Alternatively, expensive additional tools, like Alteryx, or bolt on extras like Tableau Prep have been purchased to fill the gap. The issue with Excel-based extracts and transformations is that they are disconnected causing stale data that is also unsecure. Also, each Excel workbook can be filled with complex logic that is decipherable only by the author. Bolt on products require additional license fees, training, manual integration, separate maintenance, and consequently add complexity to your architecture. Usually due to cost, it also means that only an elite few users have the opportunity to use a good data transformation tool, and the rest simply resort back to Excel, which ensures all the problems of both options become real in the organization.