Three signs your spreadsheet has graduated into a system
Spreadsheets are wonderful until they're load-bearing. Here's when to retire one.
You have a "do not edit" tab. Two people lock each other out. Someone's job title is implicitly "person who fixes the sheet on Monday." That's software now.
Spreadsheets are wonderful. They're the cardboard box of business — fast, cheap, infinitely shapeable. Right up until they're load-bearing. Here's how to tell when one has graduated into a system.
Sign 1: There's a "do not edit" tab
When you've built a sheet that has a tab the rest of the team is afraid to touch, the spreadsheet is now a system with a single point of failure. The single point of failure is the person who maintains the sheet. They probably don't want this responsibility.
Sign 2: Two people lock each other out
If your team needs to coordinate who has the sheet open, the spreadsheet has outgrown the medium. You've reinvented database concurrency, badly. Move it.
Sign 3: Someone's job is implicitly "the sheet"
You haven't put it in their job description, but everyone knows that on Monday morning Alex fixes the formulas and copies in the new data. Alex didn't sign up for this. When Alex leaves, you'll lose institutional memory in a single resignation letter.
If any of the three are true, the sheet is software now. Treating it like a sheet costs you.
Sources
- [1]Microsoft: Worklab — How spreadsheets become systems, 2024
Curious where automation could move the needle?
Take our 3-minute assessment. We’ll show you where Custom Softwares fit into your business.
Start assessment