How Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009 Will Use the "Role-Tailored" Interface to Allay the Fears of Reluctant Users

Microsoft now owns and develops Microsoft Dynamics NAV, which is an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution acquired from Navision Software in 2002. In the final quarter of 2008, Microsoft plans to release what some consider to be the first “Microsoft-flavoured” version since buying the Denmark-based software company. Dynamics NAV is already a highly-successful, award-winning ERP solution but the forthcoming release is set to bring something quite extraordinary to the middle-tier business solutions market.

The Dynamics NAV team promises a ground-breaking user interface, a state-of-the-art technology platform, and web-services enablement while remaining true to their core product values of simplicity, adaptability and ease-of-use. You have to admit that when it comes to telling you how good their products are going to be, nothing can compete with the Microsoft marketing machine.

I like to think that ERP users can be split into two basic categories: those that don't want to use the product but can't avoid it, and those that don't want to use the product and manage to avoid it most of the time. If you want a less cynical view, you could call these groups "The Finance Team" and "Everyone Else". Thankfully the Dynamics NAV product team have recognised that most people do not want to use the ERP solution and have devised a ground-breaking three-tier architecture that opens the underlying business rules and data to the applications people do want to use, such as: Outlook, Word, InfoPath, SharePoint, web browsers, and mobile devices. In fact, if you know how to integrate with and develop .NET applications (something we at Intergen know a bit about) the way you present your business solution to "Everyone Else" is entirely up to you.

So what about the other group, the ones who can't avoid using the ERP? ...