Spreadsheet Remediation
Excel and MS Access are cheap and effective tools that allow subject matter
experts to quickly model solutions in their domain of expertise.
However, useful applications created in Excel and Access
typically become basic building blocks for successive spreadsheet
applications.
Almost inevitably, this process gives rise to fragile ecosystems of
interlinked documents. "Fragile" because something as simple as inserting a row
might silently break dependent spreadsheets in a way that doesn't show up for
months.
In worst case, reporting structures based on Excel often
depend on individual people knowing "how the system works". At reporting time,
spreadsheets are emailed around and the contents copied and pasted. This complex
and undocumented algorithm is as much a part of getting the right results as the
spreadsheet formulae themselves
Thus, in addition to locking up valuable information, inconsistent or missing
data and ineffective re-use of logic, spreadsheets can expose companies to
considerable emergency remediation if certain individuals leave or retire.
"Spreadsheet remediation" refers to a class of
software projects where key data is moved or "upsized" from a spreadsheet into a
relational database. This is usually an opportunity to add a web-based user
interface, to secure and expose the data to the wider organisation.
KSC has a variety of proven approaches to this class of problem as there is
no one-size-fits-all solution. We can handle dependency-tracking,
data-cleansing, database re-design and application implementation.
The driver behind spreadsheet-upsizing projects is often regulatory
compliance, accountability or reputational risk. However, management who
initiate such projects on these grounds are often pleasantly surprised when the
end result has standalone business value - when reports can be reliably
generated, and management decisions can be based on complete, unambiguous and
definitive data.