You don't necessarily need an IF formula. Try this:

=LEFT(J1,3)&"0101"

You could use an IF to make sure there is an entry in column J:

=IF(J1<"",LEFT(J1,3)&"0101","")

--
Biff
Microsoft Excel MVP


"Training Spec." wrote in message
...
I am creating an Excel spreadsheet to track permit holders. I need to
assign
user IDs to the first three letters of the last name of the permit
holders.
The column for the permit holder's name is column J. In column I, I need
a
formula to take the first three letters of the permit holder's last name
and
add 0101 to it. Example:

I J
smi0101 Smith

I know that there is an IF function that could do this, but I have had no
success in making it work. Can you help?

Thanks,

--
John