“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” – Winston Churchill

Google the title of this article and you will get a plethora of articles and discussions on Reddit that give the simple answer of ‘Yes, Excel is still very relevant in this age of improved data analytical tools’. It’s position has changed slightly though. How and why? Let’s find out.

Do the Limitations of Excel Spell its Demise?

Many are quick to point out the limitation of Excel as to why it is now ‘dead in the water’. However, all systems, in fact all things in existence, have limitations (we are not going to get philosophical I promise!). The point is, are the limitations of Excel enough to warrant the end of its relevance? Let’s explore some of these and see.

  • Excel is limited in how much data it can store (spreadsheets have a maximum of 1,048,576 rows and 16,384 columns per sheet). In this data age, some data sets can go back 10-15 years easily. Excel would simply NOT be able to handle such a large volume of data. The reality is, neither could our brains. We would need to condense such data sets into bitesize chunks to allow us to see patterns and trends. Powerful data analytic tools exist for just this purpose. I guarantee however that, upon reviewing that data you will ask ‘what if…’, ‘what about…’, ‘how does this compare to…’. The same tools that allowed you to condense the data in the first place will most likely not be versatile enough to answer those questions. They too are limited. Enter the option ‘Export to Excel’ where you can manipulate the data to your liking.
  • Other tools do data visualization better – Tableau and Power BI come to mind straight away. And this claim is true, other software does exist that produce slick dashboard with a plethora of ways to filter data. Ask yourself though, how many times have you looked at a Power BI dashboard for example, only to export to Excel and build a different graph because you wanted it to look a certain way to make your point? The reality is, other tools DO have better visualization. What Excel excels at (see what I did there) is VERSATILITY. What would you prefer – a fancy dashboard that tells 60% of your story? Or a good dashboard that provides 100% of information required? Just for the record, with good training, you can create some Excel-llent dashboards in Excel. Let me know if you would like to book training for you and your team to support with this.
  • Other tools can handle multiple data sources better – again true and, rather impressively, the data feeds can be automated to produce a fancy output. Although it is possible to import external into Excel using links, manual intervention is required. The automated feeds in the more powerful data analytic tools tend to refresh at specific time(s), say 7am and 1pm. What happens when you need data as at 12pm for a meeting on the ‘latest position’? Using 7am data would mean your report is at least 4 hours out of date (working on the supposition that 11am data would give you time to prepare for a 12am meeting). For companies with high sales volume, that kind of delay could seriously impede good decision making. Enter Excel, where you can export to Excel (our old friend) 7am data, bolt on the latest data from systems and create the analysis and visuals required for your meeting.

    Additional Reasons for Excel Relevance

    Other reasons why Excel is still required include:

    • Data cleansing before uploading to another analytics tool (data collection at source is not always perfect);
    • Transforming data between systems (the same data that goes into one system may need some manipulation – although being correct at source – to be accepted by another system;
    • To mock up more complex reports that will eventually be replicated in other powerful systems;
    • Audit purposes  – systems refresh regularly. Snapshots of reports and supporting data as at a certain point maybe kept offline in Excel for later access.

    Can you think of reasons why you use Excel in your everyday work life?

    Invest in your Excel Learning

    I hope you can see clearly that Excel is still very much relevant although its role has shifted somewhat. Instead of it being central to analysis, it sits beautifully alongside other more powerful tools to give your VERSATILITY. Company requirements change regularly, sometimes even daily, and Excel is there to as an adaptable analytical tool to keep you in the game.

    Improving you and your teams working knowledge of Excel can only serve to improve your 9-5 experience.