A Manufacturer Learns Hard Lessons About Planning an Upgrade to Microsoft Dynamics AX

When an American manufacturer of paper products decided to implement Microsoft Dynamics AX two years ago, it took a specialized approach it thought would speed the process: It went with an ISV offering a vertical system for manufacturers that was based on AX 4.0.

The only problem was that the system hadn't been fully tested. "It would have been very nice," says a company planner.  "We were a beta test. The system had so many bugs, we passed a couple of go-live dates." (This company told its story at a recent meeting of the Dynamics AX User Group in New England, but didn't want its name used in this article.)

"What  we learned about Dynamics AX was valuable," the planner said. "But we wasted lots of time."

One key lesson the company learned was the importance of involving a consultant with wide experience with Dynamics AX, which it has since done. Originally, it relied entirely on the ISV for expertise. As a result, the company is now in a position of playing catch-up with competitors. 

On the positive side, the company discovered that the delay had a silver lining: it can now move to implementing Dynamics AX 2009, instead of AX 4.0.

But the company is so gunshy about the original experience that it has avoided setting a new Go Live date-its steering committee is simply committed to implementing the new system before the end of this year.