Spreadsheets have grown to be a common tool for many professionals across various fields. In fact, you may very well have an excel spreadsheet file on your computer as you read this blog post. While there is no denying some of the benefits offered, the reliance on spreadsheets may actually be doing more harm to your business than good.
With the slew of new specialized technologies emerging, spreadsheets are no longer the irreplaceable tools they once were. In this blog post, we will discuss 5 reasons for you to leave spreadsheets in the past and consider some alternative solutions.
With the slew of new specialized technologies emerging, spreadsheets are no longer the irreplaceable tools they once were. In this blog post, we will discuss 5 reasons for you to leave spreadsheets in the past and consider some alternative solutions.
Difficult to Scale and Grow
For business owners, it can be easy to utilize spreadsheets for your various business processes. After all, they are less costly and seem to do the job for the time being. The tool has become widely adopted due to its versatility, however many organizations find themselves rapidly outgrowing their spreadsheets.
It’s one thing to keep track of customer information for 10 people, and another for 1000. Eventually, you may find yourself swamped with multiple spreadsheets and endless rows of data. Although they seemed to do the job, for the time being, it’s important to consider alternate software solutions, like CRM, which is designed to handle large amounts of customer data.
In addition, a CRM solution would be more efficient in handling and capturing data, as well as provides you with the freedom to scale and helps eliminate potential security issues. As mentioned prior, spreadsheets do an adequate job of handling some basic functions; however, when compared to alternative solutions, they understandably fall short.
Error-Prone
Over the years, you may have heard of numerous horror stories from large organizations that faced huge losses as a result of a seemingly simple mistake. Did you know that 88% of spreadsheets contain errors? This can negatively affect the bottom line and can be avoided with the right tools and project management.
Consider the repercussions that can arise as the error becomes magnified as it goes undetected. There are a variety of mistakes that can arise, one that is commonly faced by all organizations is human error. Spreadsheet errors can exist in the form of data entry, incorrect formulas, formatting errors, misalignments, and more. In addition to all the possible mistakes that can be made, many are often subtle and hard to detect.
Lack of Collaboration
A feature that hinders the performance of spreadsheets is the lack of collaboration feasible. This causes various implications, including making information inaccessible for employees/team members. Furthermore, even if employees are able to get their hands on the spreadsheet, there is no guarantee that it is up-to-date or accurate.
As an organization tries to grow with spreadsheets, the files will be bounced from employee to employee. With slight changes made to them here and there, it is easy for one spreadsheet to end up with multiple versions or copies.
As various individuals make their own edits to the file, data can slip between the cracks with ease. Especially in a time where more individuals are transitioning to working remotely, this can severely challenge productivity and hinder communication.
Security Risks
Using a spreadsheet poses some risks in terms of security. Albeit the ability to password protect your spreadsheet, it still poses more risks than a software solution. In addition to the software itself, the nature in which it is shared poses a threat too.
Typically, spreadsheets are shared by email, cloud sharing, or USB for ease and convenience. However, this makes them more susceptible to allowing sensitive and confidential information to be compromised or possibly shared elsewhere.
Wasted Resources
Lastly, using spreadsheets can cost you a lot. Not necessarily in terms of money, but time and resources. Whereas software solutions offer up the ability to review real-time data, obtain reports and information automatically.
Spreadsheets prove to be more difficult to provide this form of data due to all the manual entry that has to be done. Being less automated than other management software solutions, it requires time that could be otherwise spent elsewhere.
Moreover, your derived insight might be less accurate and dated. Coupled with an abundance of data, it can be difficult to make informed and quick decisions due to the long process required. Keep in mind that not only does it take a lot of time to generate the report, but also to simply compile the information required for it.
Read More: How Automating Spreadsheets can Reduce Human Error
In closing…
Overall, while it is still widely recognized that many benefits can be reaped from spreadsheets, it’s important to be aware of the disadvantages that are inherent to them as well. Error-filled spreadsheets have cost companies millions of dollars in the past.
That being said, we understand there is still a business use case to keep the spreadsheets. If you are still using them to enter data for your accounting software, we most likely have a tool that can integrate or automate that process for you. While giving the ability to eliminate time-consuming tasks and gain insight into real-time updates and data. Visit our website to explore various software solutions that can do the job of your spreadsheet, better: CRM, ERP, BI, and more.