Technical Debt Explained: Why Keeping That "Giant Excel" Is Costing You Dearly
Risks of using Excel in business
In almost every company, that file exists. You know it well: it’s called “Master_Sales_2023_Final_v4.xlsx”, it takes five minutes to open, and only one person in the office really knows how it works (and everyone panics when that person goes on vacation).
For many administrative managers, this looks like “savings.” Why pay for a new system if Excel already does it for “free”? This is where the concept of Technical Debt comes in. Just like financial debt, postponing software modernization generates interest. The interest you pay here isn’t direct money; it’s inefficiency, errors, and vulnerability.
Below, we break down why the risks of using Excel in business as a central database are much higher than the cost of implementing a professional solution.
The Myth of “If It Works, Don’t Touch It”
Familiarity is comfortable, but dangerous. Using spreadsheets for complex tasks (inventory, massive payroll, CRM) works… until it stops working. And when it fails, the disaster is usually major.
Ignoring the risks of using Excel in business is like building a house on a foundation of sand. It may hold up for a while, but it is not scalable. As your business grows, the spreadsheet becomes slow, unstable, and prone to corruption. What used to save you money now costs you man-hours in manual repairs.
The 3 Biggest Risks of Using Excel in Business That No One Sees
1. Version Hell and the Lack of a “Single Source of Truth”
Have two departments ever presented different figures in a meeting because they used different versions of the same file?
When information lives in loose files, there is no “single source of truth.” Data is siloed. One of the grave risks of using Excel in business is decentralization: marketing has one figure, sales has another, and finance has a third. Data migration to a centralized system eliminates this chaos, ensuring everyone sees the same reality in real-time.
2. Invisible Human Errors
It is estimated that nearly 90% of complex spreadsheets contain errors. A misplaced finger, an incorrectly dragged formula, or a hidden cell can alter financial results by thousands of dollars.
Unlike modern software that has validation rules (locks that prevent entering erroneous data), Excel is permissive. It accepts whatever you type, whether it’s correct or not.
3. Security and Data Leaks
This is perhaps the most critical of the risks of using Excel in business. An Excel file can be copied to a USB drive, sent via personal email, or deleted by accident with a simple click. There is no granular access control (who can see what) nor an audit trail (who modified what).
Software Modernization: The Path to Scalability
The solution is not to hate Excel, but to use it for what it was designed for: quick analysis, not massive storage.
Software modernization implies moving your critical processes to custom-developed platforms or SaaS (Software as a Service) that guarantee:
- Integrity: Data is not deleted by mistake.
- Security: Defined roles and permissions.
- Automation: Processes that run themselves, without manual intervention.
How to Start Data Migration Without Panic?
The main fear of managers is: “We will lose information in the change.”
At Koud, we understand this fear. That is why any software modernization process begins with a safe data migration strategy. It’s not about “turning off” Excel on a Monday and praying. It involves cleaning the data, structuring it, and moving it to the new system in parallel, validating that everything balances to the penny before letting go of the spreadsheet.
Minimizing the risks of using Excel in business is a commercial survival decision. Don’t wait for the file to corrupt to act.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Excel really that unsafe for a company?
Yes, when used as a database. Excel lacks advanced encryption and traceability. Anyone with access to the file can modify historical data without leaving a trace, which is one of the major risks of using Excel in business for accounting or inventory.
What does a data migration process involve?
Data migration is the transfer of your current information (in Excel or paper) to a new digital system. It involves cleaning (deleting duplicates), transformation (adjusting formats), and loading. It is the perfect time to “put the house in order.”
Is software modernization very expensive?
The initial cost exists, but the cost of not doing it is higher. Think about how much time your team wastes merging files, correcting errors, or looking for lost data. Software modernization pays for itself with recovered efficiency.
Conclusion
The “Giant Excel” has served you well, but it’s time to let it go. Keeping critical processes in manual tools generates technical debt that sooner or later you will have to pay, possibly at the worst moment (an audit or a month-end close).
Avoiding the risks of using Excel in business and betting on professional technology is not an expense; it is life insurance for your operation.
Ready to professionalize your management?
At Koud.mx, we are experts in transforming spreadsheets into robust systems. Let’s talk about how to perform your data migration safely and without interruptions.
