In the time of economy slow down you should probably try to tighten the belt and cut luxury ERP support plans. In this small publication we are highlighting the option of supporting Great Plains Dynamics GP remotely from our Dynamics GP call center and GP Dexterity Software Development Factory. Psychologically, you probably want to see your Great Plains Consultant or Programmer sitting in your office, to shake hands in initial often evaluation meeting, however think about associated expenses: Great Plains Development travel time and mileage, minimum number of hours per visit, plus if you are in downtown Los Angeles, New York or Chicago – local rates have really sky rocketed. Let’s look at the alternatives:
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1.      Great Plains Support via Web Sessions. Web Session allows GP users and supporting technician to share the same computer, including keyboard and mouse control, plus you are in real time phone conference. Often, if you are using advanced teleconferencing or such technologies as skype – you can see the phase of the consultant, if she or he uses web internet camera
2.      No travel time and potentially instant support. If you had traditional onsite visiting Great Plains support from local Dynamics GP VAR or Technology Partner, you probably already understand the time lag between your initial request for support and the day when consultant shows up in your office. In may take from several days to couple of weeks. With remote support this time lag, typically related to travel time waste for consulting workforce, doesn’t exist or minimized
3.      Broader Expertise. Centralized Dynamics GP technical support center carries more consultant with often deep specialization, opposite to local Dynamics GP reseller, who has to serve very diversified community of Great Plains customers with just a few field consultants. Small and even midsize Great Plains Resellers often cannot afford Dynamics GP programming and technical consulting departments, while nationwide Dynamics GP Partner typically carries Great Plains Software Development Factory
4.      Great Plains Customizations and Programming. Integration with ecommerce websites as well as EDI and Legacy databases integrations could be programmed in eConnect. Traditional Great Plains user interface modifications are typically coded in Great Plains Dexterity. Both eConnect and Dexterity modifications require version upgrade code review
5.      Great Plains Reports support. FRx, ReportWriter, Crystal Reports, Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services or SSRS are common reporting tools for Microsoft Dynamics GP