Making the Transition to Microsoft Dynamics AX Takes More Time Than This Manufacturer Anticipated

Cole Hersee Co., a Boston manufacturer of switches and connectors for the automotive and boating  industries, figured it was way ahead of the curve when it decided to move from an outmoded early-1990s computer platform to Microsoft Dynamics AX 4.0 a little over two years ago, in advance of its release in early 2006.

But a few problems intervened, and the 300-employee company last year was forced to put off its year-end 2007 adoption goal. It is just now on the verge of adopting AX 4.0 company-wide, says Thomas Conklin, the firm's IT manager. Among the problems that slowed things up:

1. The wrong consulting firm. The consulting firm Cole Hersee first hired turned out to be lacking in certain key skills, likely because it was too small, says Conklin. There were early problems when Cole Hersee tried to implement certain AX 4.0 add-ons. "We had a very bad start with the warehouse package. We've had a number of add-on issues." Plus, he says, "We outgrew the original consulting firm. We needed more technical support."
2. Delayed training. Cole Hersee under-estimated the importance of training key employees on using AX 4.0. "We got a late start," says Conklin. "And we were working with IT people who came from a different platform." Adapting to Dynamics AX entails "a steep learning curve."
3. An unprepared implementation team. Related to the training problem, Cole Hersee found that its implementation team was too large. "We pared down the implementation team to a small group of power users," which includes 16 people, with "a subgroup doing the bulk of the work."

What would he do differently if he had it ...