Introduction
When people mention spreadsheets, most start to drift off into a state of sleep, assuming that they are merely outdated options for bookkeeping. Nothing could be further from the truth, so I wish to talk about 10 areas of business which I have personally made spreadsheets for, so that you can see how versatile spreadsheets are for all areas of your business.
Finances
OK, so this one is obvious, but spreadsheets are not just for bookkeeping. In fact, most people use accounting software now, so spreadsheets are being used for less bookkeeping. Having said that, businesses are now generating a wealth of data, but often can’t get the reports that they need. I often get sent CVS data from any of the accounting software packages and asked to report on it. I also get asked for things like cashflow forecasts, monthly income versus targets, and even spreadsheets to report on people’s exported bank statement data. There are loads of possibilities for Excel when finances are involved.
Administration
Many of the uses for spreadsheets would fall under administration, even some of those that could also be listed under the other headings. However, there are even some more unique uses for spreadsheets. For example, I made one to create labels. It was a charity store, and they wanted to mark all items with the selling price, and a code for the person who provided it. Instead of hand-writing each one (as they were doing), I got the list they were working from, and got that to lay the data out so it would print nicely on stickers. I even got it to ask which sticker to start on, in case they wanted to use a half-used page of stickers. Many once-manual tasks like sorting, highlighting, re-arranging, analysing, or comparing data, can be automated in spreadsheets.
Sales
I have done loads of spreadsheets to analyse, assign, and report on sales figures, but one I’m seeing more often now is costing spreadsheets. These mean that the office can set up options, prices, and limitations, which the salespeople could simply fill in. These selections then run through the formulas I have done and spit out a price. I can even get the spreadsheet to create a quote which can be saved as a PDF and sent to the client. These costing sheets are becoming very popular, as they eliminate the potential for some human error, and make the pricing process faster and more professional. I’ve also done some spreadsheets for sales reps, who are out on the road. Combining client information, with a map of their area, in order to group visits more effectively. Sales at the end of the day is often about numbers, and Excel loves numbers.
Marketing
I use many spreadsheets for marketing, from planning content, to analysing engagement. Understanding what marketing works, what doesn’t, what generates sales, and what creates a buzz, is very important. Especially if you are investing time or money (or both). I use LinkedIn for most of my marketing, and I report on each post, based on my preferences. The report is clear, and it shows me which posts, campaigns, and months have succeeded, and which haven’t. There is SO much data available to analyse, and there is so much more to track if you also have manually entered data. So, if your marketing campaign is just a ‘post and hope’ effort, then you really should be thinking of ways to analyse the results, to that you can improve your return on investment.
Warehouse
Let’s not forget the coal face of many businesses, the warehouse. I have done many stock control spreadsheets, and have a few more in the pipeline at the moment. What is in, what is coming, what do I need to order to have it by the time I need it, are all questions that the right spreadsheet can answer. I have also done spreadsheets that combine items of stock to form products, like gift hampers. Not only did these spreadsheets help to monitor what was in stock and what was required, but it also kept track of the prices, so if one item went up in price, all the products which contained that item did so too. This combined the stock elements with the pricing and sales elements, to provide a one stop solution for a happy client.
Human Resources
I never expected to make spreadsheets for the HR sector, but it has been a huge surprise to me as to how many requests I have had for this area of business. Staff appraisals, absentee trackers, holiday planners, wage calculators, onboarding processes, training schedules, disciplinary records, succession planning, and time allocators. I have done them all and then some. I think the HR sector has some all singing software options, but they are either too complicated for small businesses, or too restrictive for larger ones. So, I often get asked to make solutions in Excel for all sorts of personnel spreadsheets. If you need something tracked or monitored with your staff, then get in touch because I may be able to help.
IT
This seems obvious, but there are many aspects of IT that could be improved with a spreadsheet. I have a spreadsheet to track all the updates I do to my website. Why? So that if I restore to an earlier backup, I know exactly what changes will be lost. I also know which pages contain each image, so that I can edit all relevant pages if I remove an image. I also monitor the downloads, so I know what people are after when they visit my website. I track Google Analytics too, which is then exported into a spreadsheet and analysed. As I have said before, many software programmes export to CSV, and those, when analysed, could tell you a wealth of useful information.
Production
This could be production of a physical product, or managing a process or project, but this is often what a business boils down to when you remove all the stuff around it. I do spreadsheets to monitor processes quite often, as my background is in project management. What needs to be done when, what relies on other tasks being finished, is the project on track or is it running late, what tasks are due and coming up. All these things need to be known when managing a process of sorts, and the right spreadsheet can take all the guesswork out. In the last job I had before starting this business, was in project management. I would arrive in the office, do all the tasks in red, and then do all the tasks in yellow. My spreadsheet would show me what I needed to do when. Not only that, but if a client asked for a project status, I could save a client-friendly report to PDF (with the current updated info) and simply send it. If this sounds like something you need, please get in touch.
Compliance
People say that compliance is a bunch of box ticking, well that’s perfect for Excel. I have done a few spreadsheets where dates are entered, and then the spreadsheet counts down until the next milestone is due, etc. I’ve done others where you can keep a record of the filed paperwork, and what file it is in, so that you know when it needs to be shredded. I’ve done others that combine with HR to monitor things like staff training or certification. I’ve also done others to remind people of upcoming renewals for insurances or other policies. All this boring stuff that you don’t think about, but could cause issues if forgotten, could be so much clearer and more useful in the right spreadsheet.
Management
All the areas I have spoken of will interest management, however, I have also done spreadsheet to combine other spreadsheets. Imagine if you had various departments, each with their own spreadsheet. I would then collect key data from each spreadsheet, which could then be pasted into a management spreadsheet (or simply create a link), which could then give management an overview of all the reports, as well as possibly combining data. I’ve also made stand alone management reports for small businesses, and it all just depends on what you want to see in the report, and what data you have available to do so.
Conclusion
I hope these have shown you how versatile spreadsheets are, and that there are very few areas that can’t be enhanced with the right spreadsheet. If any of this has interested you, or inspired you to other ideas, please get in touch. I’d love to explore the possibility of me making some spreadsheets for you.
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