{"id":1788,"date":"2017-07-17T14:41:57","date_gmt":"2017-07-17T13:41:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/?p=1788"},"modified":"2026-01-29T10:48:40","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T10:48:40","slug":"3-reasons-smes-stop-using-spreadsheets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/3-reasons-smes-stop-using-spreadsheets\/","title":{"rendered":"Is your HR team wasting time in spreadsheets?"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/category\/people-leadership\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">People &amp; Leadership<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tIs your HR team wasting time in spreadsheets?\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2017-07-17T14:41:57+01:00\">17 July, 2017<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"Is your HR team wasting time in spreadsheets?\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/3-reasons-smes-stop-using-spreadsheets\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/header>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/author\/bryancollins\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/Bryan-Collins.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" height=\"40\" width=\"40\" fetchpriority=\"high\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Bryan Collins<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Businesses should think about whether Excel is still fit for purpose.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Excel has long been an important spreadsheet application for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but is it still fit for purpose?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With 95 per cent of companies using Excel for financial reporting, it&#8217;s clear the vast majority are still willing to organise their HR and payroll through the application, despite its apparent limitations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But while it is suitable for holding information and simple formulae, the real issue comes when additional layers of complexity are added. Excel is time-consuming, doesn&#8217;t produce complete reports and is difficult to search for specific information. Moreover, there is typically a number of different sources of data, rather than one single database.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Research has found that HR staff can reduce monthly admin by over 40 per cent by using software to keep track of their employee information and employees&#8217; right to work. Indeed, a new personnel workflow system can save HR staff around 387 hours a year, which equates to \u00a36,160.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These savings come from automating tasks including statutory payments, calculating overtime payments, making permanent data changes and dealing with statutory and company sick pay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bearing this in mind, why should SMEs turn their backs on Excel?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Familiarity breeds contempt<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is very easy for SMEs to get comfortable using Excel as it has become an industry standard, but this overlooks the capacity for a better alternative. Human error is known to be a huge issue with Excel, as a simple copy and paste mistake can radically alter a spreadsheet and give skewed figures. It&#8217;s important SMEs properly survey the market to see what options are out there, especially as technological improvements make software a compelling alternative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poor feature options<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While Excel may have a host of excellent surface level features, it is lacking the kind of in-depth applications that the modern SME needs. If people want to take advantage of the analytical potential of their data, they need to consider a much more robust solution. For example, it is not possible to build sales reports within Excel without first carrying out a time-consuming export-and-adjust process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Wasted time<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>HR staff can waste as much as six hours a week maintaining spreadsheets, which will act as a significant drain on resources. Data input errors, keeping version control and the misuse of built-in functionality are all common issues that can act as a drag on resources and prevent businesses focusing on more important issues. By automating routine processes, it will not only boost the efficiency of staff, but also remove the need for manual processing, form filling and completing and manipulating spreadsheets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If SMEs want to be successful in the long term, they have to be free to concentrate on drawing up future strategies. By automating a series of processes within the HR and payroll function, this is exactly what they can do. This will also have a knock-on effect on talent management and staff retention, leading to a happier and better performing workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta gated-content\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">The guide to people and payroll<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Want to motivate your employees, manage the run-up to payday and improve your payroll processes? Get you free guide and use it to get your people and payroll processes working effectively.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-1a42faf1-e1b3-4a53-acdf-02fb0ab82a39\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Get your free guide<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"999\" height=\"666\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2018\/03\/SAGE_COLLEAGUE_SHARD_261017_0957_All-Uses.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"The new tax year will have a number of changes and initiatives to be aware of\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2018\/03\/SAGE_COLLEAGUE_SHARD_261017_0957_All-Uses.jpg 999w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to the Sage Advice newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Join more than 500,000 UK readers and get the best business admin strategies and tactics, as well as actionable advice to help your company thrive, in your inbox every month.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-b1a63862-3fa0-4a5e-bb67-c76b88bbc6b8\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Subscribe now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1440\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1073797282-1-1440x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1073797282-1-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Businesses should think about whether Excel is still fit for purpose. Excel has long been an important spreadsheet application for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but is it still fit for purpose? With 95 per cent of companies using Excel for financial reporting, it&#8217;s clear the vast majority are still willing to organise their HR [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":282,"featured_media":1859,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":false,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[51,41,37],"business_type":[4,3],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[],"persona":[69],"imagine_tag":[92],"coauthors":[398],"class_list":["post-1788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people-leadership","tag-cloud","tag-hr-process","tag-payroll","business_type-small-business","business_type-medium-sized-business"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-gb","author_name":"Bryan Collins","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/08\/JeremyCorner_GL_261115-491.jpg","imagine_tags":{"92":"HR and Payroll"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice UK","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/282"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1788\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/1859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=1788"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=1788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}