Microsoft Excel has long been a business necessity, allowing users to track data, do calculations and make predictions using spreadsheets. Now, Microsoft has taken Excel to the next level by offering mobile access to Excel documents. To truly take advantage of this technological breakthrough, you’ll need to use SharePoint online to access your documents.
Mobile Technology is on the Rise
According to Gartner, the number of mobile users is set to triple within the next 12 months. That means more smartphones, more mobile devices, and more people trying to do work on the go. With everybody on mobile, it makes sense to get mobile versions of any software you need to use. Excel is one of the most powerful, and one of the most common, workplace productivity applications. Instead of expecting people to use it only on their desktop computers, why not ensure your employees can access it at home, on the road, or wherever else they may be?
Why Excel Mobile Rocks
Excel Mobile helps you do office work more effectively, allowing you to truly embrace the 21st-century work model. Rather than being tied to an office from 9 to 5 every day, you–and your employees–can work wherever and whenever.
Access Excel remotely. With mobile access to Excel, you can work from just about anywhere. As long as you have a mobile Internet connection, you can sign into SharePoint or OneDrive and use these services to fully utilize Excel on the go.
Cost savings on remote access. Rather than paying for extra licenses to allow your employees to access Excel from home, you can pay lower fees for unlimited access using SharePoint or OneDrive.
Full functionality. Although Excel’s mobile app doesn’t allow you to access all features of Excel, you can do everything with Excel Mobile that you can do from your desktop computer if you use cloud services like SharePoint.
Using SharePoint Online with Excel
Excel’s mobile app purposely limits the functionality of the spreadsheet software. Microsoft reasons that you can’t do the same things from a phone that you can do from a computer. However, you need to be able to fully use Excel from your mobile device in order to run projects remotely.
SharePoint Online is a cloud solution to this problem. With SharePoint, you can import Excel spreadsheets and access them anywhere. SharePoint Online allows you to use every feature of Excel, effectively turning your mobile device into a remote access workstation. This makes it even easier to run Excel-based projects while on the road or otherwise out of the office.
Using OneDrive
OneDrive is an alternative for people who want to use Excel but don’t want to mess with SharePoint for whatever reason. This is Microsoft’s very own cloud solution and it comes with its own version of Excel.
OneDrive is great for file sharing, but more importantly, it makes it easier than ever to access Excel while on the go. OneDrive offers full functionality as well as the ability to share completed Excel worksheets via the cloud. Thus, workers can collaborate on Excel-based products while on the go.
With mobile use at an all-time high, it no longer makes sense for workers to limit their use of Excel to the office. Instead of being chained to their desks, employees can access Excel at home or on the go using their mobile devices in conjunction with cloud-based software like SharePoint or OneDrive. This makes it convenient for Excel users to complete work and collaborate on projects, all for a fraction of the costs traditionally associated with remote use of Excel.
References
http://www.news-sap.com/gartners-top-10-trends-2014/
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/how-to/wp7/office/use-office-excel-mobile
