Microsoft Dynamics GP, or how it was known in the past – Great Plains Dynamics, is mid-market Corporate ERP application, requiring professional consulting in its implementation.
Dynamics GP Partner channel requires certification in functional and technical areas, plus reasonable experience with such technologies, as Microsoft SQL Server, Windows domain. However, it is common to see the scenario, when you chose Dynamics GP Reseller, who is happy to “learn as the project progresses”, and on that assumption – overselling you the solution. These things happen, and if you are reading these lines, probably that happened to you. Let’s try to design together the way out of the crisis:
1. Is it reliable ERP application? You should think about Corporate ERP packages from the standpoint of their maturity and innovations. Great Plains Dynamics was introduced by Great Plains Software in earlier 1990th, so it is matured application at this point (December 2010). From the technology innovation side – Microsoft is in process to reshape its Microsoft Dynamics Corporate ERP products family to make it work in seamless integration with Microsoft Office, Sharepoint, Metrics. For example, Dynamics GP user interface, even for somebody who never seen it before, should be intuitive, and to some extent comparable to Microsoft Outlook. There is also additional consideration for accounting system reliability – it should be flexible enough to allow custom business processes and at the same time there should be an open technology repair tools. Dynamics GP data repair is typically done in Microsoft SQL Server Query Designer and the needs to data fixing are typically coming from the custom programming and data integration
2. If the application itself is so damn good, why I got it screwed up in implementation? The answering spectrum might be very broad and diversified, but likely the root of the problem is poor due diligence in selecting Dynamics GP VAR. Each Dynamics GP Partner has its own specialization. One reseller tries to get CPA type of Accounting system implementations, another one specializes in ecommerce, the third one in Warehouse Management and Logistics. You should read carefully each reseller website to understand their key expertize. As additional recommendation, we suggest you to check if your prospective consultant has expertise in implementing Great Plains in your industry
3. Where the implementation typically fails? In our observation, the most typical scenario is unrealistic data conversion, when customer order Dynamics GP consultant to “convert everything”. This might look like natural requirement, but think again – you had legacy accounting application with different code base and business logic, where your historical data resides. Do you really expect all the years (maybe ten years or more) of historical documents to be migrated to your new Corporate ERP system – Dynamics GP? Well, theoretically it is possible, but are you ready to pay for that? (the process should take several or better to say multiple iterations) Think about the alternative approach, where you keep your old accounting system available for querying only (Peachtree, QuickBooks, SAP Business One, Accpac, etc.) on standalone Windows XP workstation
4. How to find Dynamics GP consultant for second opinion? We believe in modern internet search engines, such as Google, Yahoo, Bing/MSN. Please, try to find the right key words, preferring structured query with six or more parameters. You may decide to locate Dynamics GP Partner by Industry, State or Business Metro area, phone area code, experience in related technologies, for example Microsoft Dexterity, eConnect, SQL Stored Procedures, Crystal Reports, FRx, Integration Manager, XML, Magento
5. Please call us: 1-866-528-0577, We serve you USA/Canada nationwide via remote support (web sessions and phone/skype conferences). Local service is available in Western Michigan, Chicagoland, Southern California (LA, Orange County, San Diego), Houston area of the state of Texas
Dexterity Customization for Dynamics GP Evaluation Level Paper
When you are developer it is always a good idea to read technical manuals. But if you was just assigned to the IT team to decide if Dexterity is the right tool to customize your ERP application then first you need something which is in style of ‘easy reading papers’ or FAQ
Planning Dynamics GP Customization in Large Corporation
If you are reading this page then chances are high that you were not able to find ISV add-on and need customization project. Let’s talk about planning, quality assurance and future event such as version updates.
Dynamics GP Invoice Logo Attributed to Specific Company or Crossing the Borders of Three SOP Forms
Initial Great Plains Dynamics architecture had three SOP Invoice forms: Long, Short and Blank. Modern GP is popular in scenarios where you have more than three companies under one business entity umbrella
