Arixcel Demo & Shortcuts

In this video, I’ll be explaining how the Arixcel Explorer window works, how we use it to rapidly navigate around a model or spreadsheet, work with multiple windows, and drill through a model from outputs all the way to input assumptions.

We’ll also break down and explore formula logic – what these numbers and pieces of information mean – and along the way, we’ll see a range of shortcuts to make your work quicker and easier.

You’ll also find timestamps below this video.

Hi, I’m Dan Stockdale, a former financial modelling consultant at PwC, where we were required to use Arixcel due to its massive efficiencies in navigating spreadsheets and understanding formulas.

I’m going to focus on Explore Precedents and Explore Dependents in the ribbon. These are the Formula Explorer options, and I’d say 90–95% of the time you’ll use Arixcel for these – specifically Explore Precedents, which is its core functionality.

Before we get started, I’ll be demoing the add-in within this financial model. It’s helpful to briefly explain the flow of information in the model.

Blue worksheets are outputs, green are calculations, and yellow are inputs.

We’ll start in the Consol worksheet, which consolidates five P&Ls – one for each of four fitness gyms, plus central costs. Assumptions are entered into the yellow worksheets, flow into the green calculation sheets, and are then summarised in the P&Ls and central costs. These are combined in the Consol worksheet to produce a consolidated P&L.

This flow is also summarised in the model map. If you’d like to learn how to build a model like this, check the link below to my Excel modelling course, aimed at accounting and finance professionals, analysts and consultants.

Exploring Precedents

Let’s get started.

We begin in the Consol worksheet, looking at revenue figures. I’m going to investigate the value 282,048 in cell BT30.

In the formula bar, we can see this is a SUM function using a 3D reference – summing cell BT30 across worksheets 1 to Central.

If I want to understand where this revenue comes from, I can use Explore Precedents.

From the ribbon, I could click the command – but a better approach is using the shortcut Ctrl+Q (as shown in the tooltip). Keyboard shortcuts are much faster, so I strongly recommend using them.

Pressing Ctrl+Q opens Arixcel Explorer.

The cell being explored is highlighted in pink, and its precedents will appear in blue. You can customise these colours via the Options menu if you prefer.

The first row shows the cell being explored, with the full formula displayed below. The second row shows the SUM function. Selecting it highlights that part of the formula.

You can navigate using arrow keys instead of the mouse:

• Up/down to move between elements
• Right to expand
• Left to collapse

Expanding the SUM reveals its parameters, and expanding further shows the individual precedent cells.

Understanding the Explorer Window

The columns in the Explorer include:

• Element: Functions, parameters, and precedents
• Info: Additional details (often not very useful)
• Value: The most useful column – shows the value of each component
• Location: Cell references

Here, all rows show 282,048 because there’s only one function and one parameter.

If we modify the formula to include multiple SUM functions, we can see how values differ across components, making it easier to break down complex formulas.

Why This Is Powerful

The key benefit is speed and clarity.

Instead of manually navigating across worksheets, Arixcel lets you instantly:

• See contributors from each worksheet
• Identify key drivers (e.g. the largest contributor)
• Navigate directly to precedents cells

For example, we can immediately see which worksheet contributes most to the total – allowing us to prioritise our investigation.

Useful Shortcuts

Some essential shortcuts:

• Ctrl+Q → Open / expand Explorer
• Esc → Close and return to original cell
• Enter → Close and stay on current cell
• Ctrl+Backspace → Return to original cell

You can customise shortcuts via the Settings menu.

Using Multiple Explorer Windows

You can open multiple Explorer windows to drill deeper into calculations.

For example:

• Start with 282,048
• Drill into a contributing value (e.g. 92,000)
• Open another Explorer window with Ctrl+Q
• Continue breaking down formulas (e.g. INDEX functions)

Arixcel clearly shows:

• Function components
• Parameter meanings
• Final outputs

This is especially helpful with lookup functions like INDEX, where it highlights exactly which value is returned – even within large ranges.

Important Notes

• Arixcel can interfere with undo/redo. Once you interact with it, Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Y will stop working.
• If your model changes, refresh an open Arixcel window using Alt+R.
• You can edit formulas directly in Explorer with F2, though it’s usually better to use the formula bar.

Full Drill-Through Example

You can drill from outputs all the way to inputs:

• Start at the Consol
• Drill into calculations
• Continue through functions
• Eventually reach input worksheets

This allows extremely fast navigation across the entire model.

To close Arixcel Explorer windows you can:

• Press Enter to stay where you are
• Press Esc to step back through each level

This dramatically reduces both time and mental fatigue compared to manual tracing.

Explore Dependents

Now let’s look at Explore Dependents.

This is essentially the reverse of Explore Precedents – showing which cells depend on the selected cell.

Use Ctrl+Shift+Q to launch it.

The view is simpler:

• It lists dependent cells
• Shows how many dependents exist
• Allows navigation to those cells

Dependent cells are highlighted in green.

When to Use Explore Dependents

It’s useful for:

• Understanding how a cell is used in the model
• Tracing outputs from a given input
• Checking before deleting cells

For example, before deleting a cell, you can confirm whether anything depends on it. If not, it’s safe to remove.

Final Thoughts

That brings us to the end of this video.

Arixcel is a powerful add-in that:

• Saves significant time
• Reduces mental fatigue
• Makes navigating complex models far easier

If you’re working with financial models or complex spreadsheets, it’s well worth using regularly.

If you’re interested in building models like this, all the techniques are covered in my Excel Modeller course.

Thanks for watching!