Spreadsheet Management Software Market Set to Grow

According to a recent study from Ventana Research, the global Spreadsheet Management software market will reach to $500 million by 2011.

Spreadsheet Management applications are ones that monitor and manage issues of errors, auditability and control that occur when corporations use stand-alone spreadsheets in collaborative, repetitive, enterprise-wide tasks.

Errors in spreadsheets can lead to large operating losses and even earnings restatements by public companies. The research revealed that the existing spreadsheet software do not offer practical ways to audit and manage thousands of important spreadsheets and it is this shortage of reliable spreadsheet management software that is fuelling the growth of the overall market.

The key findings of the report include:

• Worldwide demand for Spreadsheet Management software will approach $500 million by 2011, up from $15 million in 2006

• Adoption will be fastest in more heavily regulated businesses, particularly financial services, but slow in government entities despite their need for fiscal controls

“Spreadsheets are not going away,” said Robert Kugel, SVP and Research Director for Financial Performance Management at Ventana Research. “Many earlier attempts to control them have been rejected because they limit the flexibility and ease of use that make spreadsheets indispensable in the first place. The rapid growth we see is a result of the new software’s ability to offer the best of both worlds, giving users the same flexibility but making it feasible to manage and control all of the spreadsheets used, even in the largest corporations.”