Thank you for making the Business Software Showcase a success!

Last week saw the return of the Business Software Showcase, Dynamics Consultants’ event to bring the latest business management software and practices to the new and experienced alike. Supported by Microsoft, various solution providers and local industry, the event drew the largest crowd yet. So thank you to everyone who made it possible, from contributors to guests, and of course to our ever popular team of experts!

The results of the feedback are still coming in, but so far the day has scored 4.4 Stars!

Keynote Speakers

We were pleased this year to have Andrea Ely from Microsoft visiting; many of you will remember her from last year with her excellent presentation on the Internet of Things (IoT). This year we were honoured to have two keynote speakers, giving some fantastic presentations.

Robert Pope - Microsoft

Robert Pope is the UK Dynamics NAV Channel Manager for Microsoft. He gave a fantastic presentation about the future of technology and how Microsoft solutions are changing the way we work. As Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO, would put it “pursuing transformation with digital technology”. With 40% of the average person’s time being wasted on switching between tasks, Microsoft are bringing together existing products with seamless integration, as well as releasing products like Teams to help improve productivity.

Lee Crowhurst - Bainbridge

Lee Crowhurst is the Head of IT and Business Solutions for Bainbridge International Ltd. With over a decade in the industry, Lee explained about the importance of using the latest technologies, including keeping existing solutions up to date with regular upgrades.

Lee also shared his experience of using simple tools to save money, such as the Document Sending solution, which had a Return on Investment (ROI) of just two months, saving in the region of £50k in postage and printing costs year to date!

e-Commerce is a big factor in Bainbridge’s success, with 60% of their sales coming from their website. Considering Bainbridge’s business is B2B, this was very exciting for those who had previously considered e-Commerce as a consumer selling tool. Those who then went to the e-Commerce essential session were even more surprised at how cheap and fast it is now to get a web shop integrated with your business management solution.

The Seminars

The business software showcase is all about finding out the latest information on technologies on the market.

What’s New in Dynamics NAV 2017?

Our director Tom Jenkins went with a team of consultants to Directions EMEA last month to find out all of the latest and since the release of NAV 2017 we have been putting together a list of exciting new features, including:

• Enhanced Outlook Integration
• Embedded Power BI
• Client Enhancements
• Finance Improvements
• Item Attributes
• Other Item Improvements
• Simplified Jobs
• Cash Flow Improvements
• Payment Reconciliation Journal
• Notifications

• New Multiline Text Box
• Assissted Setups - A Number of Wizards e.g. CRM Integration
• NAV CRM Enhancement and Simplification
• Cortana Intelligence
• Reporting Data Setup
• E-Everything - 2017
• Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2017 Connector
• Questions?

What is NAV?

The Business Software Showcase is not just for people who already use the technologies, but also for those who are completely new to business software. Throughout the day we had breakout sessions to give people a choice, so while the existing NAV users found out what was new, Catherine Ross and Tom Hogben gave an overview of what NAV can do and an explanation of the possibilities for companies that utilise an ERP system.

Dynamics CRM and NAV Integration

We were fortunate to be joined by Rowland Dexter of QGate Software, a leading Dynamics CRM partner on the south coast. Explaining the benefits of CRM, Rowland went on to explain the future of Dynamics CRM as part of Dynamics 365.

To find out more about CRM and QGate, please have a look at their website.

Quality Module and Internal Audit Module

Andrew Trayfoot is a Warehousing and Manufacturing specialist and his presentation was on To-Increase Quality Management for Microsoft Dynamics NAV. The solution allows for three main components:

• Incident - Wizard process workflows
• Measurement - From incident and from template inspection
• Registered Measurement - From inspection follow-up Workflow

This system allows for bespoke internal audit development for quality control.

e-Commerce Essential and NAV Integration

For those who are looking at the possibility of a full professional web shop solution, e-Commerce Essential provides a low cost, flexible and off-the-shelf solution. Our Senior Web Developer, Phil Kendall, showed how simple set up of items and attributes can provide an easy way of selling more. With an integration module with Dynamics NAV, you are able to save time and improve the performance of your website, with up-to date stock and automatic processing of orders. Phil also discussed our range of plugins, which help to add extra functionality, such as synchronising with Google Merchant Center, and Feefo Reviews.

Following the presentation from Lee, many of those attending who had not previously considered an e-Commerce platform were now excited at the fact that selling online works for B2B business as well as with consumers.

Automating Processes

Miruna Rusu gave a very popular presentation on the what, the why and the how with Workflows. Workflows are a series of activities necessary to complete a task, which help to execute business processes. Built on events and responses, Miruna explained how workflows help to keep work consistent and longer term allow for easier upgrades than developed solutions.

Office 365

With a range of different apps, as well as a long list of updates, Office 365 is helping to improve productivity with new tools. With frequent updates to functionality, there are is a constant stream of new features. Tanya Denton gave an overview of the apps and their functionality, such as Sway, Power BI, Delve and Yammer, followed by a demonstration of the integrated apps through use of Groups.

Upgrade - What’s Involved?

With over 14 years as a Consultant and 2 years as a customer, Stuart Hardman has worked with every version of NAV since version 2. This means that he has seen his fair share of upgrades! From discussing the benefits of upgrading, to discussing how to plan one, Stuart gave a presentation to help NAV users understand what is involved. But don’t let the picture fool you, it has nothing to do with using the force…

The Power of Apps and Add-ons

Catherine, Tom and Ed gave a very interesting presentation on using developed solutions to get that extra functionality that your business requires. They showed SmartView, the tool that allows you to show NAV cues on a dashboard via a web browser – ideal for giving fast access to data on a smart TV in an office.

The team also discussed PowerApps, the new tool that allows fast creation of apps that sync with your data. Flow creates workflows based on data from a wide range of sources and together these tools can provide some really innovative functionality whilst automating tasks.

Networking

A large part of the day is centred around networking with other businesses, finding out about best practices and how people use different technologies to get the most out of them. Of course, we provided drinks and food throughout the day - afternoon cakes were a very popular feature! This is also a great opportunity for talking to our consultants, with many people booking appointments for the day, as well as to talk to our guest speakers and third party exhibits, who were idyn Document Capture and Netstock inventory optimisation.

Talk to us for more information

Our friendly and knowledgeable staff would be pleased to discuss your questions and requirements. If you would be interested in an event in the future, please contact us and we will make sure that you receive an invitation.

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