Excel ticketing systems: time to swap spreadsheets for an ITSM solution?

Microsoft Excel can be a handy tool for managing and analyzing data — but did you know that some service teams actually use it to handle their IT requests?

This blog will break down everything you need to know about Excel ticketing systems, how they work, and their pros and cons. Spoiler alert: When it comes to automation features, user-friendliness, and integrations, Excel is no match for a dedicated ticketing tool. We’ll also share a few scalable alternatives to spreadsheets that service desks like yours can use to manage incoming requests.

What is an Excel ticketing system? How does it work?

An Excel ticketing system is pretty much what it sounds like. IT departments use an Excel spreadsheet to log and track end user requests or issues as they come in. Here’s a quick breakdown of how it works:

1. Ticket creation

When an end user reports an issue to IT, someone working at the service desk adds a new row to the spreadsheet, containing basic information about the issue such as who reported it and when, as well as a brief description of the problem.

2. Ticket assignment

The IT manager or team lead will review the new ‘tickets’ that have been added to the sheet and assign them to the appropriate team member(s), depending on who is available or has the right skillset to help fix the problem. This is usually done manually.

3. Ticket status and updates

As the assigned agent gets to work on the ticket, they update the 'Status' column to reflect the current state of the ticket. They can also manually record any updates or additional notes about the issue directly into the spreadsheet. This continues until they are able to mark the status as ‘closed’ or ‘resolved’.

4. Tracking and reporting

As more and more tickets get added and resolved, the spreadsheet becomes a record of all the IT calls that have been logged and resolved. IT departments can use this to identify trends or generate reports, although this requires a lot of manual work in Excel.

When would an Excel ticketing system be a fit?

Although Excel can be used to log tickets and keep track of your team’s progress, its functionalities are limited — especially when you compare it to dedicated IT service management (ITSM) software. And it makes sense; unlike an ITSM solution, Excel simply isn’t built to handle complex IT requests. Plus, without any of the automation features that come with most ITSM tools, managing a ticketing system in Excel can start to feel like more work than it’s worth.

That being said, some smaller IT teams do choose to handle their incoming requests using an Excel spreadsheet, especially in the startup phase. Here are a few of the reasons why your IT team might opt for an Excel ticketing system:

You’re working with a limited budget

One of the primary reasons for an IT department to use an Excel ticketing system is the cost. Most organizations are already using the Microsoft Office Suite, so setting up an Excel ticketing system is an attractive option for teams who aren’t able or willing to invest in a dedicated ticketing tool.

Your employees are already using Excel

While it might not be a great fit as a ticketing solution for most IT departments, Microsoft Excel is a tool that most people are already familiar with. With over 1 billion users worldwide, it’s a staple for most organizations. Moreover, Excel doesn’t require any extensive training, so the threshold for getting started is much lower than with a new tool.

You’re dealing with fewer requests

For IT departments who only get a few end user requests per day, an Excel ticketing can be managed fairly easily — provided that the requests aren’t too complex. As soon as request volume starts to ramp up and end user requests become more complicated, an Excel spreadsheet won’t be able to cut it anymore.

You’re in the startup phase

A lot of smaller businesses start out by using email or Excel to track IT issues and requests because it’s familiar and employees don’t have to learn anything new. Although both options can work at first, most startups outgrow these ticketing systems and switch to a dedicated, out-of-the-box ITSM solution before long.

The downsides of using an Excel ticketing system

As we’ve already hinted, using an Excel ticketing system comes with its fair share of downsides and risks.

Here are a few of the pitfalls of using Excel rather than a dedicated ITSM solution to handle your end user requests:

Agents and end users get left in the dark

Excel spreadsheets don't allow for real-time updates or easy collaboration on a ticket. This can make communication between agents challenging, especially when multiple people are trying to access the document at the same time. This can lead to confusion and miscommunications, which can slow your team — and your issue resolution times — down. And because there’s no way to communicate with your customers within an Excel ticketing system, end users can feel they're being left out of the loop, wondering about the status of their request.

Requests aren’t automatically prioritized

With Excel, it's a challenge to properly prioritize requests based on urgency. Dedicated ITSM solutions, on the other hand, often have features that allow tickets to be ranked and sorted easily. That way, you can be sure that your team are addressing the most pressing end users' issues first.

It’s difficult to keep an eye on performance

Generating reports on recurring issues, response times, etc., in order to spot trends and measure your service desk’s performance, can be extremely time-consuming and complicated in Excel. If you want a clear overview of how your service desk is performing, an Excel ticketing system isn’t the way to go.

Agents waste time on unnecessary manual work

One of the biggest disadvantages of using Excel as a ticketing system is its lack of automation features. This means every ticket must be logged, assigned and updated manually. This wastes a lot of your agents’ valuable time, which could be better spent on more rewarding, customer-focused work. With a dedicated tool, ticket routing, reminders, and follow-ups, can all be automated, meaning your team can resolve issues and help end users more quickly and efficiently.

You could be putting your data at risk

Excel files can be easily corrupted, which means all the data from your incoming tickets could potentially be lost. Or worse, Excel files can inadvertently be deleted without a trace, or accidentally changed by a careless user. People can also easily share or copy spreadsheets, putting your service desk at risk of a security breach. ITSM solutions usually have more stringent security measures in place to keep your service desk’s data safe.

When would an Excel ticketing system not be a fit?

While Excel ticketing systems might work for some IT departments, there are some scenarios in which a spreadsheet definitely won’t cut it. Here are a few examples of when not to use an Excel ticketing system:

You’re a larger IT department that handles a lot of requests

If your IT department handles a high volume of tickets, using Excel to manage them would quickly become unmanageable. Manual work and lack of collaboration features aside, Excel can also become slow and prone to crashes when processing a lot of data. Definitely not ideal if you're dealing with a lot of requests. And if your IT support involves multiple stages, layers of approval, or complex processes, Excel would likely struggle to effectively manage these workflows.

You’re working across multiple teams or locations

If your IT services are spread across multiple teams or locations, coordinating and sharing an Excel file without any automatic routing or real-time updates can be a real challenge. This could result in tickets getting lost or agents wasting precious time doing double work.

Data security and compliance are a top priority

If your tickets contain sensitive or confidential data, using Excel could pose a security risk. If your organization’s IT service management has to comply with certain regulations (like General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)) using Excel for ticketing makes staying compliant even more difficult due to its limited security and auditing capabilities.

You're aiming for a top-notch customer experience

The lack of real-time updates and notifications in Excel could lead to delays and miscommunication, especially if your IT support operates around-the-clock. And with no way for end users to check the status of their request, they might feel that they’re being kept in the dark. And let’s face it, a massive spreadsheet doesn’t offer a great user experience. All of the above can have a negative impact on how customers experience your IT services.

You want to integrate your ticketing system with other tools

Most of the time, it takes more than one tool to deliver great IT services. If you want your ticketing system to integrate with the other tools you use, Excel isn't a great choice, with its limited integration capacities.

ITSM software: a scalable alternative to Excel ticketing

If an Excel ticketing system isn’t suitable for your IT service delivery, ITSM software is the way to go. A dedicated ITSM tool can offer all the flexibility and simplicity of an Excel ticketing system, minus the manual work.

ITSM software converts end user requests via email or other channels into tickets which can be assigned, prioritized, and tracked until they are resolved. IT service management systems like TOPdesk are specifically designed for managing IT services and include features like automated responses, reporting, and integrations with other tools.

Unlike an Excel ticketing system, these tools usually include key features for managing IT services, based on ITSM processes. A few examples of ITSM processes include:

• Incident Management – This helps you to register and process all incoming end user requests.

• Change and Release Management – This is a process designed to help organizations request, prioritize, authorize, approve, schedule and implement any changes. A change can be as simple as installing a new printer. Or as complex as implementing a new software package.

• Asset Management – This allows you to register and keep track of everything your customers need. From object types to licenses.

• Problem Management – This helps you to pinpoint and fix major structural problems within your organization.

The bottom line: while Excel can be a powerful tool for managing and analyzing data, it lacks the specialized features and capabilities of a purpose-built ITSM solution like TOPdesk. For organizations that handle a lot of requests or need advanced features like automation, collaboration, real-time updates, integration, and reporting capabilities an ITSM solution would be a better choice.

Find out how London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine improved their resolution times and customer satisfaction by switching spreadsheets for TOPdesk’s self-service portal (SSP).

Say goodbye to spreadsheet chaos

When it comes to automation, customer communication, and integration capabilities, an Excel spreadsheet is no match for our purpose-built ITSM software. TOPdesk’s ITSM tool puts all of your requests in one place, making them easier to manage, prioritize and track. Help customers more quickly, keep them in the loop with real-time updates, and stay on top of your service desk’s key metrics with an out-of-the-box tool.