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Weakness of Great Plains

Dr_mjhDr_mjh Member Posts: 203
edited 2007-09-24 in Dynamics GP
Hi there,
I would like to know the weakness of Great Plains, please, any reply will be greatly appreciated.

Comments

  • Joseph_Abou_NaderJoseph_Abou_Nader Member Posts: 150
    In comparison with what? ( which ERP solution ) please specify whether, Navision, oracle financials, Maximo, etc...
    Joseph Abou Nader
    MCLC,MCT,MCITP,MCTS,MCSA,MCP
    You will never know what power you have until you take decisions in a hard time.
  • Dr_mjhDr_mjh Member Posts: 203
    Hi Joseph,

    In comparison with navision.
  • Joseph_Abou_NaderJoseph_Abou_Nader Member Posts: 150
    edited 2011-04-02
    Dr mjh wrote:
    Hi Joseph,

    In comparison with navision.

    Well, I don't call it a weakness, moreover, there are some differences from Navision that I will state:

    1-GP is a better solution when it is used off the shelf, while Navision on the other hand offers higher customization.

    2- GP is not partner dependant, on the other hand, Navision and when it comes to customization, you will be more dependant on your partner

    3- GP is more user friendly, and this is one of the reasons it is more spreading in Africa regions.

    4- NAV has CRM as one of its modules, while GP on the other hand is fully integrated with CRM 3.0.

    5- Report writer in GP is very rigid, but on the other hand, it links to crystal reports via sql server 2000.

    I hope that others will give you additional info

    Take Care
    Joseph Abou Nader
    MCLC,MCT,MCITP,MCTS,MCSA,MCP
    You will never know what power you have until you take decisions in a hard time.
  • Alex_ChowAlex_Chow Member Posts: 5,063
    Being a Navision person, my reponse is biased. My opinion is strictly my own opinion. Nonetheless, here it is:
    1-GP is a better solution when it is used off the shelf, while Navision on the other hand offers higher customization.

    There are no 2 business that runs exactly the same. The identify of business are generally a reflection of the owners or management that runs the company. As you know, every person in this world is different. In that regards, GP forces you to fit your business into the software whereas Navision adapts to your business and your identity.
    2- GP is not partner dependant, on the other hand, Navision and when it comes to customization, you will be more dependant on your partner

    The end user can purchase the source code for NAV so they are not partner dependent. There are also more NAV partners worldwide than GP partners, so if you don't like your existing partner, there will generally be plenty to choose from.
    3- GP is more user friendly, and this is one of the reasons it is more spreading in Africa regions.

    That's just a personal opinion. Navision has over 1 million registered users and more implementations across the world than GP. GP has been around longer than NAV, so it has to make you wonder why GP is nowhere near that number if it's really that user friendly.
    4- NAV has CRM as one of its modules, while GP on the other hand is fully integrated with CRM 3.0.

    Navision has a fully integrated CRM. Whereas GP needs CRM 3.0. So you're basically "bolting on" features that are lacking in GP. Having said that, MSFT is concentrating their development on having CRM integrating to all Dynamics products, so this won't be an issue in the future.
    5- Report writer in GP is very rigid, but on the other hand, it links to crystal reports via sql server 2000.

    Navision has a pretty robust report writer. There's also a product called Jetreport (which works with Great Plains as well) where you can create your own reports using Excel.
    Confessions of a Dynamics NAV Consultant = my blog
    AP Commerce, Inc. = where I work

    Getting Started with Dynamics NAV 2013 Application Development = my book
    Implementing Microsoft Dynamics NAV - 3rd Edition = my 2nd book
  • Joseph_Abou_NaderJoseph_Abou_Nader Member Posts: 150
    Hehe, got your attention there Alex...it is really nice to see you commenting on every point...( I expected this from one of Navision People...).

    Just to make one thing clear...I have worked on both products, and I wasn't trying to make one system appears better. After all, they all fall under the Microsoft Dynamics Umbrella ;). But it is good to show some GP features in MIBUSO which was created for Navision people in the first place.

    Anyhow, I will not make a debate out of this subject and I respect your opinion, although the things that I have mentioned where part of a comparison sheet made between GP & NAV by a company that implements both systems.

    Take Care
    Joseph Abou Nader
    MCLC,MCT,MCITP,MCTS,MCSA,MCP
    You will never know what power you have until you take decisions in a hard time.
  • Alex_ChowAlex_Chow Member Posts: 5,063
    Hehe... You don't expect to make a post here about GP on a NAV forum without someone responding to it. :mrgreen::mrgreen:

    Nonetheless, they both good systems. It all depends on how it's explained to the customer and what the customer needs.
    Confessions of a Dynamics NAV Consultant = my blog
    AP Commerce, Inc. = where I work

    Getting Started with Dynamics NAV 2013 Application Development = my book
    Implementing Microsoft Dynamics NAV - 3rd Edition = my 2nd book
  • lisakinslisakins Member Posts: 23
    I've been supporting GPS for over 15 years, but I'm new to Navision. Here are some of the things I've seen in my short time on Navision.

    The customization tools are much easier to use. Great Plains has a built in VBA modifier, but it is not easy to use. Additionally, because of the way the modifications are stored, there is the possibility of getting clients out of synch with thier modifications (multiple client setup).

    The built in CRM/Service functions in Navision are fantastic. With Great Plains you have to snap in whatever CRM you are using and some fit more smoothly than others. The Service Module is limited in its number of user defined fields, which ties your hand on some customer service setups.

    Any modification whatsoever to the GPS tables or field sizes/formats will lock up any future upgrades. They will continue to fail until you reverse your changes.

    Great Plains is user friendly to those that grew up in a DOS environment, still has the look and feel of it's original layout. From what I'm seeing those that grew up with Microsoft products are more comfortable with the Navision layout, although the usage of function keys seems to be somewhat new or uncomfortable for some.

    Being a big fan of SQL, SQL reporting, and Crystal, I have to say I miss my report writing going this route. Although, I'm trying my hand at FRx hooked to Navision and am very interested in the JetReports and Targit reporting products.

    As the previous post says, all businesses are different and their processes will drive the choice. Very few companies can take either of these products and snap them on the bsiness without some modification, be that software or process side.
  • p.willemse6p.willemse6 Member Posts: 216
    I also understood that GP already has the new Dynamics client.
  • Joseph_Abou_NaderJoseph_Abou_Nader Member Posts: 150
    p.willemse6 wrote:
    I also understood that GP already has the new Dynamics client.

    There is no doubt about that...Microsoft are working too much on enhancing GP, but nevertheless GP has the US market in addition to to Africa while Navision has the europe market.
    Joseph Abou Nader
    MCLC,MCT,MCITP,MCTS,MCSA,MCP
    You will never know what power you have until you take decisions in a hard time.
  • p.willemse6p.willemse6 Member Posts: 216
    is there already a VPC available? Can only find a full product download on the partnersource...
  • Joseph_Abou_NaderJoseph_Abou_Nader Member Posts: 150
    p.willemse6 wrote:
    is there already a VPC available? Can only find a full product download on the partnersource...

    There is no virtual machine intallation for GP, you'll have to install sql server and GP in order to check the functionalities.

    Good Luck
    Joseph Abou Nader
    MCLC,MCT,MCITP,MCTS,MCSA,MCP
    You will never know what power you have until you take decisions in a hard time.
  • p.willemse6p.willemse6 Member Posts: 216
    OK, then we'll just wait for them to upgrade the Demo toolkit... don't want to screw up my PC, others are to busy...
  • Joseph_Abou_NaderJoseph_Abou_Nader Member Posts: 150
    p.willemse6 wrote:
    OK, then we'll just wait for them to upgrade the Demo toolkit... don't want to screw up my PC, others are to busy...

    Well, I can assure that no damage will be done to your pc :roll: .

    You only require 512 mb RAM and some hard disk space. I am sure the advantages of the installation are quite good.

    Good Luck
    Joseph Abou Nader
    MCLC,MCT,MCITP,MCTS,MCSA,MCP
    You will never know what power you have until you take decisions in a hard time.
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