We work alongside you every step of the way to create a realistic project schedule so that tasks be can delivered effectively and on time. The success of any project comes down to the following factors:
Smart
People
People
Smart
Planning
Planning
Open
Communication
Communication
Careful Risk Management
Strong Project Closure
Smart
People
People
Smart People
Without the right team in place, any strategy or plan has the potential to become unravelled. Because of this, we’ve ensured that the core project staff, expert resources, suppliers and all stakeholders are part of the team dynamic. All of those involved must have commitment to the group, share similar visions for the projects and strive for overall success.
Smart
Planning
Planning
Smart Planning
Comprehensive planning sets up a project for success from the start. All stakeholders should be included in the planning process and always know the direction the project is going in. Good planning ensures that we’re able to both keep our stakeholders up to date and ensure our team meets deadlines, stays organised and focused and keeps the project on track.
Open
Communication
Communication
Open Communication
When working to a set schedule, it’s absolutely essential that everyone in the team communicates openly with each other to stay informed and keep the project on track. We promote active listening, collaboration and working together towards the same result in our team, which is vital to ensuring the project is a success.
Careful Risk Management
Careful Risk Management
During the planning process of every project we undertake, we create a risk log of every challenge that the project could face and an action plan should that issue arise. This foresight allows us to mitigate much of the risk involved and address any and all problems that do occur quickly, efficiently and with as little disruption as possible. This provides our clients with confidence in our ability to manage risk, which is so important to us because we understand how much our clients’ businesses mean to them.
Strong Project Closure
Strong Project Closure
For all projects we undertake, confirmation of the project delivery, testing, release and completion of critical success factors must be signed off before it can be deemed complete. Without this strong closure, it has the potential to consume time, effort and resources – it’s a process worth doing right. We also carry out satisfaction surveys to log and file for future reference.
Upgrade Process
Creative’s upgrade methodology has been evolved over our nearly twenty years’ experience with Dynamics. Using Creative for this service, you get access to the best practice method on Microsoft Dynamics upgrades that ensures consistent high quality.
For all upgrades we perform we apply our honed process to ensure success every time.
This phase involves reviewing your current system and agreeing how the existing customised functionality and layouts will be migrated to the new version. This phase also includes the following:
- Agreed project team for Creative and your company
- Schedule for the upgrade and agreed final delivery dates
- Hardware/Software compliance (if deployment is on the customer’s server or hosted servers) in relation to the new version
- Upgrade training plan
During this phase, our development team will transform your existing customisation into the agreed extensions by upgrading the custom code to use events and redesign pages to ensure they comply with the modern only client. Sometimes we are required to rewrite the existing customisation to work within the new application environment.
Based on the agreed migration from the planning phase, your system will be upgraded to Business Central. During this phase, we will then know how long the actual live data migration will take and can advise accordingly.
The test system will be installed on your server or Cloud tenant for user acceptance. The agreed employee/s who will be testing the new version will be given basic training in Business Central who in turn will test that the new system complies with your current processes. Only once the customer approves the new system will the next phase take place.
On the agreed date, your system will be backed up and the data migrated to Business Central. It is the customer’s responsibility to run audit reports that can be checked against the new version. These reports should include:
- Aged Accounts Receivable
- Aged Accounts Payable
- G/L Trial Balance
- Any other month end reports used
Once the data has been successfully migrated, it is the customer’s responsibility to rerun the audit reports in the new version and ensure that everything reconciles before users start inputting into the new version.
New Project Process
During this phase, Creative will fully define and document the solution. This is one of the most important phases as it defines the project deliverables and responsibilities. It will be based on Questionnaires that we send out to you.
During the installation phase, Creative will install the required software components. This can include Dynamics BC and any additional Apps.
Creative provides consultancy to set up the system in partnership with our customers, to enable the utilisation of all the necessary areas of the system, including the Chart of accounts, Dimensions, Posting Groups etc.
During the data migration phase, Creative will provide templates for all areas of the scoped solution, to enable the import of data from all other systems, where possible. Dynamics has RapidStart services to allow data to be imported into any table in the system by way of an Excel template output. This spreadsheet would be populated by yourselves, and Creative will then assist with the upload of said data.
During this phase, Creative will write the customisation elements based on the agreed technical design documents. All new logic will be coded, where possible, to use subscription events that affect areas of the standard Dynamics database so that future cumulative updates and/or upgrades can be more easily implemented.
Creative will internally test each element before deploying to the UAT system. During this time, we support your testing and feedback to resolve any issues before the new customisation element is signed off.
During this phase, Creative will train the agreed staff on a “train the trainer” basis so that you will be able to deploy this knowledge internally. During the project, the customer will be free to use Creative’s training facility to allow training to take place off site. Business Central as standard has Page Pertinent On-Line Help, which will be shown to you as part of the training process.
During this phase, Creative will carry out the same upgrade as performed during the Data Upgrade phase. This will be done twice – the first as a dry run and the second for go live – and then all approved custom objects will be applied. Once other data has been imported into the system, such as Document Capture Vendor templates, the system will be ready for use. Creative can be on site to assist, and to ensure a successful go live.
Let's Talk
If you need customised software, we can create it. If you need a standard, cloud-based system, we’ll set it up. Get in touch with us today to discuss how our solutions will work for you.
