OfficeConnect for PowerPoint
Link live data from your Workday OfficeConnect Excel workbook into PowerPoint slides.
Workday OfficeConnect for PowerPoint lets you link tables and charts from your Excel workbook directly into PowerPoint slides. When the underlying Excel data refreshes, you can update the presentation with one click — no copy-pasting.
How it works
- You define named ranges in your Workday OfficeConnect Excel workbook (a named range is a labeled group of cells)
- In PowerPoint, you link those named ranges into slides as tables or charts
- When you’re ready to update the presentation (e.g., for a new reporting period), refresh the links
Start OfficeConnect for PowerPoint
1
Open PowerPoint
After Workday OfficeConnect is installed (see Install for End Users), an OfficeConnect tab appears in PowerPoint’s ribbon.
2
Click Log In
Enter your Adaptive Planning credentials, or click Log in with Workday. If you’re already signed in to OfficeConnect for Excel, PowerPoint logs you in automatically. See Sign In & Create a Tenant if you haven’t set up the connection yet.
Create a named range in Excel
Before linking to PowerPoint, you need to name the range in Excel:
1
Select the cells in your OfficeConnect Excel report
Select the table or chart data range you want to embed in PowerPoint.
2
Click in the Name Box
The Name Box is the cell reference field at the top-left of the Excel grid (usually shows something like
A1). Click it so the contents are selected.3
Type a name and press Enter
Enter a descriptive name (e.g.,
Q3_Revenue_Summary) with no spaces. The named range is created.Link a named range into a PowerPoint slide
1
In PowerPoint, navigate to the slide
Go to the slide where you want to insert the linked data.
2
In the OfficeConnect tab, click Link from Excel
Browse to your Workday OfficeConnect Excel workbook and open it.
3
Select the named range to link
Choose from the available named ranges in the workbook.
4
The table or chart appears on the slide
It’s now a live link — formatted exactly as it appears in Excel.
Update for a new period
When you’re ready to update the presentation (e.g., for the next month’s board deck):
1
Update the data in your Excel workbook
In your Workday OfficeConnect Excel workbook, change the time element or click Refresh to pull current data.
2
Click Refresh Links in PowerPoint
In PowerPoint, go to the OfficeConnect tab and click Refresh Links.
3
Verify the data has updated
Click through the linked slides and confirm the data reflects the new period.
4
Save the presentation
Save the presentation with the updated data.
Disconnect a link
If you want to stop a slide’s data from updating:
1
Go to File → Info → Edit Links to Files
In PowerPoint, navigate to File → Info → Edit Links to Files.
2
Select the link you want to disconnect
Click the link in the list to highlight it.
3
Click Break Link
Click Break Link to disconnect the slide element from the Excel source.
The table or chart remains as a static object on the slide.
Result
Your PowerPoint deck refreshes from Excel with one click each period. No more copy-pasting tables from finance into the board pack.
Next steps
- Publish to PowerPoint (full tutorial) — a step-by-step walkthrough of building a deck.
- OfficeConnect for Word — the same workflow for narrative reports.
- Share Reports via Teams, SharePoint & OneDrive — distribute the final deck.