Excel plug-in that works natively with a Mac (not the Microsoft Office 365 web version)

Description

Support for Mac is rare in the CPM world, as the user base has been historically very small. This feature allows Mac users to directly use the software with Excel on their device, improving functionality and user-experience.

Example Use Case

Scenario: A software startup has adopted the use of Mac computers across all departments. They prefer to use Excel, and need to gather budget and forecast data from their department heads each cycle.

Solution: The CPM vendor provides an Excel plug-in that works natively with Mac. Employees can now access and manage data, run calculations, generate charts, and create reports right from their Excel on Mac without needing to transition to the web version of Microsoft Office 365.

Considerations

We've been surprised by the resurgence of Mac computers in finance and accounting settings over the past 10 years. This is usually a phenomenon in startups and mid-sized software companies, not so much in other types of businesses. Many of these Mac-based companies are using Google Workspace, which negates this requirement.

However, some buyers are insistent on an Excel plug-in for their Mac and will go so far as to disqualify vendors who do not have it. This is severely limiting in an evaluation and should be avoided if possible.

If the CPM vendor has developed their plug-in on Microsoft's most recent plug-in platform (web add-ins) then it will work on any version of Office including Mac and Web. However, most vendors used and continue to use COM add-ins, which usually only work in Windows.

Questions to Ask a Vendor

• Native Support: How well does your Excel plug-in align with the Mac environment? Is it the same as the Windows version, or is it missing features?
• Ease of Installation: Is installation as seamless as it is in Windows, or will we require technical assistance? (Mac plug-in installations are notoriously difficult)
• Updates: How often do you release updates for the Mac version? Are they at the same frequency as Windows?