We have some exciting news to share.  Our team at Endeavour has won a spot on the 2019 Best Workplaces™ for Professional Services firms.   As an Endeavour employee I had to fill out a long and detailed online survey, the results of which were compared to some stiff competition including Deloitte, EY Canada and Grant Thornton who each play in our space.

The award had me thinking.  One of Endeavour’s slogans, which I take to heart is “Our team doesn’t just implement software. We help you make your business better.”  So from a Microsoft ERP, CRM and Cloud perspective, how can we help you move the needle for your efforts to have a great place to work.

The following are some ideas based on parts of the survey that I recall.

Visibility – Do you share financial results with your team to help improve communications and confidence in your executive team?  We do, key reports from Dynamics GP, or your CRM system can be published as KPI (key performance indicators) and shared with others within your organization.  This may be a simple report or two in MR or SSRS, or may be a more flashy interactive dashboard using Power BI (See website)

Collaboration – You can leverage the skills and knowledge of our consultants to assist with fostering collaboration within your team.  Microsoft has great tools and we have a number of clients doing exciting things with Dynamics 365 CRM, Office 365 for email, Teams for instant message and screen sharing and collaboration using Microsoft Word and OneDrive for co-development of documents.  Internally we also have a SharePoint site for shared documents and HR stuff.  If you are not yet using Office 365 for e-mail and collaboration, I can setup a discussion with one of our Cloud experts.  https://www.endeavour365.ca/office365/

Summer is often also a time for collaborating during budget season.  Again we have tools to help facilitate the workflow and acceleration of these collaborative processes. https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/prophix

Job Satisfaction and Pride – Personally I’m proud to be part of the Endeavour team and enjoy my job and working with each of you.  Job satisfaction also involves reducing the number of frustrations related to day to day work.  Ever been frustrated with GP or CRM?  Yup I have, and many of the emails/ calls-in are from those who have hit a wall, either technical or functional.   Training and awareness on how Dynamics GP and CRM are meant to work, tips & tricks, time saving processes, and cool ISV apps, are each key to building your teams knowledge and productivity in working with your business systems.  If your team could use some refresher training, or want to automate a key process, feel free to give us a call.  I’m sure most would welcome the opportunity and thank you for it.

For these and other inquiries (including training, technical and upgrades) feel free to reach out to the Endeavour support team at
https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/Support

For more information on this award visit
https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/greatplace

For Dynamics GP – https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/microsoftdynamicsgp

For Dynamics 365 Business Central –https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/BusinessCentral/

We’re all excited for the Microsoft Business Applications release of Dynamics GP 2018 R2 in Canada.  Originally the release was set for later in the year (December), but has been pulled forward to align with the new October 1 2018 release of Dynamics 365 Business Central (Formerly Dynamics NAV 2018).

Some of the new features that GP 2018 R2 include is mention of the new “Inteligent Edge” by Microsoft as a means to syncronize key information from Dynamics GP into the Microsoft Cloud for gaining access to Power BI reports and other Microsoft Power Apps.  Microsoft will be using its new Dynamics 365 Business Central ERP, as the front end for these new PowerBI reports as we expect as part of the security of the SQL Server repository of information that is synced.

Some of the new User Requested feature and fixes announced by Microsoft (Thanks Terry Heley)

Financial Enhancements

Exclude items in HITB with zero quantities

Transaction level post to GL

Payroll Pay code start and end dates

Payroll shared maximums for deductions and benefits (federal requirement for 401K)
Monthly and Bimonthly recurring batches
Don’t display inactive checkbooks in Look ups

Payroll check register FICA totals
Don’t allow duplicate check numbers for Bank trx entry, Misc checks  and payroll manual checks

-Purchasing Usability
Mass update inactive from Navigation List – Inactivate Reactivate Temporary

Add Vendor doc number to Purchase all in one

Checkbook ID defaults on computer check batch

Allow partial purchase on a purchase requisition from a PO

Email PO other template from PO Entry

Display Vendor Hold Status

-Sales Optimization
Print Invoice in Functional from SOP Navigation List

Sales Transaction Workflow
New SmartList for Deposits on Unposted Sales Transactions

Print and email SOP document at the same time

Customer /Combiner retain ship to address

Additional sort options on SOP Item Inquiry

Email customer statements

-Top Feature Requests

Hide Business Analyzer for all users

Increase Dynamics GP password maximum length to 21 characters

Password expiration notification

SmartList Designer Favorites display in Nav List

Web Client with workflow Org Accounts (Mid Year)

Regional Date format in web client (Mid Year)
TWAIN for scanning, doc attach (Mid Year)

Come back again to learn more about GP 2018 R2, once it is released and Endeavour Solutions’ GP upgrade page at www.endeavoursolutions.ca/GPupgrade

Endeavour recognized as 20 Most Promising Microsoft Solution Providers 2018 – by CIO Review Magazine

(Dynamics 365 Business Central)

Article by CIO Review Magazine

Learn more at https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/2018award

Endeavour Solutions: Choice in Microsoft On-Premise or Cloud Applications

Today, companies are relentlessly taking up cloud subscriptions for managing their ERP or CRM systems, thanks to the ease of deployment, maintenance, and cost efficiency that the cloud offers. However, in this flurry to acquire cloud models, companies often lose the sense of urgency to align their business processes with these new systems, resulting in undesired outcomes. “Adding to client frustrations is the fact that licensing of Microsoft’s products has historically been complex and confusing,” mentions Steve Ewing, Director, Endeavour Solutions. “This is where we prove to be effective.” As a top Microsoft Dynamics partner, Endeavour helps organizations across the USA and Canada take a pragmatic approach to driving business success through the use of Microsoft products.

Endeavour has exceptional advisory, project management, configuration and technical integration services and delivers trusted product and service offerings that include Microsoft Dynamics GP ERP, Dynamics 365 CRM, Office 365, Azure, and the new Dynamics 365 Business Central (Cloud-ERP).

“There are organizations that are still not ready to move their core business applications like financial systems to the cloud and are more inclined to cloud-enable only a portion of their systems,” says Terry Sunderland, President and CEO, Endeavour Solutions. Microsoft Dynamics GP (Great Plains) is a strong fit for such hybrid environments, and leveraging it, Endeavour aims to incrementally support each of their client’s progression to the cloud. “As Microsoft adopts a more clear vision for its mid-market business applications, Endeavour is ready and capable to support our clients with their transition to the cloud, when and if they are ready.”

With a passionate team that strives for client satisfaction, and a philosophy that revolves around integrity, trust, and accountability, Endeavour has scripted many success stories. For instance, a manufacturing company, after failed attempts to implement an integrated ERP with another partner, was forced to adopt manual processes and Excel sheets. With inaccurate tracking and reporting on inventory and manufacturing data, their direct unit costs were invisible.

Endeavour, as their new partner, not only expanded upon the client’s investment in Microsoft Dynamics ERP but also provided advisory services and training to help them streamline and implement an end-to-end, fully integrated ERP system. As a result, the client gained access to accurate and real-time reporting on their manufacturing operations and unit costs, all without breaking their bank.

As a true partner of its clients, Endeavour works hand in hand with project sponsors to uncover core value drivers looking for areas of optimization and/or automation. The company diligently plugs process, knowledge and capability gaps before deploying its solutions. This approach allows them to accelerate implementations while keeping a focus on user adoption.

As Microsoft adopts a more clear vision for its mid-market business applications, Endeavour is ready and capable to support our clients with their transition to the cloud, when and if they are ready

With thousands of options available via Microsoft and its ecosystem of ISV add-on products, it takes a top partner such as Endeavour to help clients find their ‘best-fit solution’ while avoiding the potentially costly pitfalls associated with choosing the wrong apps or wrong approach.

“We are excited about the commercialization of Microsoft’s new cloud-based D365 Business Central ERP which offers an out of the box integration between ERP, CRM, and Office 365,” says Ewing. Endeavour foresees a strong roadmap for Dynamics GP though sees the new Dynamics 365 Business Central as an increasingly attractive solution for many.

Endeavour’s current efforts are about making it absolutely simple for clients to select, implement, integrate, upgrade and support their Microsoft ERP, CRM or Cloud business systems based on their evolving needs, whether such systems be on-premise, hybrid or in the cloud.

Credit: CIO Review Magazine – https://microsoft.cioreview.com/vendor/2018/endeavour_solutions

Digital Magazine – https://magazine.cioreview.com/magazines/August2018/Microsoft/#page=38

About Endeavour – https://www.endeavoursolutions.ca/OurServices

USA Remote Support for Microsoft Dynamics GP

New York state www.endeavoursolutions.ca/NewYork

New England Area www.endeavoursolutions.ca/NewEngland

Greater Chicago Area www.endeavoursolutions.ca/Chicago

Philidelphia Pensylvania www.endeavoursolutions.ca/Philadelphia