  Spreadsheet technology is a cornerstone of IT systems in most organisations.
It is often the glue that binds more structured transaction-based systems
together. Financial operations are a case in point where spreadsheets fill the
gaps left by dedicated accounting systems, particularly covering reporting and
business process operations. However, little is understood as to the nature of
spreadsheet usage in organisations and the contents and structure of these
spreadsheets as they relate to key business functions with few, if any,
comprehensive analyses of spreadsheet repositories in real organisations. As
such this paper represents an important attempt at profiling real and
substantial spreadsheet repositories.
  Using the Luminous technology an analysis of 65,000 spreadsheets for the
financial departments of both a government and a private commercial
organisation was conducted. This provides an important insight into the nature
and structure of these spreadsheets, the links between them, the existence and
nature of macros and the level of repetitive processes performed through the
spreadsheets. Furthermore it highlights the organisational dependence on
spreadsheets and the range and number of spreadsheets dealt with by individuals
on a daily basis. In so doing, this paper prompts important questions that can
frame future research in the domain.

Software Engineering