Replace Your Scattered Spreadsheets with One Shared Source of Truth
SharePoint Lists is included in your Microsoft 365 plan. Most Perth businesses are still running on emailed spreadsheets instead.
The Problem with Running Your Business on Spreadsheets
Most small businesses start with spreadsheets because they are simple and free. But as the business grows, those spreadsheets multiply — and the problems start. Multiple versions, no way to know who changed what, staff overwriting each other’s work, and data scattered across email attachments and shared drives.
No one knows which version is current
When a spreadsheet is emailed around and edited by multiple people, there is no single source of truth. Staff end up working from different versions without knowing it — and decisions get made on outdated information.
No record of who changed what
Spreadsheets have no meaningful audit trail. If data is wrong or deleted, there is no way to find out who made the change or when. For businesses with compliance obligations, this is a serious gap.
One person can break everything
A shared spreadsheet can be accidentally corrupted by a wrong formula, accidental deletion, or a file that fails to save. There is no protection, no rollback, and no warning until the damage is already done.
What Is a SharePoint List?
A SharePoint List is a structured table stored securely inside your Microsoft 365 environment. Think of it as a spreadsheet that lives in the cloud, is shared with whoever needs it, and always shows the current version to everyone at the same time. The difference is not what it stores — it’s what happens around it. A spreadsheet is a file. A SharePoint List is a live data source that your whole team can work with simultaneously, and that Power Automate can read from and write to automatically.
The problem with spreadsheets
Multiple versions floating around. Nobody knows which one is current. Easy to accidentally delete a row or reformat a column. Hard to connect to automations reliably. No audit trail of who changed what.
What SharePoint Lists fixes
One version. Always current. Protected against accidental changes. Every edit logged with time and user. Native connector for Power Automate — flows trigger automatically on any change. No version conflicts, no emailed files.
What Your Business Can Use It For Right Now
SharePoint Lists works for any structured information your business tracks repeatedly. Each of these replaces something your team is already managing in a spreadsheet or by email.
Client and contact list
Replace a spreadsheet of client names and contacts. Every staff member sees current details. When a phone number changes, one person updates it and everyone has it instantly. Connect to Power Automate and new clients trigger automatic folder creation and welcome emails.
Job and project tracker
Replace a whiteboard or job card system. Each row is a job. Status, assigned staff, due date, and notes in one place. When a job moves to Complete, a satisfaction survey goes to the client automatically.
Asset register
Replace a paper list or printed Excel file. Devices, vehicles, and equipment tracked with owner, purchase date, warranty expiry, and status. Updated in real time. Change history logged automatically.
Leave and approval requests
Replace email chains. Leave requests, expense claims, and purchase approvals logged as rows. Power Automate routes each request to the right approver and records every decision. Full audit trail.
Staff onboarding checklist
Replace a printed form. Every new starter’s tasks tracked item by item — IT setup, building access, system accounts, induction. Visible to HR and the manager. Nothing gets missed.
Stock and inventory
Replace manual stock counts. Multiple staff update simultaneously. Minimum stock thresholds can trigger Power Automate notifications when levels drop below the required level.
What Happens When You Connect a List to Power Automate
A SharePoint List on its own is useful. Connected to Power Automate, it becomes the engine of your business. The list is the single source of truth — everything else reads from it and writes to it automatically.
A new client is added to the client list
Step 1
Power Automate detects the new row and reads the client name, contact email, and assigned account manager
Step 2
A new client folder is created in SharePoint automatically, pre-structured with the standard subfolders your business uses
Step 3
A personalised welcome email is sent to the client and the account manager receives a Teams notification — all within 60 seconds
No manual folder creation. No manually written welcome email. No reminder to set.
Already Included in Your Microsoft 365 Plan
SharePoint Lists is included in Microsoft 365 Business Standard and Business Premium. There is no extra software to install and no additional licence required. If your business is already on one of these plans, you can start using it today.
Getting started is straightforward
DM1 will build the list structure, configure the columns, set permissions correctly from the start, and connect any Power Automate flows that make sense. Most staff adapt within minutes — adding and updating rows is similar to working in a spreadsheet.
When SharePoint Lists reaches its limits
SharePoint Lists handles the majority of structured data needs for most small businesses. When your data needs relationships between tables, per-user visibility, or a custom application with screens and forms — that’s when Dataverse becomes the right conversation. DM1 will tell you honestly when you’re getting close.
What We Found on Day One
These are real findings from DM1’s standard onboarding checks — discovered when new clients came on board and we reviewed how their business data was being managed.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Four different versions of the client contact list — none of them current
When a Perth healthcare business moved to DM1, our standard onboarding review found that four staff members were each maintaining their own version of the client contact spreadsheet on their local drives. Phone numbers differed between versions. Two versions had not been updated in over six months. Their previous IT provider had never suggested a shared alternative. DM1 consolidated the data, built a single SharePoint client list with appropriate permissions, and connected it to the practice’s existing email workflows.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
The asset register was a printed Excel spreadsheet pinned to a noticeboard
When a Perth legal firm moved to DM1, our standard checks included a review of how IT assets were tracked. The business had a printed list of devices pinned to the wall near the reception desk, last updated by hand more than a year earlier. Several devices on the list had been disposed of. Two devices in use were not on the list at all. DM1 built a live SharePoint asset register, imported the current device list, and connected it to the business’s Microsoft Intune device management environment.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Leave requests handled by text message with no record kept
When a Perth manufacturing business moved to DM1, our onboarding review found that leave requests were being handled via text messages to the manager, with no formal record and no consistent approval process. Disputes over approved dates had caused problems on at least two occasions. Their previous IT provider had not addressed it. DM1 built a SharePoint leave request list connected to a Power Automate approval flow — every request logged, every decision recorded, and the shared calendar updated automatically on approval.
Why Perth Businesses Choose DM1
DM1 is a Perth-based managed IT provider working exclusively with small and medium businesses. We are a Microsoft CSP partner, which means we manage Microsoft 365 licences and configurations directly — and we know what a well-configured business platform looks like.
We explain what we find in plain English
Every recommendation comes with a plain English explanation of what it means for your business and why it matters. You will always know what DM1 is doing and why — never a report full of technical terms with no explanation.
One point of contact for everything IT
DM1 manages your Microsoft 365 licences, your devices, your email, your security, your connectivity, and your backup — all from one place. One number. One provider. No pointing fingers between vendors when something goes wrong.
Replace Your Scattered Spreadsheets This Week
Tell DM1 which spreadsheet your team relies on most. We’ll convert it to a SharePoint List, connect any automations that make sense, and have it running within a day. (08) 6202 6012