Simple; QuickBooks provides an API to allow custom applications to interface with QuickBooks. By using this API, a custom application can run QuickBooks as a background process, running reports and pulling data directly from the application. The data was consolidated and then interfaced with Microsoft Excel. As a result, users were able to get all the reports built out in one place: Excel. Unbeknownst  to the users, there were over a hundred files of different locations being consolidated and reported on in the background. What they did know was:

Users could select date ranges

Users could run different reports

Users could filter down to specific locations and other key dimensions

Users were already familiar with Excel so they skipped extensive training

Users could collaborate with each other by leaving comments (and had more collaboratory features available depending on the version)

Users could drill down to the details, all in this one place

Not every organization can develop an application to pull data from key systems. At Aptimized, we have developed a solution that can pull updated data from a managed environment, store that data securely and locally, and then generate reports from that data. This is not limited to QuickBooks!