As a DBA/Developer working in the Property/Asset Management Industry for decades I can tell you that Excel will NEVER go away so long as the executives are making the decisions. When it comes to the typical executive and even high level accountant/controller/comptroller, the knowledge level and understanding of things computer related is highly restricted outside of Excel, PowerPoint And Outlook with Excel being the big daddy app among this group.
In my experience the typical executive user would prefer spending hours or even days working on a spreadsheet then spending even a few hours learning how to properly use some other task specific software regardless of whether or not it’s better suited for the task at hand. It’s not so much that the executives don’t understand the issues with using Excel so much as how Excel lets them do what they need and more importantly, want to do and all without having to learn a new system. The Excel model (how it works using rows & columns ) is intuitive to one with an accounting mind. I’ve had executives ask me before why can’t our really expensive <fill in the blank> Enterprise Ready Application Do X when Excel can do the same thing and easily? This is especially true when dealing with what I term JCL, Judgment Call Logic. Unlike programming structures (If/Then, CASE, etc) , JCL is perspective based and results in a different value based on who is assessing it. This is why its “judgment” logic and not natural logic. Excel users don’t understand how you can’t code JCL into software.
That said there is certainly a need in the software world to do things better, smarter. The world of software engineering needs more byte artisans and less bean counters. Too often short term decisions are made with negative long terms effects, all done in order to meet some artificial deadline that has more to do with someone getting a commission for meeting a deadline then for delivering something of quality.
In my experience the typical executive user would prefer spending hours or even days working on a spreadsheet then spending even a few hours learning how to properly use some other task specific software regardless of whether or not it’s better suited for the task at hand. It’s not so much that the executives don’t understand the issues with using Excel so much as how Excel lets them do what they need and more importantly, want to do and all without having to learn a new system. The Excel model (how it works using rows & columns ) is intuitive to one with an accounting mind. I’ve had executives ask me before why can’t our really expensive <fill in the blank> Enterprise Ready Application Do X when Excel can do the same thing and easily? This is especially true when dealing with what I term JCL, Judgment Call Logic. Unlike programming structures (If/Then, CASE, etc) , JCL is perspective based and results in a different value based on who is assessing it. This is why its “judgment” logic and not natural logic. Excel users don’t understand how you can’t code JCL into software.
That said there is certainly a need in the software world to do things better, smarter. The world of software engineering needs more byte artisans and less bean counters. Too often short term decisions are made with negative long terms effects, all done in order to meet some artificial deadline that has more to do with someone getting a commission for meeting a deadline then for delivering something of quality.