
How to Create Column Formulas Across Multiple Sheets in Smartsheet?
Column formulas in Smartsheet are a powerful tool that allows users to perform calculations across all rows in a sheet. These formulas can carry out simple operations (sum, condition…) or more complex ones, such as lookups to other sheets (with VLOOKUP, for example). However, one major limitation in Smartsheet is that column formulas can only be created or updated on a single sheet at a time.
This means that for every sheet needing an update or a new formula, the user must manually intervene on each of those sheets. If you manage multiple sheets with the same formulas, this task quickly becomes complex and time-consuming.
Challenges Users Face When Maintaining Column Formulas in Smartsheet
In a fast-paced project environment, maintaining column formulas in Smartsheet can turn into a real headache, especially for users working on multiple sheets.
Here are the main challenges users face:
- Manual updates on each sheet: If a formula needs to be modified, the user has to apply this change individually on each affected sheet. This can become tedious and increase the risk of errors.
- Handling large volumes of data: When users have to manage a large number of sheets with similar formulas, keeping these formulas in sync becomes a laborious and difficult process to maintain long-term.
- Risk of inconsistency: Improperly updated formulas can lead to calculation errors, making it challenging to maintain data consistency across different projects.
Unfortunalety, Smartsheet doesn’t offer a native solution to apply column formulas across multiple sheets simultaneously. This forces users to seek more efficient alternatives.
How Smarteky Solves This Problem With “SmartColumn”
To simplify the management of column formulas across multiple sheets, Smarteky developed the SmartColumn module. This module is specifically designed to allow users to apply and maintain column formulas on several sheets with just a few clicks:
- Creating a new column formula: With SmartColumn, simply select a folder or workspace, give the column a name, and enter the Smartsheet formula, and it will automatically be created on all selected sheets.
- Global updates: With just a few clicks, you can modify an existing formula and apply it to all relevant sheets. This ensures that every sheet uses the same version of the formula, guaranteeing full consistency across your projects.
- Time-saving and error reduction: By automating this process, users save valuable time, especially for companies managing hundreds of sheets for their projects. Additionally, SmartColumn minimizes errors that could occur during manual updates.
Creating a New Column Formula in a Smartsheet Workspace
Example: You have a workspace containing hundreds of similar sheets. Each of these sheets has a [Start Date] column, and you want to perform a monthly analysis of all the data through a report.
Here’s how SmartColumn helps solve this problem:
- Create a new “SmartColumn” workflow from your Smarteky account
- Select the workspace (or folder) containing your sheets
- Enter the name of the new column (e.g., “Month”) and choose “Create Column”
- Enter the formula
=YEAR([Start Date]@row)+"-"+MONTH([Start Date]@row)
- Click “Run the Workflow”
You can then easily create a grouped report on the [Month] column, allowing you to, for example, count the number of rows per month.
Conclusion
Maintaining column formulas across multiple sheets in Smartsheet is a tedious task and can quickly become impossible to manage if the number of sheets grows too large. However, thanks to Smarteky’s SmartColumn module, you can automate and centralize this process, ensuring consistent and updated formulas across all your sheets.
To learn more about Smarteky and all the solutions it offers, click here.