A hammer and a spreadsheet

Spreadsheets may be the bookkeepers of many businesses, but are they really the best tool for all?

Spreadsheets are the core of many businesses around. They are also the first-to-look-at sources of KPIs. In fact, there is nothing wrong with that. Considering many businesses still did not implement any kind of MES, ERP or CRM system spreadsheets are the bookkeepers of many verticals along that business. They are like a Swiss Army knife; they are versatile and can be used for many different tasks. A Swiss Army knife can be used to open a bottle of wine or cutting vegetables but many kitchens, be it a home or a professional one, still uses separate corkscrews and knifes.

Spreadsheets have also allowed us to create management systems, where we can pull numbers, transform them, plot them and generate actions. The questions here can be, are we extracting valuable information? Are we transforming that information into actions? Are we upgrading our tools and get better insights?

With all questions in mind, the cost of the solution is also an elephant in the room. From my experiences I have seen a wide range of prices for a product or a service. There is an advantage in the name of the prices coming from a specialized startup that has a particular feature. Alternatively, an open-source library (maybe a Python library) that can be used at zero cost, but it may not be user-friendly. There are also widely known, expensive options that provide powerful data analytics and impressive graphic displays (which I am not a big fan of).

I am on the roll to help my clients achieve their business goals. Whether looking for a custom solution tailored to specific needs or an off-the-shelf product that can be easily integrated into existing workflow, I can provide you with the expertise needed. With a focus on data analytics and management systems, valuable insights can be extracted from your data and transformed into actionable items. Additionally, access to the latest technologies and best practices in the field can be provided. If you’re interested in learning more about how I can help, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

P.S.: Hammer analogy was from a piece I have read recently reminding the saying “If the only tool you have is a hammer, you will start treating all your problems like a nail.”