Exploring Spreadsheet Use and Practices in a Technologically Constrained Setting
This addresses spreadsheet governance challenges for organizations in technologically constrained settings, but it is incremental as it applies existing analysis to a new context.
The study examined how spreadsheets affect business operations in a water utility in Malawi, finding that their proliferation enabled automation but also introduced high risks due to management, technological, and human factors.
This paper explores the impacts of spreadsheets on business operations in a water utility parastatal in Malawi, Sub-Saharan Africa. The organisation is a typical example of a semi-government body operating in a technologically underdeveloped country. The study focused on spreadsheet scope of use and life cycle as well as organisational policy and governance. The results will help define future spreadsheet usage by influencing new approaches for managing potential risks associated with spreadsheets in the organization. Generally, findings indicate that the proliferation of spreadsheets in the organization has provided an enabling environment for business automation. The paper also highlights management, technological and human factor issues contributing to high risks associated with the pervasive spreadsheet use. The conclusions drawn from the research confirms that there is ample room for improvement in many areas such as implementation of comprehensive policies and regulations governing spreadsheet development processes and adoption.