In Excel 2016, there is a “waterfall” chart that can be used to make bridges. Bridges are great for graphically showing drivers of change. It is fairly new so it can be a little buggy, but if you are like me, bridges can be cumbersome in Excel. This new chart functionality is a huge time saver!
Example:
Here are the instructions:
- Setup and highlight the data:
- Click on Insert -> Recommended Charts -> All Charts
- Select “Waterfall”
- To format the last bar to be a total, select the last bar only by clicking it twice (not double click) so only that bar is selected. Then right click and chose “Set as Total”
- Format the chart by removing grid lines, legend, and axis if desired.
A more thorough guide can be found here: https://www.myexcelonline.com/blog/create-waterfall-chart-excel-2016/
Once again this functionality only available in Excel 2016, but it’s a great way to graphically show change drivers. Let me know if you have any questions!
Rhett Weller 