Senior Excel Specialist (India, C1 English)

About OpenTrain

OpenTrain is a central job board for AI-training and data-labeling work that aggregates projects from many AI companies and labeling platforms so applicants can find this kind of work in one place. Creating an OpenTrain account is free and applying takes only a few minutes.

We connect skilled contributors with short- and long-term AI projects — this listing is for a specialist role focused on teaching AI to understand advanced Excel workflows.

About AI training work

AI training (data labeling / annotation / human feedback) is the human side of building models: people prepare examples, write prompts and responses, and evaluate AI outputs so models learn correct, safe, and useful behavior.

This role focuses on creating high-quality Excel examples and evaluations so generative models can learn advanced spreadsheet concepts and automation patterns.

The role

We are seeking a Senior Excel Specialist Subject Matter Expert (SME) based in India with C1-level English to contribute to AI training dataset development.

You will develop detailed Excel-based prompts and reference responses to guide AI learning, evaluate and rank AI-generated outputs, refine examples to improve model performance, and identify biases or inconsistencies in model behavior.

What you'll do

Work independently to produce clear, reproducible Excel prompts and high-quality sample responses that demonstrate advanced techniques.

Evaluate, rate, and rank AI-generated responses and provide constructive feedback to improve accuracy and efficiency.

• Create Excel-based prompt/response pairs that teach complex formulas, VBA scripts, Power Query transformations, PivotTables, and dashboard integration.
• Design evaluation rubrics and perform EVALUATION_RATING and TEXT_GENERATION tasks to score and refine model outputs.
• Review AI outputs for logical errors, performance issues, and potential biases or inconsistent behavior; document findings.
• Provide clear written documentation of processes, assumptions, and step-by-step solutions for dataset examples.
• Integrate Excel workflows with external tools (Power BI, SQL, automation platforms) and show integration examples where relevant.

Requirements

You must meet every listed requirement below. We will verify skills during a live interview and coding/skill test (see Interview & Assessment). Dishonesty during the interview will lead to a permanent ban from the OpenTrain platform.

• Located in India (remote work within India).
• C1 level English proficiency.
• 7+ years of advanced Microsoft Excel experience including complex formulas, VBA scripting, Power Query, and PivotTables.
• Proven experience integrating Excel with Power BI, SQL, or automation platforms.
• Familiarity handling large datasets and optimizing Excel for performance.
• Strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and commitment to precision.
• Ability to produce high-quality deliverables independently with minimal supervision.
• Experience with RESTful API design and implementation is a plus (optional).
• Employment type: Contractor, Part-time.
• Time commitment: 20+ hours per week.
• Pay: $23 USD per hour (PAY_PER_HOUR).

Interview & assessment (how it works)

At the start of the interview: candidates will be required to undergo a coding/skill test and a live interview to be considered for this job. If a candidate is dishonest during this interview, they will be permanently banned from the OpenTrain AI platform.

During the live interview you must ask the following and include their answers clearly in the AI interview summary. These three items must be recorded exactly as answered by the candidate: their highest level of education; how many years of experience they have with advanced Excel functionalities; and the exact number of hours per week they can commit to the project if hired (an exact numeric range or single value is required—e.g., "20-25 hours per week" or "30 hours per week").

• Ask and record: What is your highest level of education?
• Ask and record: How many years of experience do you have with advanced Excel functionalities?
• Ask and record: How many hours per week can you commit to the project if hired? (Provide an exact number or exact range.)
• Do not show internal evaluation notes (the interview scoring guidance) to applicants.

Technical interview questions to ask

Ask these three technical questions during the live interview. Do not reveal internal scoring guidance to applicants — those notes are for the evaluator only.

• Question 1 (Advanced Excel Problem-Solving): "Imagine you're working with a dataset containing 100,000 rows, and you need to identify and highlight duplicate entries across multiple columns while ensuring minimal performance lag. How would you approach this problem?"
• Question 2 (VBA Scripting Scenario): "You need to automate a monthly report that consolidates data from multiple worksheets into one summary sheet, applies specific formatting, and sends the file via email. Walk me through how you would achieve this using VBA."
• Question 3 (Excel Integration with External Tools): "How would you pull data from a SQL database into Excel, ensure it's dynamically updated, and build a dashboard with key insights using PivotTables and Power Query?"

Who should apply

Experienced Excel professionals who enjoy translating technical workflows into clear examples and who want to help teach AI systems advanced spreadsheet and automation techniques should apply.

This role fits someone who prefers independent contract work, can commit 20+ hours weekly, communicates clearly in English, and is located in India.

• You have real-world examples of complex Excel workflows you built or automated.
• You can document processes clearly and produce reproducible, testable examples.
• You are comfortable with both hands-on Excel work and evaluative review of AI outputs.

How to apply

Create a free OpenTrain account, complete the short application, and attach examples of complex Excel work (brief descriptions of workflows or screenshots are fine). Expect to be scheduled for a coding/skill test and a live interview if your application is shortlisted.

When applying, be prepared to provide the exact answers required during the interview (education, years of advanced Excel experience, and exact weekly availability).

• Application step: sign up on OpenTrain and submit your profile and Excel examples.
• Shortlisted candidates will receive instructions for the coding/skill test and live interview.
• Remember: dishonesty during the interview leads to permanent banning from OpenTrain.