Spreadsheet migration planner (free pack)

What is inside the migration planner pack

• Readiness scorecard (Excel): 12 statements scored 1 to 5, from "multiple copies and nobody is sure which is current" to "we spend more time maintaining the spreadsheets than acting on them". Your total lands in one of three verdict bands so the move-or-stay decision stops being a gut feel.
• Data mapping tab: one row per column you rely on today: old spreadsheet and column, example value, the new system field it maps to, an owner, transformation and cleaning notes, and a status dropdown from Not started through to Verified.
• Cutover checklist (Word): the full sequence: pre-cutover cleaning and test loads, a 2 to 4 week parallel run, reconciliation of counts and totals, a written rollback plan with a named decision maker, training, and the after go-live checks most migrations skip.

When to stop using spreadsheets (and when not to)

Plenty of businesses are told to get off spreadsheets years before they need to, usually by someone selling the destination. A well built spreadsheet run by one or two people is fast, free and flexible, and if that is where you are, the scorecard will tell you to stay put and fix the weak spots instead.

The genuine ceiling looks different, and the same words come up whenever business owners describe it: we have outgrown spreadsheets and the scattered tools around them. Five copies of the truth. A pipeline sheet, a job sheet and an invoice list that never quite agree. One person who understands the formulas, currently on holiday. That is not a software problem yet; it is a data problem, and buying software before fixing it just gives the mess a login screen.

Moving from Excel to a CRM: the short version of the checklist

• Map every column you rely on before you choose software. If the system has no home for a field the business depends on, you want to know before you sign.
• Clean in the spreadsheet first: dedupe customers, standardise names and phone formats, archive dead records. Migrating mess just moves the mess.
• Keep dated copies of every source spreadsheet. That is your rollback data.
• Load a 50 to 100 record sample and check it field by field before the full load.
• Run old and new in parallel for 2 to 4 weeks, reconcile record counts and key totals, then switch the spreadsheets to read-only. If people can still edit them, they will.

The Word checklist in the pack expands each of these into tick-box detail. No rates or tax figures are used in this pack. Contents last checked: 8 October 2026.

When should a business stop using spreadsheets?

When the spreadsheet stops being a tool and becomes a job. The reliable signs: several people editing the same file with versions drifting apart, hours of copy-paste to produce reports, numbers in different sheets that disagree, key files only one person understands, and follow-ups missed because nothing chases them. The scorecard in this pack turns those signs into a 12-question score with a verdict.

What is a data migration plan for a small business?

Three documents, and this pack contains all of them in simple form. A readiness assessment (should we move at all), a data mapping (every column you rely on today, the field it moves to, who owns it and what cleaning it needs), and a cutover plan (a parallel run period, reconciliation checks, a rollback plan and training). Small business migrations fail for the same reasons big ones do, just cheaper.

How do I move from Excel to a CRM without losing data?

Map before you buy: list every column your sales process relies on and check the CRM has a home for each one. Clean in the spreadsheet first, dedupe and standardise, because migrating mess just moves the mess. Keep dated copies of the originals as rollback data, load a sample of 50 to 100 records and check it field by field, then run the CRM and the spreadsheet in parallel for a few weeks and reconcile counts and totals before switching the spreadsheet to read-only.

What is a parallel run and how long should it last?

A fixed period, usually 2 to 4 weeks, where you run the new system and the old spreadsheets side by side and compare the results. It is the only honest test of whether the new system can do the whole job. Give it a start date, an end date and a named decision point; open-ended parallel runs never end.

What does the readiness scorecard measure?

Twelve statements about how spreadsheets behave in your business, from version confusion and lost work to key-person dependency and missed follow-ups, each scored 1 to 5. The total lands you in one of three bands: spreadsheets are still serving you, you are approaching the ceiling, or you have outgrown them and should plan the move properly.

Related tools and downloads

Sources

There is no official standard or government template for this job. The layout is our own working practice from data migration and reporting projects, and the 12-question score and its bands are our own, not a recognised standard. The links below are the public guidance closest to it. Each link was opened and checked on 8 October 2026.

• GOV.UK: The Government Data Quality Framework: the data quality dimensions (completeness, uniqueness, consistency, accuracy and others) and the principle of naming who is accountable for data quality.
• Microsoft Support: Top ten ways to clean your data: the TRIM, PROPER and SUBSTITUTE techniques.
• ICO: the accuracy principle: the legal duty to keep personal data accurate and up to date.