Not every spreadsheet needs replacing. But some have grown beyond their useful life. Here are 7 signs yours is one of them.
1. Multiple People Edit It
More than one person updating means conflicts, overwrites, and locked files.
2. It Has More Than 10 Tabs
Cross-tab formulas break. Hidden tabs contain forgotten data. Nobody fully understands the structure.
3. You Worry About It Breaking
If accidental deletion keeps you up at night, your process is too important for a spreadsheet.
4. You Spend Hours Maintaining It
Time spent formatting, fixing formulas, and copying data is time not spent on your actual job.
5. One Person Owns It
If only one person understands the spreadsheet, your business has a single point of failure.
6. Compliance Depends on It
If regulatory compliance relies on data anyone can edit without an audit trail, that’s a risk.
7. It’s Slow
If opening the file takes more than a few seconds, you’ve outgrown Excel.
If 3 or more items apply, a custom application would eliminate all of these issues.
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