MIG & Co. Partnering with InterDyn – Socius

Today more than ever, customers are looking for ways to ―break down the wall‖ between core back office processes and the rest of the organization, where the overwhelming majority of processes and need for information live. Everyone, from customers and vendors to line employees and executives, have different needs for the information that is often only available to back office personnel. And processes that eventually impact the back office system, from time sheet entry to document approval, often start outside this ―wall.

When using Microsoft Dynamics® GP 10.0 along with Microsoft Office System and Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server 2007 products, customers can break down that wall and ensure that everyone throughout the organization has access to the information and processes they need to do their jobs.

Using Microsoft Dynamics GP along with Microsoft Office and SharePoint products, you can help your customers build a foundation for the future that goes beyond standalone applications to extend their traditional ERP systems throughout their organization and transform their business. Understanding how Microsoft Dynamics GP can help your customers maximize productivity, improve access to information and enhance communication and collaboration provides you with a significant revenue opportunity and positions you to address market trends and customer challenges.

Even in these difficult economic times, there is tremendous opportunity for you to grow your business and significantly impact customer value through Microsoft Dynamics GP solutions, but how do you know whether to build your own internal practice or partner up with existing expertise? Several factors can help you determine which path is right for you: size of practice, areas of focus, target customer, existing relationships with IT partners, and many others.

To give you a greater understanding of the factors that impact this decision, the following partner profile follows the stories of two Microsoft® Dynamics Gold Certified Partners, MIG & Co. of New York, and InterDyn – Socius of Ohio, who recently made the decision to extend their ability to better meet their customer‘s business needs.

―When we saw GP 10 at Tech Conference, with all the workflow capabilities between GP and MOSS, we decided it was a no-brainer right there and then. Daron Migirdeyan, Executive Vice President of Consulting Services and CIO at New Yorkbased partner MIG & Co., saw the promise of Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server 2007 working together with Microsoft Dynamics GP, and began taking steps to develop an Information Worker practice at his organization.

MIG & Co. is a midsized Microsoft Dynamics partner with 45 consultants, focusing primarily on Microsoft Dynamics GP and Microsoft Dynamics® CRM. They started business in the late 1990s representing several business management solutions, and decided after the downturn in 2000-2001 to focus solely on their Microsoft Dynamics practice.

Prior to GP 10, MIG & Co. had dabbled in SharePoint, implementing a few document management systems for clients, ―but we weren‘t making any real money at it, said Brion Bonkowski, VP of Sales and Marketing. But clients and prospects had increasingly been asking for automated workflow processes, and Bonkowski says ―when we saw Microsoft building all these hooks into GP, we knew we had our answer.

Implementations often begin with the core Microsoft Dynamics GP system, but MIG & Co. makes plans to deliver SharePoint components as soon as the customer is ready. ―We train all our salespeople to think about using what you already have,‘ and SharePoint falls squarely into that position, said Bonkowski. A straightforward project teamsite may only result in a few hours consulting revenue, but once the customer sees what they can do with SharePoint, they often make plans for the next goal.
We pitch Microsoft Office connectivity with every single Microsoft Dynamics GP deal we do, says Bonkowski, attesting to the central importance of this approach to their business model. And while Bonkowski won‘t say how many deals have been won specifically because of this competitive differentiator, ―we do feel it‘s one of our main competitive advantages.

Building a trusted partnership with an infrastructure partner enables us to serve our customers better and more efficiently, says Hersch Patel, Director of Consulting Services, InterDyn–Socius.

InterDyn–Socius specializes in Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics SL and Microsoft Dynamics CRM. In addition to their internal SharePoint practice, InterDyn-Socius has developed several partnerships with other Microsoft partners, allowing them to increase capacity without adding additional internal resources and to deliver a greater range of offerings to their customers.

Recently InterDyn-Socius partnered with PCMS, an IT Advisor Group, for implementation and maintenance of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server for a shared customer. InterDyn–Socius and PCMS have worked together since 2004 to provide customers with solutions that span both infrastructure and ERP. By partnering, InterDyn–Socius and PCMS can remain focused on their individual core competencies while filling gaps in skills for the other. This has helped them win more business, reduce the cost of sales and improve overall customer satisfaction.

To build on the success of customer relationships, PCMS and InterDyn–Socius have undergone strenuous efforts to build their partnership. ―If you want to pull this off, you have to be communicative and open, and be ready for a rigorous, time-consuming activity, says Matt Scherocman, Vice President of Consulting Services for PCMS. But, it‘s well worth the investment.