International Accounting Firm Case Study: Streamlining Excel Model Reviews in 5 Minutes

When Small Excel Mistakes Cause Major Friction

Before implementing PerfectXL this firm would do some basic sense checks on models and then dive right into a review/analysis based on the number presented. In some cases these numbers were incorrect due to small mistakes in the source file, once this was discovered all the work done up to that point had to be done again, also locating and fixing the mistake could take a significant amount of time. Most projects would run fluidly, but in cases where small mistakes in Excel resulted in faulty reviews, the significant uptick in time spent would result in friction with clients and a bad experience for all parties involved.

Targeted Audits and Faster Project Turnarounds

The firm now uses a few core elements of PerfectXL to check for a small subset of potential risks and mistakes, a complete audit of the Excel file does not fall into the scope of their projects so they check only the most essential things. They analyze the file with explore, scan for any external dependencies (which need to be available for the review), and quickly check which worksheets are being referenced in the output tab. Any missing or unexpected references are flagged, and any unconnected sheets are briefly reviewed and, where possible, removed to reduce the scope of the review. The risk finder is then used to check a few core risks that could negatively impact the output. This process takes 3-10 minutes for most models and results in a much higher level of confidence for the reviewer. Even when certain issues don’t pertain to the output, clients appreciate the input on how they can improve their models.