Concept
1. The README sheet
First sheet for builders (DASH stays the opening view for viewers — select DASH before saving). Sections:
| Section | Contents |
|---|---|
| Purpose | who it's for, which decisions, refresh frequency |
| Owner & contacts | builder, business owner, backup person |
| Data sources | file/folder paths or connections, who provides them, when |
| Refresh steps | the 5-step checklist (Module 2 Lesson 3) |
| Quality checks | chk_Quality results, reconciliation total |
| KPI definitions | formula, source, owner, target, higher/lower is better |
| Sheet map | each sheet, layer, visible/hidden/very hidden |
| Named inputs | inp_ names and allowed values |
| Colour & style | palette hex codes, fonts, cell styles |
| Known limitations | e.g. targets only for FY2025-26; Mac can't refresh Power Pivot |
| Change log | version, date, author, what changed |
Keep it short and current — a wrong README is worse than none.
2. Version naming
Excel files don't have built-in version control, so be disciplined:
Sales_Dashboard_v1.3_2026-04-05.xlsx
- Major (v2.0): layout or KPI definitions change.
- Minor (v1.3): new visual, filter or calculation.
- Patch (v1.3.1): bug fix, formatting. Never send "final_FINAL_v2 (3).xlsx" — the version and date are in the name and the change log.
3. Change log (on README)
| Version | Date | Author | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | 01-Apr-2026 | Divyesh | First release: 5 visuals, Region/FY filters |
| 1.1 | 08-Apr-2026 | Divyesh | Added "show last year" checkbox |
| 1.1.1 | 10-Apr-2026 | Divyesh | Fixed West target lookup |
4. Where versions live
- OneDrive / SharePoint version history (File → Info → Version History): automatic saves you can restore — the easiest safety net for teams.
- A release folder:
/Dashboards/Sales/releases/with dated copies;/current/holds the live one. - Compare versions: Spreadsheet Compare (Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise / Office Professional Plus, Windows) shows formula and value differences between two files.
5. Git for Excel projects (optional, advanced)
.xlsx is a zipped binary — git can store it but can't show useful diffs. Teams that use git:
- keep text exports next to the file: Power Query M code (copy from Advanced Editor into
.pqfiles), VBA modules (.bas), and named-range lists, - or use tools that convert workbooks to text for diffing,
- and use Git LFS for large binary files. For most business dashboards, SharePoint version history + a change log is enough.
6. Handover checklist
- README complete and current
- Refresh tested by someone other than the builder
- Protection on, passwords in the password manager
- Performance pass done (Lesson 1)
- DASH selected, zoom set, filters cleared
- Version number and change log updated
- A PDF copy for people who only view
Common mistakes
No README ("only Divyesh knows how it works"). Versions tracked only by date-modified. Overwriting the only copy. Change log not updated.