Beyond Spreadsheets | Ep. 4

Olivia

Welcome back to FP&A Done Right. I’m Olivia, and as always, I’m joined by Ryan. Today, we’re going to talk about something that’s, well, everywhere—Excel. But more importantly, why it’s just not enough anymore for modern finance teams.

Ryan

Hey everyone! Yeah, Excel is like that old pair of sneakers you just can’t throw away. I mean, I still use it for, uh, everything—budgets, fantasy football, even my grocery lists. But, honestly, it’s starting to show its age, especially when you’re trying to run a business on it.

Olivia

Exactly. I think most finance folks have a love-hate relationship with Excel. It’s flexible, sure, but when you’re dealing with multiple teams, or, say, a fast-growing company, it quickly becomes a bit of a nightmare. Data silos, version control chaos, and don’t even get me started on the “who has the latest file” drama.

Ryan

Oh, the version control thing! I once color-coded my entire grocery list in Excel—like, I had tabs for produce, dairy, snacks, you name it. Then my wife updated it on her laptop, and suddenly, we had two lists, three missing items, and a debate over whether we needed oat milk or regular. Multiply that by a hundred, and you’ve got what happens in finance teams every month.

Olivia

That’s a perfect analogy, actually. And it’s not just about groceries—when you’re making decisions that impact millions, or even just trying to close the books, those little errors and miscommunications can cost you big time. I mean, I’ve seen teams spend more time reconciling spreadsheets than actually analyzing the numbers.

Ryan

And the collaboration headaches! You’ve got people emailing files back and forth, someone’s locked out, someone else overwrites a formula, and suddenly you’re spending your Friday night fixing a broken link instead of, you know, having a life.

Olivia

It’s funny, but it’s also kind of tragic. And as we discussed in our last episode, the need for agility and real-time data is only getting more urgent. Excel just wasn’t built for that kind of speed or scale.

Ryan

So, let’s talk about what happens when a company decides to move beyond spreadsheets. Here is a great example— a family-owned logistics business realized Excel just wasn’t cutting it anymore. They were restructuring, the industry was in chaos, and they needed a real FP&A department, not just gut feel and a bunch of files.

Olivia

Right, and they didn’t just swap out Excel for another static tool. They went with Workday Adaptive Planning, and what’s interesting is how quickly things changed for them. Suddenly, they had real-time dashboards, scenario planning, and—this is key—integrations with their logistics platform, CargoWise. That meant no more manual data pulls or endless copy-paste marathons.

Ryan

Yeah, and the impact was huge. Instead of building a new report every month, they just hit refresh and the data updated. The board got dashboards and reports with a single click. And the FP&A team could actually focus on finding growth opportunities, not just cleaning up spreadsheets.

Olivia

It’s a real shift from being reactive to proactive. And I think that’s the signal for a CFO—when you’re spending more time fixing data than using it, or when your business is changing faster than your spreadsheets can keep up, that’s when you need to invest in new finance tech. It’s not just about efficiency, it’s about being able to see what’s coming and act on it.

Ryan

Totally. And, you know, Gartner’s research backs this up. They’re saying that flexibility, agility, and strategic thinking in planning and budgeting are top priorities for CFOs. Technology is the key to getting there—especially with scenario planning and predictive analytics. If you’re still stuck in Excel, you’re missing out on all that.

Olivia

And it’s not just a buzzword—digital transformation really does drive business outcomes. The companies that make the leap are the ones that can adapt, spot trends, and make better decisions, faster.

Ryan

Let’s look at a couple more success stories. An entertainment business, for example—they run these massive family entertainment centers, and their finance team was, like, two people. They were juggling a ton of spreadsheets, trying to budget for everything from bowling to go-karts. It was, well, not fun.

Olivia

I love this one. With Workday Adaptive Planning and Revelwood’s help, they built custom reports for each activity—so they could forecast bowling revenues, track tickets sold, and even make decisions like whether to expedite a part for a broken lane based on lost revenue. Suddenly, managers could enter their numbers directly, and the system handled all the calculations. No more formula errors or endless email chains.

Ryan

And let's talk about a construction company—totally different industry, but same story. They needed to manage cash flow for all their construction projects, and before Adaptive Planning, it took them, what, 10 to 15 hours just to gather the data for a report? Now it’s down to four hours, and they’ve got real-time insights into every project, every draw, every commission. That’s a game changer for growth.

Olivia

It’s the difference between scrambling to keep up and actually steering the ship. I remember a boardroom meeting early in my career—everything was reactive, we were always a step behind. But once we started using BI tools and real-time dashboards, the whole dynamic changed. Suddenly, we were the ones bringing new ideas to the table, not just explaining what went wrong last quarter.

Ryan

That’s the dream, right? Moving from “what happened?” to “what’s next?” And it’s not just for the big guys—these tools are making it possible for lean teams to punch way above their weight.

Olivia

Absolutely. And as more companies embrace this shift, I think we’ll see finance teams become true partners in strategy, not just number crunchers. But, uh, I’ll still triple-check my formulas—just in case the rules of math do change overnight.