Pca 2010 summer spreadsheet hell with input

Carrie T. NauyalisProduct Line ManagerPlanview, Inc.

Climbing Out of Spreadsheet HellWhy Spreadsheets Aren’t Cutting it Anymore

© 2010 Planview, Inc. | 2 | Confidential

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please take a moment to

• Identify someone to watch time – give 5 minute warning at :45 minutes.

• Identify someone to take notes – post notes to http://barcamp.org/ProductCampAustinSummer2010Notes

• Thank our sponsors


Today’s Session

If you manage a product portfolio, you’re probably used to dealing with a PLETHORA of spreadsheets:

the product catalog prioritized projects for the next release current resource utilization the product P&L the release schedule the product backlog the technology & product roadmap the product requirements spreadsheet and MORE!

Seriously! How is this possibly manageable? And how is a product manager expected to analyze all of this disparate data to ensure strategic alignment of work, to mitigate risk in the portfolio, and to smoke the competition with the next launch? In this HIGHLY interactive session, submitted for PCA Summer 2010, Product Campers will discuss the benefits and challenges of spreadsheets and what other solutions work effectively to manage all of this information.


• This session was a “Town Hall-style,” discussion-oriented presentation.

• All presentation content was generated by the attendees as part of the session discussion.

Presenter’s Notes


1. Easily Accessible

2. Easy to Use

3. Repository for Data

4. Common Format

5. Charts & Graphs

6. Robust Calculations

7. Scenarios on Tabs

8. Sort, Filter, & Prioritize

9. Pivot Tables

10.Options for Flexibility

11.Manages Checklists Well

12.Common Import/Export

13.Inexpensive

14.Fun (on a good day!)

15.Stability, in terms of changes

16.Embedded Calculator

Benefits of Spreadsheets


1. Only 1 person can edit at a time

2. Version Control

3. Unable to effectively manage changes

4. Consistency of data entry

5. Formula errors

6. Bad calculations = bad decisions

7. Keeping the spreadsheet up to date

8. Skill level required to do robust calculations

9. Error prone

10.Multiple versions of the truth

11.Crashes!

12.Size limitations – not a database

13.Collaboration is tough

14.Updates sometimes need a refresh

15.Management treats it as the tool to answer all questions

Challenges of Spreadsheets


1. A BIGGER SPREADSHEET!

2. SharePoint+ Collaboration+ Document Repository- Same issues spreadsheets

3. Homegrown Solutions- Very expensive- Don’t integrate well- Revert back to spreadsheet

4. Templates

4. Task-Specific Applications MS Project OpenProject Accept360 ChangePoint Track Filemaker- (Don’t solve all needs)

What Other Solutions Work Effectively


• “Spreadsheet Hell” is 1 of 5 Pitfalls of Product Portfolio Management uncovered in a 2009 Benchmark Survey on Product Development

• Working on 2nd Annual Study for 2010

• What other questions should we ask?

• What would you be interested in knowing about Product Portfolio Management?

The Big Picture


• Small Companies/Startups Few people / Small Budget Tools / Systems Infrastructure Path for Growth

• Best Practices / Lessons Learned Collaborate on Experience Compare History Confidence in Projections

• Wins / Losses

• End of Life Internal How to Manage Emotions vs. Facts

• Product Life Cycle

• Better Metrics & Decisions

• Cross-Functional Challenges Managing interdependencies Common language / format

Areas of Interest

Thank You!

Carrie T. NauyalisProduct Line ManagerPlanview, Inc.

Pca 2010 summer spreadsheet hell with input

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