You would need to list the ranking item's variable names (e.g., rank_01, rank_02, etc.) in the responses.xls file. The create a new variable called something like highest. Then in the syntax for that variable's value you would create the conditional logic that determines which of the ranking variables has a value of "1". This would be done with the Excel "If" function. Something like:
Code:
=IF(B2=1,"option1",IF(B3=1,"option2",IF(B4=1,"option3",IF(B5=1,"option4",0))))
I put this in a sample xls file so you can see how it works. You can change the values in the second column around and see the impact it has on the "highest" variable. Then you can simply insert <highest> into your subsequent question wordings.