The Home page also includes a section called Connect.  This section is designed to keep a GP user “connected” to all of the various updates and information relating to Dynamics GP.  The Connect area displays a series of slides that allow you to view the most up-to-date information pertaining to the areas of Microsoft Dynamics GP that you work with every day!  You can read the most recent Microsoft Dynamics GP Forum posts and the most up-to-date Microsoft Dynamics GP Community blogs.  You can check out the latest CustomerSource News and most importantly review the upcoming payroll compliance updates, service pack and hotfix releases, and much more!! Connect is available to all users on the home page. CustomerSource access is based on your Business Ready Enhancement Plan.

Click Home in the Navigation Pane and check out the Connect area today!

 Dynamics GP wants the user experience to be as efficient and productive as possible, and the advanced features of the Dynamics Gp 2010 Home Page is an excellent example of that philosophy.

By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP Partner

Stay Connected Within Dynamics GP 2010 is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

No related posts.

The Business Process Review, completed earlier in the project, will now provide the key steps in training your end-users on your new processes.  Employees will be much better at relating their training to their own environment, rather than using a standard “training company” and training materials.  The key here is to make training as realistic as possible, to provide the maximum effect.

 TMC follows a dedicated training model that encompasses 4 key steps:

1. Train on real processes – Leverage the Business Process Review.  The processes identified in that document are the basis for conducting business at your company, ensure that training covers all of those processes. 
2. Train on real data – Don’t rely on the sample company for training purposes, that is not its purpose.  Build a training company, populated with your own data, so that the training experience is more meaningful.  Your staff will feel more comfortable with the new system if they can see their own items, their own customers and vendors. 
3. Train in real time – Use a dedicated training environment.  This can be a workspace that is assigned to the project, or suitable rooms can be found at off-site locations.  Enforce a “no cell phone or blackberry” policy during training.  No distractions or interruptions. 
4. Train hands-on – Most people learn and retain far more by being immersed in the experience.  Get their hands on the mouse and the keyboard, practice doing what they will be expected to do once the system is live.

“I see and I forget

I hear and I remember

I do and I understand”

-       Confucius

By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP Partner

4 Keys To Successful Training on Your New Dynamics ERP System is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. 3 Keys to a Successful Business Process Review
2. Keys to a Successful Business Process Review
3. Microsoft Certified Training – Required for Successful Dynamics ERP Implementations

A typical integration scenario would be as follows:

In this scenario, the restaurant’s various POS terminals (which can either be multiple registers in a single location, or multiple locations each with their own BOH system) are linked to the BOH system.  At pre-determined intervals (which could be one per night for example), the BOH system prepares a data extract of the new data received by the BOH from the POS system since the last data extract was completed.  This data extract is typically in the form of a .csv file or similar.

Once the BOH system has completed its data extract, and has saved the .csv file to a specified network location, Microsoft Dynamics GP’s integration tools can begin the process of moving the BOH data into GP for processing and reporting.

Dynamics GP Integration Suite

The Integration Suite for Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 offers two tools for integrating data into the system:  Integration Manager and eConnect.

Integration Manager is designed to move data into Dynamics GP from an external source.  This is done in a batch mode, where the batch consists of multiple transactions of a single type.  This could be done at the General Ledger level, creating balanced Journal Entries to be posted in GP, or it can be done to some of the sub-ledgers in GP, creating unposted transactions in GP that can be reviewed and posted by a GP user.

eConnect is designed to move data into and out of Dynamics GP.  eConnect can work in either a batch-mode, processing transactions either “on-demand” or on a schedule, or eConnect can work in a “real-time” mode, processing transactions from the external source as soon as they are presented to eConnect.  (Real-time is commonly used in eCommerce environments, while batch-mode is frequently used in restaurant integrations).  Econnect can also wortk with multiple types of external data, including .csv, .xml, and others.

Restaurant Integrations

When integrating a restaurant BOH system and Dynamics GP, data can be exchanged at various levels.  A typical restaurant integration might include the following types of transactions:

• General Ledger – Direct integration to a GL Journal Entry.
• Accounts Payable – for payables due to the restaurant’s vendors.
• Inventory – linked to Purchasing, inventory valuations in GP can be adjusted from the BOH data.
• Purchasing – requests for equipment and fixtures might originate in the BOH and then be submitted to GP for processing.
• Accounts Receivable – Balances due from corporate events or other “on-account” activities can be submitted to GP for collections and cash applications
• Payroll – time sheet information form the POS can be transferred to GP’s payroll module for processing in GP.

Integration Manager compared to eConnect:

by Technology Management Concepts, Southern California Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner

Integrating External Data into Dynamics GP 2010 is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Rave Reviews For Microsoft SharePoint 2010 And Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 External Lists
2. 3 Ways To Import Data Into Microsoft Dynamics GP – Integration Manager, eConnect & Web Services
3. Integrating Information Systems to Your ERP: Advantage Dynamics GP

If your company is finally fed up with its current antiquated or non-existent ERP application, then now is a great time to do something about it.  In addition to the typical reasons you hear: software vendors are discounting their products, consultants rates are down, business resources are available to work on the project, etc., I would like to highlight some additional tips that are applicable in any economy for completing a cost effective ERP implementation.

Buying the Software

• Timing is everything – Software vendors behave like most any public companies in that they try to meet their numbers on a quarterly and fiscal year-end basis.  If you have patience and luxury to wait for the time to be right, you can catch a sizable discount.
• Buying just what you need – For Microsoft Dynamics, software is licensed on a concurrent user basis.  So if you figure out how many users will actually be in the system at the same time and buy only what you need you can save significantly.  Not to mention, if you figure out later that you need more a software company will always be happy to sell them to you then.  The only caveat is to beware of price breaks.  If you are at the threshold of receiving a per user discount if you buy more that maybe the better approach.
• Take advantage of external reporting tools – Microsoft Dynamics GP offers online reporting, analytical and portal functionality that is available at a fraction of the cost of a full user license.  If your executives and managers are just running reports and analyzing data, don’t include them in your full user count.
• Buying the maintenance plan that is right for you – Microsoft Dynamics maintenance plans, or software assurance as it is known, are available in 18 or 25 percent of your software list price (SLP).  What varies is the quantity of support tickets and the response time.  If you plan to use your implementer primarily for support, go with the less expensive plan.  Again, you can always upgrade later.
• Reuse the licenses you already own – When purchasing Dynamics GP you are obligated to have Microsoft Windows Server and SQL Server licenses.  Do you already own these within your organization for another application you are using?  If so, there is no need to buy additional ones.  If your previous licenses are still applicable, just reuse what you already have.

Finding a well-priced vendor

• A proposal says a thousand words – How is the proposal from the vendor written?  Is it cryptic such that you have no idea how they came up with the cost estimate?  Or does it read more like a menu in that you know exactly what you are getting?  Beware of the former.  Unless you know what is included be prepared for billing in excess of your estimate when you ask for things that you thought were included but actually were not.
• Games with hourly rate – Is the proposed hourly rate extremely high and upon questioning the vendor comes back with all kinds of discounts?  Or does it start out reasonable from the start?  Aim for the latter as that is a good indication that the company is a straight shooter and is not playing games with you.  If they start out with the used car salesmen approach, be prepared for a rough relationship.
• Be reasonable – Admittedly there is always room for bargaining in a proposal, but try to resist the urge to aim too low.  The last thing you want it is to award a contract to a vendor that treats you like a second class citizen as the relationship is not profitable for them.

Perform your preparation ahead of time

• Migration from your old system – A lot of vendors offer standard migration tools from your current system to their system.  Although these save a lot of time, it is very much what you see is what you get.  Are you not happy with the setup in your existing system?  Is your customer list, chart of accounts or vendor list getting a little out of date?  Chances are after the migration you are left with the same poor data integrity that you started with.  It may be worth the extra effort to opt out of the plug and play migration if it gives you the opportunity to improve data integrity.
• Data clean up – If you know your data is in need of a little housekeeping, start cleaning it up now.  Chances are you have the skills in house to do a little Microsoft Excel analysis to consolidate duplicate customers, vendors, and inventory items.
• Process realignment – Do you have some weird practices around the company that you have always asked, “why do we do it that way”?  If you don’t change your ways you will need to put a lot more effort into customizing your new software or developing complex workarounds that hopefully can be avoided.  Not only do customizations cost you more money up front, but chances are there is always a little bit of overhead associated to upgrading them in the future.

During the Implementation

• Stick to your original scope – Scope creep equals a change request which equals more money.  If you can, limit changes to the original scope.  If something was missed that must eventually be addressed, try to delay it to a latter phase.  In my experience in about 50% of the cases you will find that you no longer needed the additional functionality or you have since found a better way achieve your objectives.  Ensure there is a central person or board that approves changes.  If you leave it up to the end users the list can become quite unruly.
• Change management – In software implementations, as in many things in life, perception is reality.  If the end users are happy and think the application is great, they will adopt it as their own and try to improve things along the way.  If you don’t involve them during the requirements gathering and surprise them at the end with a fancy new system, chances are they will hate it.  It is similar to the Christmas gift that you never asked for.  If they feel vested as opposed to along for the ride, you can avoid rework and save some serious time and of course, money.

Anyone have additional tips?

By Mike Marcin, Systematica Inc. – Microsoft Dynamics GP California Partner

Save Money on Your ERP Implementation is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Save Money, Buy Microsoft Dynamics GP
2. How Can Microsoft Dynamics ERP Help You Save Money?
3. Buy 1 Get 3. Now is the Time to SAVE MONEY and Move to a Comprehensive Business Solution – Microsoft Dynamics GP

AA: Analytical Accounting

AM: Advanced Management (an edition of Microsoft Dynamics GP)

AS: Authentication Service

BE: Business Essentials (an edition of Microsoft Dynamics GP)

BI: Business Intelligence

BP: Business Portal

BRAP: Business Ready Advantage Plan

BPOS: Business Productivity Online Standard Suite:  Microsoft’s cloud services, including versions of Exchange, SharePoint, Live Meeting , Office Communicator and Dynamics software.

BRL: Business Ready Licensing

CALS    Client Access Licenses: Associated with a server product e.g. SQL Server.

CfMD: Certified for Microsoft Dynamics

CRM: Customer Relationship Management

DCO: Dynamics Client for Office

DDV: Drill Down Viewer

EFT: Electronic Fund Transfer

EDI   Electronic Data Interchange: The direct transfer of data from one computer to another without the use of paper.

ERP: Enterprise Resource Planning

GL: General Ledger

GP: Microsoft Dynamics GP (formerly Great Plains)

HR: Human Resources

IIS: Internet Information Services

IM: Integration Manager

ISV: Integrated Software Vendor

KPI: Key Performance Indicator

LMT: License Model Transition

MBL: Module Based Pricing

MR: Management Reporter (formerly FRx)

MRP: Manufacturing Resource Planning

PDK: Personal Data Keeper

PM: Payables Management

PO: Purchase Order

PTO: Paid Time Off

RM: Receivables Management

SAAS: Software as a Service. Delivering software over the Internet or “Cloud Computing”.  Often associated with a “Pay as you go service”.

SIS: Single Instance Storage

SLP: System List Price

SOP: Sales Order Processing

SP: SharePoint

SPLA: Services Provider License Agreement

SRS: SQL Reporting Services

UI: User Interface

VAR: Value Added Reseller

VPC: Virtual Personal Computer

WSF: Windows SharePoint Foundation

XBRL: Extensible Business Reporting Language

Still stumped by a three-letter acronym? Maybe I can help.

By Fara Panah, Systematica Inc. – Microsoft Dynamics GP California Partner

What Does it Stand For? Your ERP Acronym Guide. is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Microsoft Offers Guide to Microsoft Dynamics GP Licensing; Download the Guide and Request a Quote
2. Looking for ERP Software – or Lost in the Acronym Jungle?
3. A Guide to Microsoft Acronyms from the Dynamics GP 2010 Launch Event

Payment Services adds credit and debit card processing directly from within Dynamics GP.  Process payments and deposits from both the Sales Order Processing transaction Entry screen and the Cash Receipts entry screen of Receivables Management.  Payment Services works with the major card providers:  VISA, MasterCard, Discover Card and American Express, as well as PayPal.  Payment Services will also extend to your online presence such as a web store.

Payment Services is available for FREE, although to use this new service, your system must be up to date on service packs.  This means Service Pack 5 for Dynamics GP 10.0 or Service Pack 1 for Dynamics GP 2010.

“Your staff will use existing data-entry screens, the IT department won’t have to install or integrate new software, and you’ll watch your business grow as you give customers payment options they already use in any of the places they want to use them—phone, online, or in-person.”

Payment Service for Dynamics GP offers seamless integration, right out of the box.  This provides a familiar interface for your users, and will allow you to reduce your overall costs of processing orders.

Payment Services is fully PCI compliant and utilizes PCI (Payment Card Industry) standards.

Payment Services is available to Dynamics Customers with an active Business Ready Enhancement Plan, and is offered to users of Dynamics GP Standard, Professional, Business Essentials and Advanced Management.

Commerce Services provides Item Catalog functions along with the integration to Dynamics GP, using the same connector tool used to connect Dynamics CRM to Dynamics GP.  Designed to facilitate support for a business to consumer web-site, Commerce Services will allow you to extend your sales reach across multiple online channels.

“With Commerce Services for Microsoft Dynamics ERP, you can expand your sales pipeline across multiple channels, enabling online merchandising. You can leverage connection points where you can offer goods for sale through storefronts, online auction sites, and marketplaces. With easy-to-use tools you can add, remove or modify catalogs, you can target specific online channels and create new sales catalogs on demand.”

Reduce your time to market for new products, by simplifying the steps needed to create and manage your product catalogs.  Produce different catalogs and use them for different sales channels, all based on the Master Catalog held in Dynamics GP.

Services are available to Microsoft Dynamics customers with an active Microsoft Dynamics Business Ready Enhancement Plan and using Dynamics GP Advanced Management only.

By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP Partner

Microsoft Dynamics GP Announces 2 New Cloud Based Services! is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Announcing New Microsoft Dynamics GP Online Services
2. Online Payment Services in Microsoft Dynamics GP
3. Built-In Payment Services – Just Another Great Feature of Microsoft Dynamics GP

Microsoft has announced a new program for their loyal Dynamics GP customers!

Announcing:  Re-enrollment Award for Microsoft Dynamics GP customers

Renew your Dynamics service plan and receive up to 20% off your next qualifying license purchase, add new users, purchase new modules or transition to Business Ready Licensing. 

Your discount is based on the tenure of your account, and the number of consecutive years of being current on your Microsoft Dynamics Enhancement Plan.

Discounts are based on consecutive years of Microsoft Dynamics Service plan enrollment.  If your service plan has lapsed, the discount will be based on your most recent re-enrollment date.  Mention Promo code: NA-H1-11-01 to Pat Quimby when you call to discuss your licensing needs.

Terms and Conditions:

1. Offer good only to Microsoft Dynamics ERP customers who are first-party recipients of this notification in the US and Canada.
2. Offer starts on July 5, 2010 and is valid through each customer’s Microsoft Dynamics service plan renewal date or June 30, 2011, whichever is earlier.
3. Offer is also extended to customers with service plan renewal dates between June 25, 2011 and July 4, 2011 if the service plan is renewed on or before June 24, 2011.
4. Discount can be applied to qualifying license purchase at the time of renewal through TMC.
5. Discounts are based on consecutive years of Microsoft Dynamics Service plan enrollment.  If your service plan has lapsed, your discount will be based on your most recent re-enrollment date. For example, if a customer has a tenure of 10 years but has been current on a plan for only 2 consecutive years, then they will be eligible for a 15% discount.
6. Qualifying license purchase includes Microsoft Dynamics ERP purchase of additional users, additional modules and license model transition to Business Ready Licensing.
7. A minimum purchase of $2,500 is required, and the maximum discount on a purchase cannot exceed $5000.
8. Offer available only through participating resellers – reseller prices may vary.
9. Offer cannot be combined with any other offer or discount.
10. Offer valid to each customer at the time of renewal. Eligibility is restricted to customers current on a service plan. Offer value is in U.S. dollars, before taxes.
11. Offer is non-transferable and not redeemable for cash.
12. License purchases and applicable discounts are based on standard list price.
13. Limit one discount per customer.

Exclusions:

1. SQL Runtime Edition and Database licenses.
2. Business Lite Users.
3. Third Party (e.g., ISV) software and functionality.

 By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP partner.

Microsoft and Dynamics GP reward their customer’s loyalty! is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Are You Missing the Opportunity to Improve Customer Loyalty Through Performance Management?
2. Spring into Savings with Dynamics GP Promotions!
3. SAP’s “Tough” Choice Shines a New Light on the Importance of Customer Service

At the annual Worldwide Partner Conference, currently underway, Microsoft has announced that the Microsoft Apps Store for Dynamics ERP and CRM will open in September 2010.  In the announcement, Microsoft stated that the Apps Store for Dynamics ERP and CRM will be “an online catalog” that “will streamline solution discovery for customers, and will provide an easy way for partners to market and distribute solutions to Microsoft Dynamics CRM and ERP customers”.

Reading a little into this, I would expect to see a searchable database of ‘apps’ written by the Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM independent software vendors (ISV’s) in a  fashion similar to what is currently available to the Microsoft partner channel, through the Solution Finder.  That site, however, is a search and link only site ( no commerce capabilities) and it is not available to the customers of Dynamics ERP and CRM products.  The new App Store will be open to both partners and customers, and should include all of the search and link functions, as well as the ability to purchase and download the apps.

In a previous blog post, I referred to the solutions provided by the ISV community as apps, and pointed out that this model had been in place within the Dynamics GP community for many years.  Now, Microsoft has formalized that approach with this announcement about the upcoming Microsoft Apps Store for Dynamics ERP and CRM.

To learn more about TMC and Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010.

By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP partner

Microsoft Dynamics GP – There’s An App Store Coming For That! is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. DYNAMICS GP 2010 COMING TO AN EVENT NEAR YOU – TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE MANY FREE & EXCELLENT EVENTS TO LEARN, GROW & DO BETTER WITH MICROSOFT DYNAMICS
2. Company Consolidations with Drill-Down Reporting Capabilities Sheds New Light for Multi-Store Retail Grocer
3. GP 2010 – Coming To A City Near You!

With Microsoft Dynamics GP, transparency is brought to all 3 sides of the distribution business:  Purchasing, Inventory Control, and Sales.  Dynamics GP provides key, timely insights to the movement of goods throughout your system.  When this information is delivered directly to the key decision makers, your company will realize significant benefits.

Purchasing

                Time to buy more?  Use Dynamics GP desktop reminders to be alerted to low-stock situations before they become out-of-stock disasters.  Use the Purchase Order Generator within Dynamics GP and let the system create replenishment purchase orders, based on the key item information regarding min/max levels, re-order points and purchase lead times.

                When will my purchases arrive?  Track your expected receipts in Dynamics GP and send alerts to the warehouse, notifying them of imminent arrivals on the receiving dock.

                What is the true cost of my purchases?  With Dynamics GP, you can track ALL of the associated costs, including freight, customs and duties, taxes and fees, as your items are received into the warehouse.  For many importers, these “secondary” costs can be equal to or even greater than the cost of the merchandise itself.

Inventory Control

                Time to count?  Waiting for an annual physical count of your inventory can result in costly mistakes and missed opportunities.  Use cycle counting and velocity ratings to identify those high-value and high-volume items, and count them more frequently.

                Where is it?  Dynamics GP provides inventory management down to the bin level.  Know precisely where in the warehouse your items are.  When a bin is emptied during the picking process, flag it for a cycle count, and then re-use that bin.

                Stale merchandise?  Identify items that are past their shelf-life.  Use promotional pricing to move soon-to-expire items out of the warehouse.  Automated notifications can be created to alert the warehouse manager and the sales team that items will be expiring soon, time to take some action and get them sold.

Sales

                Who are the best customers?  Who are my worst customers.  The answer here will vary, but a deep dive into margin analysis and profitability is key.  With Dynamics GP, these calculations are automatically generated.  Use these system metrics to identify customers for whom the cost of sales exceeds their profit contribution, and adjust your pricing and selling behaviors appropriately.

                Are my prices / margins right?  Well, sure, we lose money on every invoice, but we make it up on volume?  Periodic sales margin analysis reports can identify those products that need to be re-priced or re-sourced.

                Missed opportunities?  With Dynamics GP, sales analysis can be performed on your sales orders, not just your sales invoices.  This approach allows you to identify those “out-of-stock” situations that resulted in a lost sale.  Incorporate this information into your purchasing decisions, and don’t get caught “short” again.

With Microsoft Dynamics GP, transparency is built-in to the system.  By measuring all of the key aspects of a distribution business, Dynamics GP will provide the accurate, up-to-date information, directly to the decision-makers, needed to make the most out of any distribution business.  Embrace transparency, and your distribution business will benefit!

By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP partner.

Dynamics GP 2010 Makes Distribution Transparent! is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Mid-Market ERP-Distribution Buyer’s Guide
2. Smooth Warehouse Workflow with Advanced Distribution
3. Join Distribution Industry Expert Brent Grover For Upcoming Webcast

Working with government agencies imposes additional requirements on the consulting partner.  From business-specific policies and procedures, as well as successfully navigating the request for proposal and contracting phases, it is vital that a competent and resourceful consulting partner be engaged.

Marina del Rey, CA  –April 29, 2010 –Technology Management Concepts, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and provider of Microsoft Dynamics GP and CRM solutions, today announced that it has been awarded an Information Technology Schedule 70 contract by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), the procurement arm of the federal government. The five-year contract streamlines the ability of Federal customers to purchase Microsoft Dynamics GP accounting software and TMC’s advanced IT consulting, systems development, and other IT related services.

The GSA establishes long-term, government-wide contracts with commercial vendors to streamline and standardize the process of procuring products and services for the entire federal government. TMC’s inclusion as a GSA Schedule 70 vendor enables all government agencies to obtain software products, support, training and consulting services at approved pricing and license terms from a trusted vendor.

The GSA Schedule 70 award is the culmination of a rigorous process in which the GSA carefully evaluates companies to determine their proficiency and suitability for providing products and/or services to the federal government. The assessment covers an array of a corporation’s capabilities, including organizational structure, performance history, customer satisfaction, and other criteria. In awarding TMC a GSA Schedule 70 contract, the federal government has determined that the company is recognized as a preferred vendor fully authorized to conduct business directly with federal government agencies.

“Technology Management Concepts is very pleased to make Dynamics GP and TMC’s services available through the GSA,” said Brenda Diener, Director Business Development at TMC. “By reducing the procurement challenge, our GSA Schedule 70 contract helps TMC and prospective government clients focus on what matters most, efficiently assessing and resolving critical IT challenges.”

For any governemnt agency that is required to use GSA-certified contractors (or any agency that follows the same guidelines), they now have a GSA certified consulting partner in Souther California.

By TMC, your Southern California Dynamics GP partner

Dynamics GP For Government Agencies And Contracts is a post from: ERP Software Blog

Related Posts

1. Microsoft Dynamics ERP Offers Discount to Public Sector/Government Agencies Who Can’t Accept Free Licenses
2. The Challenges of Implementing ERP in Government Organizations
3. 6 Requirements for Government Contract Accounting and How Dynamics SL Meets Them