In both the FP&A tools industry and the professional Excel world, we find ourselves pushing against the same fundamental pain: the chaotic, messy, and risky use of spreadsheets in enterprise environments. The heartache and stress caused by broken spreadsheets, complex external links, and manual processes plague businesses daily. Spreadsheets are typically siloed, with manual work being heavily relied upon, especially when consolidating or verifying numbers. It’s no wonder that the “Nine Circles of Excel Hell” from Workday’s white paper resonates with so many. The narrative is clear: in the enterprise, Excel is a nightmare.
Yet, despite these challenges, many professionals hold on tightly to Excel’s power, flexibility, and familiarity, unwilling to trade it for newer, cloud-based solutions. The FP&A tools industry recognizes the mess in enterprise Excel use and offers over 100 cloud-based tools as the remedy. They push the message that “Excel is broken,” positioning their platforms as the solution. However, they are referring to what I now call “Popular Excel”—the version of Excel heavily promoted by social media, where the focus is on flashy, eye-catching techniques, but not strategic, enterprise-level solutions.
The Social Media Problem: Popular Excel vs. Professional Excel
Social media plays a pivotal role in shaping how Excel is perceived and used today. Trending Excel content focuses on what’s easy to screen-record, what’s visually appealing, and what’s “sexy” enough to garner clicks and likes. Unfortunately, this leads to techniques that may work for individual users or small tasks but fall apart when applied in an enterprise context. Social media simply does not address Excel’s true tactical advantages for strategic, large-scale enterprise solutions.
This is where my approach, which I term “Professional Excel,” comes in. Unlike the FP&A tools industry, I don’t believe that Excel itself is broken. Instead, the problem lies in how it’s used. Excel, when applied correctly with professional techniques, has the power to systematize workflows and remove the chaotic mess that currently exists in enterprises.
What Enterprises Truly Need
Both the FP&A tools industry and I agree on what enterprises need, but we differ on the solution. In an ideal enterprise, we need:
- Systemization and process: Users shouldn’t need to create new spreadsheets for every task. Instead, they should interact with a streamlined interface that reduces admin work and prevents errors.
- Centralization: Spreadsheets shouldn’t be emailed back and forth between users, creating chaos. Instead, data should flow seamlessly and be accessible by all relevant parties.
- Automation: Manual tasks like checking and verifying numbers should be minimized. Errors and discrepancies should be automatically flagged, with notifications sent to key personnel.
- Scalability: Any system implemented should be able to grow with the organization, not collapse under the weight of increasing complexity.
These are the fundamental requirements that both the FP&A tools industry and I are addressing. However, the FP&A industry insists the solution lies in the cloud and not Excel, positioning themselves against what they see as a flawed tool. But here’s where I diverge: the Excel they’re criticizing is Popular Excel, not Professional Excel.
The Cloud Fallacy and the Horse-Drawn Motor Car Syndrome
The FP&A tools industry equates the cloud with progress. They argue that moving away from Excel is necessary to fix the mess, citing Excel’s legacy and the chaos it brings to enterprise environments. Their logic is: if Excel is causing all these issues, why not replace it with a cloud-based alternative?
However, the truth is that Excel can already leverage the cloud effectively. The problem isn’t Excel—it’s the way Excel is being misused in these settings, a phenomenon I refer to as the “horse-drawn motor car syndrome.” Enterprises are using Excel incorrectly for tasks that it’s more than capable of handling when used properly.
The simplest and most effective solution is often to keep Excel but apply it with the right techniques. The chaos arises because Excel is being used in ways it was never intended for, especially in its Popular form. But with the proper enterprise-level strategies, Excel can function as a scalable, efficient solution that meets all the requirements of the modern enterprise.
My Target Audience: Professional Excel for Real Solutions
My message is particularly valuable to a specific audience: those in enterprise who understand the risks of both Popular Excel and the costly cloud-based solutions being proposed. Individuals like Tom B and Paul S, who have firsthand experience with the manual, time-consuming processes often required to produce reports or consolidate data, recognize that Excel’s limitations stem from how it’s used, not from the tool itself.
In one notable case, the KPI report system at a large engineering consultant client required significant manual work and could not be scaled across the organization. However, by applying enterprise Excel techniques, I was able to turn it into a scalable, systematized solution—resulting in a transformation that expanded my engagement with the company at three times the original rate.
Why the FP&A Tools Industry Exists
While my approach resonates with individuals like Tom B, the FP&A tools industry appeals to a different demographic—people like Mike C, who may lack the skills or confidence to develop and manage internal, scalable Excel solutions. For them, relying on external vendors for cloud-based software seems like the safer option. But this external reliance only adds layers of complexity and cost, pushing them further into what can feel like jumping from the technological frying pan into the fire.
The FP&A tools industry has a market because many people are afraid of Excel’s perceived complexity. This fear is amplified by social media’s focus on difficult, obscure techniques that don’t offer scalable solutions for large organizations.
Conclusion: The Same Problem, Two Different Solutions
Both the FP&A tools industry and I are tackling the same pain points: chaotic, inefficient spreadsheet usage in the enterprise. But while they believe the solution lies in cloud-based tools, I argue that the solution is already here, within Excel itself—when used correctly.
The choice is clear. For those who recognize the power of Excel but are frustrated with the chaos of Popular Excel, Professional Excel (enterprise Excel) offers a path forward. By applying the right enterprise techniques, businesses can harness the true potential of Excel without having to rely on expensive, third-party tools. This approach not only solves the problem but can significantly elevate the value of the professional implementing it—just as I’ve seen with the clients who’ve tripled my pay to retain my services.
The FP&A tools industry may continue to push cloud-based solutions, but for those in the know, Excel is still king when wielded with the right techniques.
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