Guide

Spreadsheets versus proper software

Plenty of good businesses run on a spreadsheet and there is nothing wrong with that. The trouble starts when the spreadsheet quietly becomes the most important system in the business and nobody notices how fragile it is.

Where a spreadsheet wins

It is free, you already know how to use it, and you can change it in seconds without asking anyone. For a small job list or a simple set of figures, nothing beats it.

Do not let anyone talk you out of one that is working.

Where it starts to hurt

These are the signals it has outgrown itself.

  • Two people editing different copies of it
  • It only lives on one laptop
  • Nothing reminds you about anything
  • Customer details sitting in it with no protection
  • You are afraid to touch it in case it breaks

The data protection angle

Customer names, numbers and addresses in a file on a laptop or emailed around is a real risk. If that laptop goes missing, that is a problem you have to deal with formally.

Proper software at least keeps it behind a login with a record of who saw what.

Moving over sensibly

Do not throw the spreadsheet out on day one. Run both for a few weeks, move the live jobs across first, and keep the old file as a record.

And only move if something is genuinely going wrong. Change for its own sake costs you a fortnight and gains you nothing.

Common questions

Is it safe to keep customer details in a spreadsheet?

It can be, if it is protected and not floating around by email. A shared unprotected file on a laptop is the risky version.

When should I move off spreadsheets?

When more than one person needs the same information at the same time, or when things are being missed.

Where to go next

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