The Hidden Cost of Spreadsheets
Filed Under:Written by John Livermore
As any project manager knows, the success of a project depends on whether it comes in at or under budget and whether it was completed on time. What most project managers do not know is that by using spreadsheets to manage multi-site projects, they significantly decrease their opportunities for success.
In today’s fast-paced, technologically advanced society, spreadsheets are quickly becoming obsolete because of their inefficiencies. Listed below are a few of the hidden costs associated with spreadsheets that make them a poor choice for today’s project manager.
Personnel
Considering it typically takes a large number of people to complete a project—especially multi-site projects—your overhead is already going to be high. Now, factor in each person updating, merging, sending, saving, finding, emailing, fixing and even losing the information. A significant amount of personnel time is wasted here.
Out-of-date information
Spreadsheets contain critical information needed to make decisions throughout the project. If the spreadsheet has not been updated, or an older version of the spreadsheet is making the rounds, inaccurate information is being used to make decisions, which in turn can cost a company hundreds, thousands, even millions of dollars if decisions are being made using incorrect information.
Errors
In multi-site projects, data can often arrive daily or weekly via spreadsheets from other sources (shipping information, billing information, etc). The project manager or project coordinator must merge that data with the master spreadsheet. Even assuming every party is using the exact same software on the exact same operating machine, this process is very error prone.
Location
Invariably the master spreadsheet spawns many other versions of spreadsheets. Those may become the master spreadsheet for a certain subset of project data. Now information required for decision making is spread across two spreadsheets on two different computers, possibly in separate offices or even separate companies.
Additionally documentation such as images, signoff sheets, checklists, etc., must be stored somewhere separate from the spreadsheet(s). Where does the documentation get stored? Is it all in the same office? On the same computer? Is it available for anyone to view? Information not included in a spreadsheet is still critical to the communication process and is necessary for other team members to find/get to quickly and securely.
Lack of information
History for each site is too difficult to capture in a spreadsheet format. It is therefore in the project manager's head, in project coordinator's heads, in emails or even lost forever. Weekly or daily meetings are a must to keep everyone on the same page. And that equates to lots of wasted time and money.
These are just some of the hidden costs that can quickly decrease the efficiency of a project. Fortunately, there is a solution: abandon the spreadsheets and call BigWave.
BigWave’s multi-site project management portal solves the inefficiencies of traditional project management with spreadsheets by giving you one easy portal to manage all aspects of your multi-site project. Streamlining your day-to-day operations and communication both on- and off-site, BigWave allows you to collaborate and communicate quickly and effectively so that you can focus on what you do best—managing projects.
Let the numbers speak for themselves:
- Powerful: 30% increase in time available for project managers
- Affordable: reduce site revisits by up to 40%
- Easy to Use: live and running your projects in just days
Are you ready to ensure that your next project is going to be a success? Contact BigWave today online or by phone at (888) 252-WAVE and control the chaos in your multi-site projects.
