Funtional vs Technical

samblue600

Hi,

I have been working as Functional Consultant for past 2.5 years , I know finance, Sales purchase, Wareshoue and Inventory, and few in Navision, but there is no scope for better job, even in my company people with less years of experience in technical is getting paid more.

I am planning to learn technical.

Is my decision correct, kindly help me with your valuable suggestion.

tedcjohnston

As long as you have the technical abilities, it can be a rewarding transition.

I started as a functional consultant and eased into technical. The best NAV folks understand both the functional and technical.

That being said, the technical side of NAV keeps getting more technical. I started my transition at ver 3 when the transition was much easier than it is today. I would suggest you focus on learning C/AL and start with things like reports. Good easy place to learn the table structures and where data goes.

Working with a patient developer is a great way to go. I learned by passing specs to developers then reading what they did (and fixing the issues with my specs).

My $0.02.

kine

samblue600 wrote:

even in my company people with less years of experience in technical is getting paid more.

I think that there is something wrong... may be that you are not as good in your area as they are in their even if they are "less years of experience". Or just there are other expectation on what you need to know to be paid more. Best is to make it clear with your superior, which condition you need to fullfill to step forward. I know many consultants who are good in their area, but have low presentation skills. Other consultants could present to customer in a way, that customer say "yes, this is what we need, you are master in your job, we will take your company...". Both have same knowledge, bud different skills.

matttrax

Yeah, you should discuss with your manager what you need to do to be making more money. If you don't like programming / technical stuff, then don't go down the development route.

Most importantly, find a balance between what makes you happy and what makes the most money...with an emphasis on the happy part.

kapil4dynamics

I wud suggest "do what u enjoy" , money will come.

Alex_Chow

Instead of moving to technical (where you may be disappointed in the pay), why not ask the management to move you into sales? If money is what you're after, then there's no restrictions on how much a sales person can make.

neshdenial

So, Finally you mean both Technical Consultants and Functional Consultants have same value if they are experienced in their respective fields or still Functional Consultants are more valued?

I understood that Functional Consultants are either CPA etc. Incase if they are just graduates in their fields and then without proper qualification are they still valued more than the Technical Consultants?

Any how I'm planning for an MBA and a PMP Certification my self and hope to complete them with nin 2 years. So, with my 10+ years of Technical Experience and with an MBA (MIS) & PMP, what would be my value?..

DenSter

It's not the number of years of experience, and it's not even the pieces of paper that prove that you passed some exams that determine your value. Those only get you in the door. From there you have to prove yourself, and you can get a good paycheck in either field.

You're going about it all wrong in my opinion, you're way too focused on money. You need to find something that you enjoy doing, otherwise you won't last until your retirement.

matttrax

DenSter wrote:

It's not the number of years of experience, and it's not even the pieces of paper that prove that you passed some exams that determine your value. Those only get you in the door. From there you have to prove yourself, and you can get a good paycheck in either field.

This is as perfect as you can say it.

neshdenial wrote:

So, with my 10+ years of Technical Experience and with an MBA (MIS) & PMP, what would be my value?..

Consider yourself your own little company within your company and run a P&L (Profit and Loss) on yourself. You take your bill rate * hours billed - salary (and the stuff your company pays for for you that you may not see directly, like in the US the employer pays the same amount of social security that is taken out of your check). That profit is your value to your company. Of course there are other little things that go into it, but that's most of it in my opinion.

Is an MBA or PMP certification going to allow you to bill more? Probably not, it will just let you bill functional time instead of technical.

Do what you enjoy doing. That's where you'll be happiest. Happy = You doing a better job = More money = More Happy