Automate new sheet inclusion in Smartsheet reports by using the workspace as your data source.

Automating Your Project Summary: How Fatima Made New Sheets Appear on the Report

Let me paint a quick scene. Fatima has a growing project with dozens of sheets—each one holding a piece of the puzzle. She keeps a summary report that pulls in key details so stakeholders can see progress at a glance. The snag? As new sheets get added, she keeps chasing down which ones belong in the report. Sound familiar? The good news is there’s a smarter way to handle this, one that feels almost automatic once you set it up.

The problem with manual additions

It’s tempting to think, “I’ll just add new sheets as they come.” That works for a tiny project, sure. But as your workspace expands, the tedium stacks up. Here are a few predictable headaches Fatima runs into:

• Each new sheet means a separate task to include it in the report. It’s a small action, but multiplied by dozens or hundreds across a project, it becomes a distraction, not a data point.

• Relying on filters to pick which sheets to include is brittle. A sheet slips through the cracks, or a new sheet lands in a different folder and isn’t caught by the filter. Suddenly, the numbers don’t reflect reality.

• Updating report settings manually is time-sucking and error-prone. A missed update or a copy-paste mistake can lead to stale data that undermines trust in the report.

• You end up spending more energy on the mechanics of reporting than on understanding the project itself.

It’s the kind of loop that leaves you feeling you’re chasing a moving target, isn’t it? And who has the time for that when there’s real work to do?

The clean, scalable fix: use the workspace as the data source

Here’s where Fatima’s approach shifts. Instead of treating the report like a static document that needs manual edits, she designates a workspace as the data source for the report. When you set a workspace as the source, the report naturally pulls in every sheet that belongs to that workspace. Add a new sheet to the workspace, and the report sees it—no extra clicks, no fiddling with filters, no reconfiguring the report settings each week.

Why this works so well

• Automation without chaos. The rule of thumb is simple: your report starts with the workspace as its data source. The moment a new sheet lands in that workspace, it’s eligible to show up in the report. The flow stays in the background, and your attention is freed for the actual work.

• Consistency across the board. When all related sheets live in one workspace, you’re less likely to miss a critical item. The data source acts like a single heartbeat for the report, keeping every measurement in sync.

• Time saved compounds. Fatima isn’t just saving minutes; she’s saving hours over the life of the project. Imagine not having to remember to update the source list each time a new sheet is created. Imagine fewer manual mistakes because the data pipeline is standardized.

• A cleaner data story. With a workspace as the source, you can run the same reporting structure across multiple projects. It becomes easier to compare status, track risks, and present a coherent narrative to decision-makers.

How to set it up (light on jargon, heavy on practicality)

If you’re eyeing this approach, here’s a straightforward way to implement it. I’ll keep it practical and non-technical so you can apply it on the fly.

1. Gather the sheets into a single workspace

• Create a dedicated workspace for the project or use an existing one that already holds related sheets.

• Move or copy all the project-related sheets into that workspace. The goal is clarity: every item you want reported should sit under this umbrella.

2. Create a summary report that references the workspace

• Open your Smartsheet interface and start a new report, selecting the workspace as the data source.

• Choose the fields you want to surface in the summary. Think: status, owner, due date, milestone, and any metrics your team cares about.

3. Tweak the view, not the content

• You don’t want to pretend every sheet is identical. If needed, add filters at the report level to focus on sheets that meet certain criteria (for example, active projects or a specific phase). We’re keeping this as a safety net, not the main mechanism.

• Save your settings. The aim is a clean, dependable feed that expands as the workspace grows.

4. Let changes flow naturally

• As Fatima notes, new sheets added to the workspace should appear in the report automatically. If something doesn’t show up, a quick check of permissions or sheet visibility usually does the trick.

5. Stay vigilant with permissions and structure

• Keep a clear naming convention and set appropriate permissions so new sheets don’t slip in with the wrong data. A little governance goes a long way in keeping the report trustworthy.

A quick caveat about alternatives (and why they tend to stall)

• Adding each new sheet manually as a source: It works for a handful of sheets, but it’s not scalable. The moment you’re juggling several dozen, it becomes a productivity sink.

• Using filters to pick which sheets to include: Filters are great for a snapshot, not a growing pasture. They require you to keep updating criteria as the project evolves, which reintroduces manual steps.

• Regularly updating the report settings: This still relies on human intervention. It’s the kind of thing that you remember to do… today, maybe, but not tomorrow, and that’s exactly where mistakes sneak in.

• Relying on a static set of sheets: The project grows, the data grows, and a static list will always lag behind. The workspace approach keeps pace with your needs.

Best practices to make the most of workspace-driven reports

• Establish clear workspace governance. Decide who can add sheets, who can edit important fields, and how to handle deprecated sheets. A small policy goes a long way.

• Use consistent metadata. Start with a standard set of columns across sheets: status, owner, due date, priority. If every sheet shares a common data vocabulary, your report reads smoothly.

• Keep a naming convention that scales. Structured names help screenshots and exports stay readable. It’s the small thing that saves big confusion later.

• Review the data story, not just the numbers. Occasionally step back and check whether the report communicates progress, risks, and dependencies clearly. A good report should tell a story as much as it should be accurate.

• Consider dashboards for quick glances. A dashboard that pulls from the same workspace data can provide a high-level view for stakeholders who don’t need every detail. It’s a nice complement to the deeper report.

A little tangential wisdom you might find handy

While we’re on the topic of workspace-driven reporting, it’s worth noting how this pattern fits into broader workflow practices. For example, if your team uses Smartsheet to track milestones across multiple teams, you can leverage the same workspace approach to generate cross-project summaries. This is especially useful for executives who want to compare schedules or spot bottlenecks across a portfolio.

And it isn’t just about status checks. You can layer in automated reminders, status updates, or conditional formatting in your sheets to reflect near-term risks, late tasks, or dependencies. When the report pulls from a workspace, these signals become part of the bigger picture—no extra steps required.

A practical mindset for steady progress

Fatima’s move to the workspace as the data source isn’t flashy, but it’s the kind of shift that quietly compounds value. It’s like setting up a smart irrigation system for a garden: once the pipes are laid out and the valves are in place, the plants thrive with less manual care. The same goes for reporting. A well-structured workspace makes your data feel reliable, and reliability, in turn, builds confidence with every stakeholder who glances at the report.

If you’re considering this approach for your own project, start with a clean slate: pick a workspace, centralize the sheets you truly need, and build your report around that foundation. Then test with a couple of new sheets to confirm they pop into the report as expected. If everything lines up, you’ve built a scalable, low-effort workflow that lets you focus on what matters most—the work itself.

Bringing it back to Fatima—and to you

The core idea is simple: when you let the workspace do the heavy lifting, your project summary report stays accurate, up-to-date, and reflective of the latest work. You don’t chase data; you observe it. And that small shift in how you think about data sources can free up hours, reduce friction, and give your team a steadier way to see progress.

So next time you’re faced with the question of how to include new sheets in a summary, remember Fatima’s move. Treat the workspace as the heartbeat of your report. Let it grow with your project, and let the reporting feel almost effortless. After all, the best tools are the ones that disappear into the background while you do the real work—making progress, keeping stakeholders informed, and moving the project forward without unnecessary drama.

If you’re curious to explore this approach further, you can experiment with a small pilot: set up a workspace, migrate a handful of connected sheets, and watch how the report behaves as you add more. It’s a small investment with a big payoff, especially when you’re juggling multiple tasks and tight timelines. And who knows—this simple pattern might become a dependable fixture in your project toolkit, too.