Never Mind Big Data: We're Still Living in the Era of Big Spreadsheet

Data Analytics for Microsoft Excel

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Big Data – Projected to Drive IT Growth

• Gartner Inc. projects that “big data” will drive $232 Billion in IT spending – 2016

• Includes spending on• Storage• Business intelligence• Database• Middleware platforms


Big Data – Top Sources Today?

• Machine-generated information• Sensors, geo-enabled mobile devices

• User-generated information• Social media, web transactions, social

networks, apps• Have defined how we talk about

information and content management in 2012-13


But…What About In-House Data?

• Externally generated data is often a shiny object• Pundits and vendors look at big data as

way to transform business, get better insights into customer behavior and buying patterns

• But what about internal patterns and data sources? Often neglected.


Spreadsheets: The Original User-Generated Content

• Spreadsheets may be unglamorous, but are the original user-generated content to have a material impact on business• Spreadsheets in mainstream use for

over 30 years• Few organizations have applied data

analytics or mined the intelligence held in spreadsheets


Risks of Neglecting Data Held in Spreadsheets

1. Risk of ignoring the information needed to make consistent decisions

2. Risk of allowing errors and non-compliance proliferate in the dark of untested formulas, rows and columns

Big Data May Get All the Hype Today…But Business Are Run by Big Spreadsheets


Spreadsheets By the Numbers

• 99.7% of businesses use spreadsheets• 70% of businesses have “heavy” reliance

on spreadsheets for critical business activities

• Yet…only 42% of companies paid attention to spreadsheets as part of risk reporting and assessment

Source: (Deloitte 2009 Study)



• Estimated 90 million computer users in the US workplace…• 60% - 55 million – will use spreadsheets

or simple databases for work

Source: Carnegie Mellon University



• Spreadsheets have an average 5 year lifespan

• Used by 13 different business analysts• Financial analysts spend average 3 hours

a day in spreadsheets

Source: Delft University of Technology



• Errors persist in most spreadsheets and can be hidden sources of risk

• 2-5% of formulae are incorrect• Consistent for both beginner and expert

users• Up to 5% of errors can be material to

business operations and financial health

Source: Professor R. Panko


How to Reduce the Risks?

• Recommendation #1:• Understand where critical business data

is held – odds are it is in a spreadsheet• Learn how it is being exported,

crunched, analyzed• Inventory and apply information

management principles to essential spreadsheets



• Recommendation #2:• Invest in analytic tools that can be

understood by typical business workers• Seek out easy-to-use spreadsheet

governance tools that don’t require big IT investment• ActiveData for Excel may be the right

solution for your firm•



• Recommendation #3:• Don’t pin hopes on big data alone for

improved productivity and operational insights

• Do the analysis and quality assurance on your existing “big spreadsheet” data

• Find historical context to supplement new real-time understanding


Read More on This Topic

• FierceContentManagement• Article – Nov 5, 2012 “Never Mind Big

Data, We’re Still Coping with the Era of Big Spreadsheets”

• InformationActive Network• Blog Post – Oct 20, 2012 “Big Data

Gets the Hype, But We Still Live in the Era of Big Spreadsheet”

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Date post:	27-Jan-2015
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Never Mind Big Data: We're Still Living in the Era of Big Spreadsheet

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