Article

What Drives Customers Demand for Upgrades, And Why Partners Can't Afford to Miss the Signs

by Agnė Balkevičiūtė
Commercial Operations Manager, 1ClickFactory,

As a Microsoft partner, communicating the value of a Dynamics ERP upgrade can feel like a harder sell than the sale of the original of the system. There are many events and conditions that can drive the need for an upgrade by a Dynamics ERP customer. As a partner, it is in your best interest to be in tune with the signs that your clients are candidates for an upgrade.

Key Demand Drivers for An Upgrade

For a Dynamics ERP partner, understanding the motives that drive customer demand for Dynamics NAV upgrades is very important for your long term business success. To be frank, nobody goes "window-shopping" for an ERP upgrade. However, being able to identify the drivers that lead to a serious upgrade discussion ought to be a crucial component of your business plan.

Interestingly, many ERP upgrade decisions can be reverse engineered to identify a negative and emotional "trigger" event that is usually related to strategic, economic, or risk factors that have a very measurable impact on the organization if left unchanged.  An example would be losing a large and profitable client, writing off a significant volume of inventory, paying a large penalty, or watching an internal metric cross a threshold.

Every organization has a different story and reason for reaching the conclusion that now is the time to invest in an ERP upgrade. Other well-known demand drivers for upgrades are:

  • React to discontinuation and end of solution support (Dynamics NAV 2009 and earlier versions are out of Microsoft support already)
  • Increase productivity
  • Take advantage of new technology/functionality
  • Meet growth and profitability goals
  • Increase ROI from BREP and ERP investment
  • Response to new requirements ...

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About Agnė Balkevičiūtė

Agnė Balkevičiūtė-Lajienė is Commercial Operations Manager at 1ClickFactory, a Microsoft Partner that specializes in developing automated software services that were previously executed manually, like Microsoft Dynamics solutions upgrades, deployment on Microsoft Azure, code transformation, and other. By utilizing these services, Microsoft Partners can more easily, profitably, and with less risk implement and service Microsoft Dynamics solutions for their customers.

Agnė is an ERP sales professional, her wide experience in Microsoft Dynamics business dates back to 2001. Before joining 1ClickFactory in 2009, Agnė held a number of positions where she was responsible for ERP solutions development and market research, sales processes and methodologies development as well as business development at a senior executive level.

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