When Excel Isn't Enough: Why Arts Organizations Need Purpose-Built Systems

Spreadsheets bring me daily joy. Much like a telescoping backscratcher or a rice cooker, the ingenuity and utility of a well-designed spreadsheet is genuinely delightful. I use them for household budgets, managing school assignments, planning dinner parties and scoring Yahtzee.

But spreadsheets are often used in situations where they're wholly inadequate. Public Health England learned this when an Excel error caused catastrophic data loss in their COVID-19 contact-tracing system. For arts organizations, using spreadsheets for complex operations won't have such dire consequences, but the inefficiency, human error risk and frustration can still be ruinous.

The Complexity Problem

Arts organizations are complex networks working to produce experiences for audiences and communities. Each performance comprises essential component parts - venue, artists, audience, production team - that create once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

While ticketing and fundraising software are considered must-haves, centralized venue and production management systems are often viewed as "nice to have." The obvious benefit is operational efficiency, particularly for venue rentals and technical production. But event managers and technical directors tend to be highly organized people who think on their feet, so disasters are mostly averted even without proper systems.

The greater benefit is improved integrated workflow. Implementing venue management software becomes a catalyst for organizational change because it illuminates silos and forces departments to ask fundamental questions: How do we plan? How do we decide? How do we communicate? How do we use gathered data?

Beyond the Spreadsheet's Reach

I've been fortunate to work with organizations that recognized the importance of robust venue management systems. I've never attempted to manage performing arts center operations entirely through spreadsheets, but I understand the temptation.

Booking confirmations, contracts, customer contact details, equipment usage, maintenance schedules, staff assignments, invoicing, inquiry tracking and post-show settlement are beyond even the most elegant formulas and pivot tables. When you're trying to track multiple contacts for production elements, financial details and artist management within spreadsheet columns or separate tabs, you've exceeded the tool's capabilities.

The Integration Challenge

Arts centers face nuanced challenges that basic calendar systems can't handle. Outlook or Google Calendars prevent double-booking rooms, but arts venues deal with shared lobbies between multiple auditoriums, sound bleed conflicts, traffic flow issues from overlapping start times and complex load-ins.

Venue management software can visually represent these nuanced conflicts and flag potential issues - like elevator maintenance that doesn't prevent events but might make them subpar. These systems also handle security and permission settings that share necessary information (Orchestra Concert - Main Hall - Confirmed) while maintaining confidentiality for sensitive details.

The Real Value Proposition

Delivering your mission of producing and sharing great art depends on cooperative relationships between all departments - from artistic and production to facilities and administration. Purpose-built venue management systems provide platforms that make organizing, tracking, sharing and analyzing critical information seamless and accessible.

The goal isn't to eliminate spreadsheets entirely. Modern venue management platforms often include that handy Excel export button so you can manipulate data in familiar formats when needed. But the foundation needs to be a system designed for the complexity of arts operations rather than one stretched beyond its intended use.

Making the Transition

Moving from endless spreadsheets to purpose-built systems requires understanding current workflows and identifying where existing tools create bottlenecks or force workarounds. The transition isn't just about better software - it's about creating systems that support the collaborative, mission-driven work that makes great art possible.

Your Yahtzee scorecard can stay in Excel. Your venue operations deserve something more robust.