Microsoft News

Merit Solutions, Inc., a Microsoft Gold Certified and 2009 President’s Club member, has been named to the 2010 President’s Club for Microsoft Dynamics for the second consecutive year. This achievement is a direct result of Merit Solutions’ outstanding dedication to customer satisfaction through the delivery of innovative business solutions.

President’s Club for Microsoft Dynamics honors high-performing Microsoft Dynamics partners whose commitment to customers is reflected in their business success and growth. This prestigious group represents the top 5 percent of Microsoft Dynamics partners worldwide. Membership is granted based on their continual, committed efforts aimed at offering solutions that meet the needs of their customers.

“Microsoft is proud to recognize Merit Solutions for its outstanding sales achievement,” said Doug Kennedy, vice president of Microsoft Dynamics Partners. “This honor is a direct reflection of Merit Solutions’ outstanding group of employees and management team, all of whom should be very proud of this accomplishment. Merit Solutoins plays a very important role in the growth and success of Microsoft Dynamics.”

Merit Solutions is dedicated to helping customers select the right solutions and services, which best meet their business needs, allowing them to achieve new levels of success. By working closely with the teams at Microsoft, Merit Solutions maintains a comprehensive understanding of the Microsoft Dynamics platform in order to provide leading-edge solutions, services, and unparalleled value to Microsoft Dynamics customers. Previous honors include: 2002 Microsoft Manufacturing Excellence Partner of the Year, 2005 Microsoft Vertical Excellence Partner of the Year, 2005 and 2009 Microsoft Dynamics President’s Club, and 2009 Business Transformation Award.

“Merit Solutions is honored to be included in this year’s President’s Club for Microsoft Dynamics,” said Bill Burke, President of Merit Solutions. “Our dedication to client success has enabled companies across the world to enjoy streamlined processes, increased sales, and reduced operational costs. We are excited to continue to meet and surpass all of our customers’ expectations.”

Merit Solutions has a ten year successful track record of providing Microsoft Dynamics implementation, training and consulting for medium to large enterprise businesses. Merit Solutions specializes in the Life Sciences, Food and Beverage, and Distribution industries. With MAXLife for Microsoft Dynamics AX, we provide Life Sciences companies a solution that fits with existing systems, is familiar to use and easy to deploy, and has a lower total cost of ownership than traditional systems. MAXLife helps leading global Life Sciences companies get to market faster and sustain continued success.

Microsoft is excited to announce the “Sage MAS 90/200 Compete Offer” - a Microsoft Dynamics (U.S.) promotion targeting small and medium sized businesses that wish to take advantage of the rich functionality and low cost of ownership offered by Microsoft Dynamics AX, Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics NAV & Microsoft Dynamics SL. The promotion is comprised of an up to 50% discount on Advanced Management (AM) or Business Essential (BE) users. In addition you can receive a service rebate of up to a 25% discount of the Suggested List Price (SLP) to apply towards implementation costs and/or services, with a maximum amount of $25,000 USD. This offer applies to new customers migrating from Sage MAS90/200 to Microsoft Dynamics.

Effective until the end of business day Wednesday, December 23, 2009, all new customers migrating from Sage MAS90/200 may be eligible to take advantage of this special up to 50% discount pricing promotion when purchasing Microsoft Dynamics AX, Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics NAV or Microsoft Dynamics SL AM or BE users.

Find out why now is the time to Switch from Sage MAS 90/200 to Microsoft Dynamics. 

Microsoft and Yahoo have finally teamed together for a 10-year deal that gives Microsoft access to the Internet's second-largest search engine audience.

The long-rumored Internet search deal was announced on Wednesday, and is aimed at challenging Google’s dominance of online advertising. The deal adds a potentially potent weapon to Microsoft's Internet arsenal as it prepares for an all-out assault against online search and advertising leader Google Inc.

“This deal is a win-win for Microsoft and Yahoo,” said Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer in an e-mail to employees announcing the alliance.

The extended reach will allow Microsoft to introduce its recently upgraded search engine, called Bing, to more people. The Redmond, Wash.-based software maker believes Bing is just as good, if not better, than Google’s search engine.

Taking over the search responsibilities on Yahoo’s highly trafficked site gives Microsoft a better chance to convert Web surfers who had been using Google by force of habit. In return for turning over the keys to its search engine, Yahoo will get to keep 88 percent of the revenue from all search ad sales on its site for the first five years of the deal, and have the right to sell ads on some Microsoft sites.

Continue reading on MSNBC.com.

Taken from ChannelInsider:

"At Worldwide Partner Conference, Microsoft announces a near total overhaul of its partner program, including renaming the system “Microsoft Partner Network.” As part of the changes, Microsoft is eliminating the “Gold Certified” partner status and replacing it with new categories that reflect partner’s performance and capabilities.

Microsoft is revamping its partner program with a new system of membership designation that officials characterize as less hierarchical and better suited for the wide diversity of partner types the company now supports, including such partner types as Web developers and designers.

The new categorization will span a range of partner types, including:

• Community: This designation is being described as entry level and is intended for any channel organization that is considering launching a Microsoft practice, but is not yet at the level of selling.
• Subscriber: Partners who have moved beyond the exploratory phase and committed to building a Microsoft practice or capability in a particular area.
• Competency: Partners that have earned a solutions specialization in the Microsoft program. Microsoft will be reducing the number of official competencies from 46 to 30 over the next year, as well as changing some of the specialization names to be more relevant to the end customer.
• Advanced Competency: Microsoft’s Best-in-Class space; partners that are most committed to Microsoft and operate a full-scale, sophisticated practice."

Read more: Microsoft Tosses Gold Certified Partner Designation.

Channel 9 has posted a test drive demo video of Microsoft's new search engine - Bing (no - not Kumo).

"At the All Things Digital Conference, Steve Ballmer just announced our new search engine called Bing. Bing is actually MORE than a search engine- we are referring to it as a "decision engine" as its goal is to help users make more informed decisions by collating and formatting information for you that is relevant to your search. It's exceptionally useful in areas like travel, shopping, weather and movie listings. Beyond there's there are a ton of new fun features and time saving capabilities. Watch as Stefan Weitz takes us on a test drive."

Read what the critics are saying about Bing.

WHEATON, IL – March 27, 2009 
Merit Solutions, Inc. announced today it has won the ‘Small Business Transformations’ award as part of Microsoft’s H1 Midwest Area Partner Awards Program. The company was chosen out of an extensive field of Microsoft partners for delivering market-leading customer solutions built on Microsoft technology.

“Microsoft places a strong emphasis on the worth of our partners and, as a company, we want to highlight their commitment of delivering solutions and applications to customers,” said Mark Kornegay, General Manager - Central Region Managed Partners,

The exceptional performance, tremendous contributions and outstanding achievements of our partners should be recognized over the past quarter.” The Microsoft Partner Program Awards recognizes Microsoft Partners that have developed and delivered exceptional Microsoft-based solutions over the past year.

Small Business Transformations- Recognizes how a partner has changed a small business customer’s business by leveraging technology to address their business challenges.

For additional information:
Josh Richards 630-614-7133 jrichards@meritsolutions.com

Lee Pender at Redmond Channel Partner Online published an article during Microsoft Convergence about how "this year's Convergence show is all about hanging on in a tough economy". Merit Solutions was able to speak with Lee about a couple of issues, including: the Unleash Your Potential tool, the 4 "horsemen" suite of Microsoft Dynamics ERP, and the current economy. Read a section of the article below:

In other words, Microsoft's sticking with the four-suite thing, just as company officials have said for at least a couple of years now that it would. Yes, it's a bit confusing. Yes, it can send mixed signals to the market. But it's also the only way Microsoft can move forward with Dynamics ERP without cannibalizing those partners and customers that have bought into, say, GP, and want to stick with it. So we'd all better get used to it. And it's really not that tough a strategy to explain, said Josh Richards, marketing specialist for Merit Solutions, a GP and, more recently, AX partner located in Wheaton, Ill. It's just a matter of spelling things out to customers up front.

"We do still see prospects coming in unsure of what they need but thinking that they're going in for Microsoft Dynamics and not even knowing that it's an option to go for AX, GP, SL, whatever," Richards said. "There is still confusion, but the way we've been marketing, the inquiries are always AX, GP inquiries. We make it clear that we're not a shop for SL or NAV."

But enough about the four horsemen of Dynamics, which will just keep riding on. What Microsoft would really want us to write about -- and it's worth mentioning -- is something called Unleash Your Potential. That's a software tool that partners can use in customers' shops to go through the company, role by role or even person by person, to determine which functionality the company needs, and, in the case of current Dynamics customers, whether the company is getting everything out of the system it can.

"At the very end, it spits out a business solutions roadmap," Richards said. "It's not how are you using your system, but what could your system do. It's an in-depth view of their complete system." And it works, especially at a time when Microsoft is encouraging partners to sell into their current customer bases with upgrades and add-ons -- and to move customers who are using really old versions of Dynamics suites up to speed. Richards, who is also not at Convergence but was watching from his office in Minneapolis as snow fell, said Unleash Your Potential helped his company tap into a customer base it had been neglecting...

Read the complete story, "Convergence: Dynamics Partners Try To Unleash Potential"

Merit Solutions has been mentioned in a recent article by Rick Whiting at ChannelWeb. "Microsoft Adds Sales Incentives, Tools for Dynamics Apps Resellers" specifically mentions Merit Solutions and the use of Microsoft's Unleash Your Potential tool:

Microsoft is also playing up the value of its "Unleash Your Potential" customer evaluation tool that channel partners use to assess the needs of customers using Dynamics ERP applications. The idea is that solution providers can ensure customers are getting the most out of the software they have, but also identify cross-sell and up-sell opportunities. Microsoft developed the tool last year and will offer an update next month that partners can use to evaluate new customer prospects.

"We recognized the opportunities we were losing [among] our customers," said Josh Richards, marketing specialist with Merit Solutions, a Dynamics AX and Dynamics GP reseller in Wheaton, Ill. The company has been using Unleash Your Potential since mid-2008 and Richards said his company generates $18 in sales for every $1 spent using the evaluation tool.

Continue reading about additional Microsoft tools and sales incentives.

MSDynamicsWorld.com has posted an article by Mark Polino entitled, "Bad Economy or Not, Here Are Ten Reasons to Attend Convergence 2009". In this article, Mark details ten (well, eleven - he includes one bonus reason) reasons why users should attend the premier Microsoft Dynamics convention. In short, they are:

1. Learn how to get more out of your existing Dynamics program.
2. Learn about new features planned for upcoming releases.
3. Get Continuing Professional Education.
4. Learn what works from other users.
5. Interact with product and support team members.
6. Attend parties.
7. Try something new.
8. Learn about add-on solutions.
9. Learn about related applications.
10. Quick Return-on-Investment (ROI).
11. (Bonus) Me.

Be sure to check out his article for more information on each reason. And be sure to stop by Booth #840 at Microsoft Convergence to visit Merit Solutions and learn more about Microsoft Dynamics AX development.

The Early Registration discount for Microsoft Convergence 2009 New Orleans ends today. This is your last chance to Save $300 on each registrant. Register early, secure your favorite hotels while they are still available, and take advantage of better ariline rates.

Merit Solutions will be exhibiting and presenting at Microsoft Convergence 2009. Please visit us at Booth #840 to learn more about Microsoft Dynamics AX Development, as well as our other Microsoft Dynamics services.

Contact us to meet with a Merit Solutions representative during the event.

Microsoft Convergence 2009 is rapidly approaching. The Early Bird Registration discount ends tomorrow. Make sure you register before then to save $300 on each registrant.

Also - the Convergence Session Catalog is now available for viewing online

Armed with feedback from previous events and the results from the Call for Topic survey, sessions for Convergence 2009 are rapidly coming together to provide you with an abundance of learning opportunities. Now available in the Session Catalog, concurrent sessions and interactive discussions are formulated into ten separate ‘tracks’, and are further broken down by their target audience and skill level for a self-tailored education experience. Be sure to check back to the Session Catalog frequently (located under the “Content” navigation) for the very latest information as we continue to add content daily.

The early bird discount offer has been extended to January 21, 2009. REGISTER NOW to take advantage of a $300 savings and experience Microsoft Convergence 2009 and all its benefits—for less!

Pricing:

Early Price = $1195 - Before 11:59pm PST on Jan. 21, 2009
Regular Price = $1495 – After Jan. 21, 2009
Group Discount = $100 off 3rd and moreDay Pass = $750
Expo Pass = $150

Want to meet with a Merit Solutions Representative at Convergence? Let us know when you're available!

Business Intelligence (BI) is definitely moving away from a position of being dominated by pure-play vendors. Large acquisitions in 2007, when SAP bought Business Objects and IBM aquired Congnos, show how quickly BI is moving from a specialized, expensive technology into a commodity itself. Microsoft has realized the potential of this growing market when it released the first version of SharePointPortal Server in 2001. The market reaction was excellent. According to Tom Rizzo, director of SharePoint Product Management, Microsoft has sold over 85 million licenses in the first six years of SharePoint life, making it one of the fastest-growing server products in Microsoft’s history.

A full range of BI products was completed when Microsoft announced a release of Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 (PPS). It is actually a bundle of three different packages: Business Scorecard Manager for monitoring, Proclarity for analysis, and a third and completely separate module for planning.

In a recent debate with Hasso Plattner, Chairman / Co-founder of SAP, Salesforce.com's Co-founder Marc Benioff made the following remarks:

"All 41,000 Salesforce customers are on the same version. When we release the new version in June, we don't break the links. In some cases they have to re-implement..."

This means that Salesforce.com CRM customers will be required to re-implement, in some cases, when the Summer '08 upgrade rolls out in June.

For more information on the debate, check out the news story.