Microsoft wants to show and tell you more about Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail, the end-to-end solution that empowers retailers to deliver a complete shopping experience, with multichannel management, store operations, and merchandising capabilities.

You can watch the on-demand global Virtual Launch Event…

In an effort to make troubleshooting resources more accessible to implementation partners and end users, the Microsoft Dynamics AX Support Team has added a new blog to host its top resources for troubleshooting issues with Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009.

Kelly Holwagner, Product Quality Manager at Microsoft, spoke with me the other day as to why Microsoft is utilizing blogs to get more involved in the social community and to distribute information. Kelly has been with Microsoft for over 15 years, starting out in an implementation role for Great Plains manufacturing clients and then most recently, in a quality role with Microsoft Dynamics AX where he drives strategy for all Microsoft Dynamics products.

With the addition of the AX Support Team blog, Kelly explained that they are trying to extend their reach with targeted content that’s easier to find with a one-touch location. Traditionally, Dynamics users have to utilize search engines like Bing or Google to locate content, or struggle with navigating inside of CustomerSource and PartnerSource. As an alternative…

With Microsoft’s theme of power, agility and simplicity around the release of AX 2012, doesn’t it make sense that Microsoft’s ISV partners follow suit in supporting upgrades to the upcoming GP ‘12’ and NAV ‘7’ releases as well? While these releases may offer new functionality and opportunities for user organizations, the need to meet EDI requirements will be nothing new, but how you meet them can be a new cost-saving opportunity for your business.

EDI has been around for some time, but it has grown dramatically in regards to its importance and breadth in business relationships. Today it is quite common for larger organizations to mandate EDI capability as a pre-requisite for new suppliers and business partner relationships. While a few years ago most companies traded only a few documents, such as purchase orders, invoices and ship notices, today there is a significant amount of documents that can drive labor efficiencies, ultimately leading to the more critical competitive advantage.

EDI enters the process a major player because these documents also require more flexible and comprehensive software applications. And with upgrades on the horizon for Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, GP ‘12’ and NAV ‘7’, the need for more flexible and comprehensive software applications doesn’t mean that you have to expect complicated ERP customizations…

Last week I attended Microsoft’s AX 2012 Industry Summit in Jacksonville, FL for sales and pre-sales. This event focused on the specific industries that Microsoft has targeted: Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (IEM), Chemical, Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), Industrial Distribution, Services, Management & IT Consulting, Engineering and Construction and Public Sector. This was the second event of this type and Microsoft planned on 100 people to attend, but instead they ended up with approximately 170 which made for an even stronger event.

One of the things that I came away with was the amount of time and energy that Microsoft is putting into the industry specific solutions. Not just from a Dynamics AX development perspective, but also looking at the people that they’ve hired internally and the types of partners that they are onboarding.

On Day 1 and for the first half of Day 2, the event was focused on Dynamics AX pre-sales. Microsoft Technical Specialists, such as Chuck Juhnke, Jeff Einig, Shawna Mikes and others, presented and demonstrated how they are showcasing AX 2012 to prospects. Their mission was to make…

Here we are coming up on Convergence 2012, nearly a year since Steve Ballmer and Kiril Tatarinov delivered the message loud and clear that Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 is the ERP for everyone with its commitment to “simplicity”. From installation through deployment, implementation, customization, user experience, and upgrade, this release’s design bares the mark of simplicity. And with Microsoft’s theme of power, agility and simplicity around this release, doesn’t it make perfect sense that Microsoft’s ISV partners follow suit?

When considering an upgrade to Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, it’s best practice to work with your VAR and ISVs to analyze all customizations and create a precise plan to manage your code and data upgrades. It’s a given that some customizations will still be required in AX 2012, but when it comes to accommodating EDI, you can forget about customizations…

Data Masons’ EDI experts are facilitating an in-depth conversation on EDI integration with Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 during today’s manufacturing-focused sessions at the AX 2012 Sales and Pre-sales Industry Summit. Dennis Bruce of Data Masons will discuss the huge opportunity partners have to leverage the power of Microsoft Dynamics AX and support customers’ lean manufacturing goals with an Microsoft Dynamics AX EDI solution that tightly integrates common business documents without ERP platform customization.

Data Masons will also join First Tech Direct today in discussing…

Data Masons Software, LLC., a leading provider of EDI and XML solutions for Microsoft Dynamics® ERP customers, is proud to announce its sponsorship of the Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Sales and Pre-sales Industry Summit, February 13th – 16th in Jacksonville, FL. This event is designed to educate key Microsoft Dynamics AX Partners about Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 industry vertical solutions and help them deploy AX in those industries.

Microsoft, in conjunction with the event sponsors, will show how to best demonstrate the value of Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 in specific industries and how ISV partner solutions enhance the quality of the customer experience and overall ROI. One specific product, Vantage Point EDI for Microsoft Dynamics AX, has features that improve supply chain execution…

Data Masons is excited to sponsor the first Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Sales and Presales Industry Summit. Scheduled for February 13th – 16th in Jacksonville, FL, the event is designed to bring attendees up to speed with the Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 industry solutions and arm them with the tools needed to effectively sell and deploy the solutions.

Microsoft has designed this event to dive deeper into the core areas of Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 and how to leverage the demo tools and messaging pillars – Powerful, Agile, Simple – in showcasing the solution. In addition, discussions will extend the core into Microsoft’s five key industries: Manufacturing; CPG & Distribution; Professional Services; Retail; and Public Sector. Microsoft and the event sponsors will present the basis and understanding of how to present and demonstrate the Microsoft Dynamics AX solution in a specific industry and then attendees will learn about the ISV partner solutions, such as Microsoft Dynamics AX EDI, that make up the industry ecosystems.

Data Masons’ EDI experts will join the agenda on Thursday, February 16th to facilitate an in-depth conversation on EDI integration with Microsoft Dynamics AX specifically for companies working within the manufacturing industry. Session attendees will discuss how to support lean manufacturing goals with an EDI solution that tightly integrates common business documents such as invoices, purchase orders and ASNs without ERP customization.

With additional expertise within the Automotive Industry…

Mark your calendars for February 1st, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time (US)!

Starting February 1st, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail will be available in more than 25 countries. This Global Launch Event is your opportunity to get a look inside of the solution’s powerful capabilities which will provide midsize and enterprise retailers with an end-to-end solution that includes cross-channel capabilities, social and mobile commerce, enriched point of sale (POS), and powerful enhancements for merchandising.

Microsoft leaders, customers, and retail industry experts will talk about what it means to be a Dynamic Retailer in today’s retail environment and:
•Share insight on retail trends and technology from NRF in New York
•Give demos showcasing Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 retail capabilities
•Chat live online to share retail and technical expertise
•Talk about local retail events in your geography
•Explore all of the additional functional and industry innovation in Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012

Who can remember the first AXUG Summit? I can’t tell you exactly when the first one was held, but I do remember being there and at that time, the event was basically held in the halls of a hotel. And now, for the first time ever, the AXUG Summit is sold out*! Can you believe it? Knowing that the user group has grown over the past year and is sold out, I’m excited to see old friends and colleagues, meet new faces and experience what AXUG has in-store for us at this year’s event.

Looking at the Summit agenda you can see how the educational track has grown just by the number of sessions, including Customer and Partner Showcases, Roundtable Discussions, How2 sessions and Technical Workshops. Many of these sessions will be standing room only, so my advice is to plan out your agenda before arriving to Vegas to make sure that you get a chance to attend those sessions most important to you. Especially those sessions focused on AX 2012 and upgrades, as that is one of the hottest topics slated on the agenda.

Moving outside of the classrooms the Summit’s expo hall is an obvious indication of the growing support for the AX user community. The expo hall is a valuable opportunity to network with leading VARs and ISVs in the community and to learn about how they can work with you to increase the power of your Microsoft Dynamics AX investment. You can go online to view a complete list of exhibitors and get a head start on planning who you want to visit and what challenges you’re looking to solve by leveraging the expertise of partners. And while you’re on the exhibit floor, you’ll also have the opportunity to meet with the Microsoft team…