Convergence 2009 - Wrap up

Well Convergence 2009 has come and gone. After talking with a bunch of different people from Partners, Microsoft and Customer levels, it seems this years Convergence was a good one. Less people attending, less than 7,000, which is down from more than 10,000 last year. However I have heard the sessions where attended at a better rate, and people were really in tune to what Microsoft and the Partners were having to say.

MSDynamicsWorld.com has a great list of a bunch of different Convergence post, including their overall wrap up, which can be found here: MSDynamicsWorld.com Coverage of Convergence 2009

One thing that I took a big notice too that is not directly AX related is xRM platform, and the Virtual xRM user's group. www.xRMVirtual.com. This is a group focused on the promition of the xRM platform, and it's built on top of Azure while being connected to Dynamics CRM online.

This is something for sure I will be keeping and eye on and posting about, as the xRM platform and Azure start to become tools Partners and customers can use to develop with. So this is going to be very, very interesting to see what direction this goes.

As for Dynamics AX itself, there was plenty of great go lives that we highlighted, and Customers are now in full swing using Dynamics AX 2009. There were some great sessions on Dynamics AX from functional and technical.

Another thing, Convergence 2010 is suppose to be held in Atlanta, GA. So I might actually go to that one, since it will be so close to home. Lets see if that happens!

Well check back soon, and I hope all of those that went to Convergence got a lot out of it. If there are any specific remaining questions by anyone from any level, feel free to leave me a comment and I will do my best to get you the best asnwer possible.

There are some great post coming up soon, this week along, so check back and see you then!

Update:
I wanted to make sure and give the offical home page for xRM: www.xRM.com. More soon on this, and how this can be used along with Dynamics AX.




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Convergence 2009 - All this week!

Well it's finally here, or should I say I can't believe it's already here. I am talking about Convergence 2009, that is being held in New Orleans this week. Today is the actual starting day, with partners meeting and getting together and then the full kick off is tomorrow.

I am not attending Convergence, but I am there virtually with Sunrise being there, and also all the great coverage of the event we will be getting from MSDynamicsWorld.com and the AXUG.com bloggers.

MSDynamicsWorld.com just did a 2009 preview, with comments and quotes from different people, including myself: Convergence 2009 Preview: A More “Intimate” Setting

From the post:
Emphasis on "The Cloud." According to Jeff Onesto "I don't think anybody will argue that ‘CloudComputing' is where the next major battle will take place. I believe withthe current success of Dynamics CRM Live, the Windows Azure Platform will behighly discussed as well as Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), whichconsists of Exchange Online, Office Sharepoint Online, Office CommunicationOnline and Office Live Meeting."

And the one from myself:
"Exploiting Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009. With all the hoopla at last year's Convergence over AX 2009, observers expect the focus this year to be on helping customers get more from their investments, or to upgrade from previous versions. " I don't think this year you will seeanything very ‘new' about Dynamics AX," says Brandon George of Sunrise Technologies Inc. "The road map will be updated, but I think this year's focus will be more about helping customers get use out of their investments already made, and how Dynamics AX can fit into that with customers that are already Microsoft platform customers.""

You can check out the converage by MSDynamicsWorld.com, by going to the following link: MSDW: Convergence 2009

I will also be doing a wrap up post next week, about all the information from Convergence and what it possibly means.

I hope everyone there has a great time, safe & productive time. Also look here for more post this week, on taking a deeper dive into the Lachlan Cash interview from last week, and I am doing a book review / interview soon for Dynamics AX focused book.

See you then!




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Sunrise over at Microsoft Convergence - 2009

I sat down, virtually, with John Pence, President and Owner of Sunrise Technologies, Inc. to talk with him about Convergence this year, Sunrise being at Convergence and the current economic pains the entire world seems to be suffer through.

Here is that interview:

John, Sunrise is a Bronze level supporter of the Microsoft Converegnce 2009 conference being held at New Orleans next week. What can we expect to see and hear from Sunrise this year?

"We are happy to once again be a Bronze level sponsor at Convergence. We will have our large Sunrise booth at the conference, as well as a large contingent of Sunrise’s sales and marketing team. Convergence is a great chance for us to reach out to our existing customer base and take the “pulse” of how their AX installations are doing. New this year is a booth from our sister company, Huamei Soft, at this year’s Convergence. We hope to raise awareness that this is a resource available for use for customers as well as other partners."

Convergence is usually a very big event in terms of Dynamics AX, and it really focuses on the road map, and also useful sessions for those attending. What are some highlights you expect to see from Microsoft this year that you think our customers and possible future customers will be most interested in?

"I think Microsoft will continue to emphasize the future direction of SaaS / Software+Services availability in the product line, especially in the CRM space and the low end of the ERP market. I believe Microsoft will continue to push on the BI strategy and more clearly define the migration of the Performance Point platform to SharePoint. There will probably not be a lot of “new” around AX this year given the recent release of Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009."

Currently the entire world is in an economic downturn. This means that more than every companies are trying to find ways to save cost and improve sales and productivity. What makes Sunrise such a solid Microsoft Partner, and how can Sunrise and Dynamics AX help our current and new customers with lowering TCO and improving the bottom line?

"That is a great question! It is all about reducing cost and surviving in this current economy. First, AX is an incredible value for a full strength, integrated ERP application. It competes very favorably with SAP & Oracle, but with much less upfront cost, and lower implementation costs. Second, Sunrise specifically saves our clients money by executing properly during implementations. We do not over-staff our projects and create an excellent balance between the customer’s resources and our own. We emphasis knowledge transfer and insuring that our customers can support the application without us, all of this saves our clients money. We emphasize speed and a brisk pace that reduces the typical ERP implementation time. Finally, our offshore development model with HuameiSoft insures a low cost of development for the implementation."

"Lastly, but a significant value add that Sunrise brings to every ERP implementation is our “roots” in supply chain consulting. This means we are always on the look-out for ways to improve the business processes of our clients, not just implement software for them. In the long run, this may be the most significant cost savings of all."

Closing Comments:

"Convergence 2009 will be a great opportunity for us to connect with our customers, network with a host of Microsoft resources, and search out new best practices that we can bring to Sunrise. This event is always the single best conference we attend during the year."

Well I would like to thank John for taking the time and talking with me about Convergence this year, and if your interested in talking with John or the rest of the Sunrise Team, make sure to visit them while at Convergence or use the Contact Us Page at Sunrise's web site.

Check back soon, and enjoy Convergence this year!

Information about Sunrise Technologies, Inc:

Sunrise Technologies is an experienced supply chain consulting organization and a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner specializing in the Microsoft Dynamics AX ERP solution. Sunrise offers its customers a combined expertise of business knowledge, strong project management capability, and powerful business software solutions.

Sunrise Technologies exists to help enterprises seize opportunities in creating a new IT framework and gain competitive advantage with the Microsoft Dynamics AX solution. Microsoft Dynamics AX includes integrated functionality across finance, supply chain management, e-commerce, customer relationship management, and human resource management. Sunrise will lead your organization through design, development, and implementation of the entire solution.


Web Site: www.SunriseConsult.com


Information about Xi'an Huamei Soft, Ltd.:

Xi'an Huamei Soft Co., Ltd., a Sino-US joint-venture has headquarters offices in Xi'an, China and with Dallas, Texas, US. Huamei Soft specializes in the Microsoft Dynamics solutions. Our company is dedicated to providing our global customers low-cost technical off-shoring services, while delivering outstanding customer service and world class quality.

Web Site: www.huameisoft.com





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MSDW: Bad Economy or Not, Here Are Ten Reasons to Attend Convergence 2009

Over at MSDynamicsWorld.com, there is a great article posted about attending Convergence 2009 this year. This was wrote by a GP person, but still the reason's apply acorss the board.

Here is the direct link: Here Are Ten Reasons to Attend Convergence 2009


From the article:
"Coming up March 10-13 in New Orleans is Microsoft Convergence 2009. Convergence is Microsoft's premier customer event for the Dynamics line of business, and it's one of Microsoft's largest conventions each year. A few people recently asked me why they should attend, given the difficult economy, and I was surprised that I quickly rattled off ten reasons why they should go. I'm sure that there are more but here are the ten biggest ones I came up with."

I wrote about Convergence at the start of this year, and gave some great links to the different area's of the convergence web site. Here is a direct link to that post: My Convergence 2009 Post.

I highly recommend everyone consider going. I would be there if I could be, but I will be busy this year.

Check back soon!




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Convergence 2009: New Orleans

Well with 2009 in full gear now, and everyone back into the middle of things, that means that March is approaching fast. And what happens in March? Convergence!

This year Convergence 2009 will be held in New Orleans. The link to the home page can be found here: Convergence 2009: New Orleans

This year should be packed with all kinds of great sessions, connecting with others, and of course peaks into Dynamics AX 6.0 and beyond.

Here are some direct links for information from the Convergence 2009 web site:

• Agenda for 2009 - This is where you can find out about all the great things that will be going on at Convergence.


• Convergence Connect Tool Site - This is a great way for you to network and connect with others planning to attend Convergence, that have similar interest as yourself.


• Executive Speakers Page - Here you can find out about who you will meet from the Executive team at Convergence.


• Volunteerism for New Orleans - This is something different for those attending. If you plan to be there on Monday, you can help re-build New Orleans with this effort.

Of course Sunrise Technologies, Inc. will be there. Here is the information about our booth at Convergence 2009: Sunrise Conferences Page

Well, I hope everyone is off to a great start. You still have a chance for the Early Bird Special on signing up for Convergence, waiting to the last minute will cost you money.

Check back soon!




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