We examined how we could improve external data for Excel 2016 for Mac and made the following changes:

So when it came to working with external data, we applied that same logic: how can we make the experience great and working cross platform easier than ever? External data in Excel 2016 for Mac

That’s why you’ll notice an interface that’s consistent with what you’d expect when using Office 2016 for Windows, and why we added support for virtually all of the Windows Excel Ctrl keyboard shortcuts. These days we all live and work in a multi-device, multi-platform world, and so when building Office 2016 for Mac, one of our key objectives was to make it as easy as possible to transition from using Office for Windows to using Office for Mac and back again.