We are looking for a bridge (Cloud based) between Dynamics and AX that would provide project
Are there Planning/Forecasting tools available that support weekly reporting? We have looked at both Adaptive Planning and Host Analytics but they both only support monthly at this time.
Answers
Anon-could you clarify what you mean by a bridge between "Dynamics and AX" as I understand that AX is one of the Dynamics software products? Do you mean the Dynamics CRM product?
At what level are you wanting to plan? Client-project-employee?
Is it revenue only, or resource planning/utilization and related costs?
What do you think AX lacks in terms of meeting your needs?
That may help narrow down some options to suggest.
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Sorry for the confusion, I meant between CRM and AX. We don't have AX fully deployed yet so we are unsure if it will meet our needs alone.
Our current
Anon,
Following on your response, you may have a combination of needs:
-managing consulting resources (time entry, availability, skills matching for future projects, etc)
-managing pipeline (prospective clients/projects)
These two areas form part of what I call PSA-professional services automation-or, ERP for service based companies. The 3rd need is:
-reporting (actual, actual v budget, forecast).
Reporting tools, including those suggested in this thread, will likely help a lot with the last need I listed above, however, you should first look at which AX modules/features you have not yet deployed that may help you with your PSA needs. That may be a better plan than adding another vendor's software to the mix.
Hope that helps!
Hi,
AX has compatibility to Microsoft Project . So you should consider MS Project which can help you plan for resources and projects. This can sync with AX where all your financial numbers are in the project
Have you looked at Adaptive Planning? Very well proven Cloud-based Budgeting, Forecasting & Reporting system with links to other systems.
Here is the Link: http://www.adaptiveplanning.com
Now might be perfect time to replace those excel spreadsheets with a more collaborative and central control cloud-based tool. May I suggest that you call Rob Hull, Founder/President of Adaptive Planning at (650) 528-7500. Please, tell him Deb Goslin suggested that you speak with him directly. He can tell you if it will work for your needs and then if it sounds like a fit, he will either direct you to the Sales Exec or to Keli Forsman, VP Professional Services, if you need some professional guidance on how best to make it all work together.
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We LOVE Adaptive Planning but it doesn't support weekly forecasting at this time.
Also check out Anaplan, it is amazing
We have just initiated some discussion with Salesforce.com along these lines. Very beginning stages so I can't really provide any feedback. Just passing along it may be an option.
We use Dynamics AX as our ERP system and Host Analytics as our reporting system, although we don't use Host for weekly reporting, just monthly. We use a data warehouse and Excel connector for weekly reports for the most case.
That said, you can get weekly reports out of Host if you us the Host/AX connector which provides a live link between Host and AX.
If you're looking for a fully hosted solution, Anaplan is a very flexible/powerful tool for interval reporting and planning as Ron said above. If you are looking to enhance Excel with more robust dimensional Reporting and Planning but still want the Excel flexibility, I would take a look at Jedox (very similar to TM1 without the IBM overhead). Anaplan, Jedox, and TM1 can certainly do the interval reporting/planning you require, can be cloud based if needed (Anaplan is fully hosted on the web), and take advantage of in-memory analytical capabilities and very fast engines.
Let us know what you decide.
We use Axiom EPM as our tool. You can do weekly reporting with Axiom. The system allows for many reporting options along with other great features such as scheduling those reports to be ran or emailed out to users, drill through reports, attachments to other documents, etc. Axiom has a lot of other great features like dashboarding, forms, costing, etc. The support is also outstanding.
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Mandy, do you know if you can use Axiom with
As Peter mentioned, TM1 can support weekly reporting and if you are looking specifically for a Cloud option, TM1 is now available in the Cloud. Would love to discuss further, offer a demo, whatever you need. Good luck with whatever you decide.
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