit card, for USD 199.00 each, using our secure server, and receive download instructions by return email.

To Order by Mail

Make your check payable to Chaco Canyon Consulting, for the amount indicated:
  • For the download: USD 199.00
  • For access online for three months: USD 199.00
  • For access online for one month: USD 69.95
And send it to:
Chaco Canyon Consulting
700 Huron Avenue, Suite 19C
Cambridge, MA 02138

To use the course software you’ll need some other applications, which you very probably already have. By placing your order, you’re confirming that you have the software you need, as described on this site.

Spreadsheet Models for Managers

Arrival characteristics 12/4
Session Links
  • We will assume that the mean arrival rate is constant
  • Arrival distribution: statistical distribution of arrival times
    • Batch (e.g., arriving airline passengers)
    • Random
      • Statistical distribution
      • If arrivals are independent, we model them by Poisson distribution
  • Arrival management
    • Often arrivals cannot be controlled
    • Control strategies are used to reduce maximum required server capacity
    • Examples:
      • Appointments/scheduling
      • Off-peak pricing discount
      • Peak pricing surcharge

Here’s more detail about how customers arrive.

There are lots of possibilities for the arrival distribution. They might arrive in a clump or batch, as, for example, arriving airline passengers do. Or the arrivals might be random, like print requests for a print server. If they’re random, and independent, we can model them with a statistical distribution called a Poisson distribution.

Sometimes we try to manage arrivals, to limit the effects of peaks that can occur. This is usually an economization strategy: by smoothing out the peaks we can often reduce costs by increasing average capacity utilization.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 27-Apr-2016 04:15:26 EDT

The Power of Simplifying Assumptions

Modeling service systems in general is extraordinarily complex, but as we’ve seen, if we make reasonable approximations, we can gain powerful tools that are very easy to apply. In the case of service systems, we assumed that the system was at equilibrium or close to it. Analogously, we can make simplifying assumptions for many other complex questions. Examples are process control, resource scheduling, resource allocation, cost allocation, vehicle routing, and many more.