The Best Ways to Collaborate with Colleagues in Excel

It’s not uncommon to face scenarios where several people need to work on a Microsoft Excel workbook or sheet simultaneously. This scenario may occur in cases where financial planning or budgeting is involved. 

Here are some ways that you make Excel workbook collaboration easier.

Share the File on Google Drive

Sign in to your Google account and go to Google Drive. There, you can choose to upload the latest copy of your Excel workbook. Once uploaded, double click on the file to open it. You will find that you are now editing an online copy of the Excel workbook. Click on the ‘Share’ button on the upper right corner, choose who you want to share it with, and click save. Users who have been given editing access can then edit the workbook at the same time, and you can see them working on the Worksheet.

Use Excel Online with OneDrive

OneDrive and OneDrive for Business allow workbook uploads, just like you can for Google Drive. This can be a more convenient option for those who are used to the layout for Microsoft Excel and want the format to stay that way in online editing mode.

You can find at least one Microsoft Excel course that is provided in Sydney. This will teach you all about Microsoft Excel’s functions, including how you can share a file on OneDrive.

Just like on Google Drive, you only need to upload the file, open it in Desktop App, and enable editing. You can then share the file just by adding their e-mail addresses.

Use Office 365

You can edit your files online with Office 365 if your startup business has registered for an account on it. Office 365 is basically an online Microsoft bundle, where you can work on PowerPoint, Excel, Word and more online. If you already know that you are going to need to share your sheet online, you can work on it on Office 365. The files on Office 365 are also auto-saved every now and then just like most other online collaborative editing services. No need to worry about unfamiliar toolbars or settings – Office 365 features just about the same settings for all your editing needs.

Share Offline via Local Area Connection

All users with the same local area connection can access any of each other’s files as long as it is stored in a shared access location. Stay connected with a LAN connection and you can collaborate on one file together. When you share files through this connection, you can set which users can access specific files in the shared drive location. You can also track changes being made to the document.

Reactivate Shared Workbook Feature

Older versions of Microsoft Excel will still have a shared Workbook feature that enables different users to edit the same Excel Workbook. However, this legacy setting needs to be reactivated by going under options, quick access toolbar, and then selecting ‘Share Workbook (Legacy)’. 

Once done, users can work independently on their copy, before comparing and merging both files into one copy. However, there are now better ways to work on workbooks more accurately without needing to compare and merge two different versions.