October 25, 2006

Microsoft Dynamics vs SAP All in One

Knowing which software is for you is not an easy choice to make. This choice is more difficult and even more important as you consider software to manage your enterprise (be it big or small).

SAP's All in One and Microsoft Dynamics is for smaller to mid-size companies who are looking for a system to manage their entire operations.

Tech Target posted two columns - one pro SAP (more or less) and one pro Microsoft. What was clear from both articles was that neither product is vastly better than the other, overall. Of course if each columnist would have a look at the product in light of your specific business, the differences in the products will come out in greater detail.

One columnist writes The most compelling difference between the two is the appearance of their graphical user Interfaces. Dynamics is consequently designed on top of the Windows API and thus inherits the well-known and widely accepted look and feel. SAP All-in-One uses its proprietary SAPGUI that has its own unique look and feel. Dynamics looks fresh and attractive and navigating around it is easy for everybody familiar with applications like Microsoft Outlook. SAP All-in-One, on the contrary, looks like -- well, like SAPGUI. Douglas Adams once wrote: "It is no coincidence that an expression 'Pretty like an airport!' does not exist in any language." Surely, "Pretty like SAPGUI!" does not exist either. Beyond the look and feel, the way individual program components are controlled is pretty homogeneous within Dynamics, while every transaction within R/3 sports a high degree of individualism.

The other columnist writes:

One of the biggest reasons ERP implementations fail is the inability to get employees to adopt the system. The familiar user interface of Dynamics AX increases the user acceptance rate. The tight integration between Dynamics AX and Microsoft Office also helps increase the productivity of employees throughout your business in less time. Employees can take advantage of the innovations built into Dynamics AX to use the best tool for the task at hand. For employees, that means software that works the way they do. For the business, that can mean an accelerated return on your investment, and a business that's managed more smoothly, more effectively and more profitably.

Read both columns here.

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