Eliminating Excel Hell: The Hub and Spoke Approach

The Question That Started It All

Professor Janek Ratnatunga recently asked me, “Give me 10 things that will be better improved, 10 benefits to me by adopting your method.” This article is my response.

The Reality of Excel Hell

Excel Hell is a real and widely recognized issue in the business world. The proof? A $100 billion industry has emerged with the sole purpose of replacing Excel, promising to eliminate inefficiencies associated with spreadsheet-based workflows. Senior management in organizations globally has acknowledged Excel Hell as a significant problem, leading to widespread investment in alternatives.

This is evident in articles published by major business media outlets like the Wall Street Journal. In November 2017, an article pushed the message that senior management was instructing staff not to use Excel. This narrative was heavily promoted by alternative tools such as Workday Adaptive Planning. A follow-up article in July 2021 reinforced the same point, citing case studies from major corporations like PepsiCo.

What is Excel Hell?

If you work with data and spreadsheets in an organization, you will likely recognize the symptoms of Excel Hell. Consider Tim, a typical employee:

• Tim receives data in Excel spreadsheets, CSV files, or exports from an ERP system.
• He manually enters data, applies formulas, and formats reports.
• He sends the spreadsheet to colleagues—Tom, Ted, and Todd—for further processing.
• This cycle repeats daily, creating a tangled web of duplicated files, inconsistencies, and confusion.

The result? Hundreds of spreadsheets circulating in an organization, each slightly different, requiring constant reconciliation. This leads to:

• Multiple, conflicting “versions of the truth.”
• Tedious manual reconciliation work.
• Complex consolidations that are prone to breaking.
• Inefficiencies that cost businesses time and money.

Excel Hell is best visualized as a Jackson Pollock painting—chaotic, unstructured, and overwhelming.

Why Does Excel Hell Exist?

Organizations rely on spreadsheets because their enterprise systems are always slightly outdated. ERP systems and IT-driven solutions do not fully cover all business processes, leaving gaps. Traditionally, these gaps were filled with pen and paper; today, they are filled with spreadsheets.

Management faces a conundrum: Spreadsheets are necessary, yet they create inefficiencies. Businesses cannot function without them, but at the same time, the widespread use of spreadsheets results in an uncontrollable mess. This has driven the emergence of alternative-to-Excel solutions, ERP systems, and FP&A tools, all promising to eliminate spreadsheet dependency.

The Alternative-to-Excel Industry’s Broken Promise

Despite their claims, ERP and FP&A tools do not eliminate Excel Hell. In fact, they often exacerbate it:

• Implementing these systems requires massive capital expenditure.
• IT-driven solutions take years to roll out, often becoming obsolete by launch.
• Custom modifications are costly and unpredictable.
• Spreadsheets remain essential for modeling, exporting, and reshaping data.

Every manager with experience in IT implementations knows that promises to eliminate spreadsheets have repeatedly failed. Instead, spreadsheet usage often increases because these systems do not fully meet business needs. The very industry that claims to eliminate Excel Hell inadvertently perpetuates it.

A Better Solution: Hub and Spoke Architecture

Rather than replacing spreadsheets, we can transform how they are used. The key is adopting a Hub and Spoke model, where data is centrally managed and accessed in real-time, eliminating the need to send spreadsheets back and forth.

This approach replaces the chaotic, point-to-point Excel Hell workflow with an efficient, structured system akin to a Mondrian painting—organized, segmented, and logical.

Case Study: Budget Review Process

Traditional (Excel Hell) Method

In a typical budget review process:

1. The finance team exports draft financial statements to Excel.
2. Hundreds of spreadsheets are sent to budget holders for review.
3. Budget holders manually enter comments and return the files.
4. The finance team manually consolidates all feedback.
5. Errors, inconsistencies, and delays occur due to human oversight and spreadsheet sprawl.

This method is so cumbersome that many organizations skip the review process entirely, leading to unreliable financial reports.

Hub and Spoke Method

Using Excel’s built-in data capabilities, the process becomes streamlined:

1. Each budget holder receives a permanent spreadsheet.
2. They use dropdowns to navigate to their specific budget area.
3. Clicking GET retrieves real-time financial data from a central database.
4. They review transactions, add comments, and click PUT to update the central system.
5. The finance team retrieves all feedback instantly and acts on it.
6. No spreadsheets are sent or received—only data flows between users and the central hub.

This simple shift eliminates Excel Hell by maintaining a single version of the truth while preserving Excel’s agility and flexibility.

The 10 Key Benefits of Hub and Spoke Architecture

1. Eliminates Spreadsheet Chaos – No more emailing files back and forth.
2. Ensures a Single Version of the Truth – Data is centralized and consistent.
3. Reduces Manual Reconciliation – No need to compare conflicting spreadsheets.
4. Saves Time – Business processes become faster and more efficient.
5. Improves Accuracy – Real-time data means fewer errors and better decisions.
6. Enhances Collaboration – Team members work from the same data, reducing confusion.
7. Lowers IT Costs – No need for expensive new software or IT interventions.
8. Boosts Productivity – Employees spend less time on administrative tasks.
9. Provides Flexibility – Works with existing Excel tools and skills.
10. Scales Easily – Can be implemented across multiple departments and locations.

Who Benefits from This Approach?

1. Management – Gains visibility into real-time, accurate data for better decision-making.
2. Finance Teams – Eliminates tedious consolidation work and improves reporting.
3. IT Departments – Reduces reliance on IT-driven solutions while maintaining security.
4. Excel Users – Positions them as key contributors to process transformation.

For Excel users, demonstrating this methodology to their organization can lead to career growth. My own experience has shown that implementing these solutions can result in job promotions, pay increases, and long-term consulting opportunities.

Conclusion: A Simple Shift with Massive Impact

The perception that Excel must be abandoned to eliminate inefficiencies is false. The Hub and Spoke approach proves that we can retain Excel’s flexibility while eliminating the inefficiencies of Excel Hell.

By shifting to this model, businesses can enjoy the best of both worlds—agility, accessibility, and affordability of Excel, combined with the efficiency of centralized data management. The opportunity for Excel professionals is enormous: those who introduce this transformation will be highly valued in any organization.

This simple shift turns the chaotic Jackson Pollock mess of spreadsheets into a streamlined Mondrian masterpiece—structured, efficient, and effective.

The time to transform Excel workflows is now.