Agile

Almost exactly two years ago, incited by a comment from a reader, I wrote an article in defense of Sure Step: Read My Lips: Why? . The point was: is Sure Step a new methodology, or is it just a wheel reinvented?

One of the drawbacks of being a freelancer is a slight risk to learn a bit late about anything new. Once upon a time, when I was still blogging actively, I made sure I was the first to blog about something new, as long as it relates to Sure Step.

Did you have a chance to attend the NAV Decisions 2009 virtual conference? If yes, how did you like the event? To me, this was a great experience. It wasn’t the first virtual conference I was a part of, but it most certainly was the best. But if you didn’t have a chance or time to be there (virtually), you don’t have to worry.

On October 14th you should not miss the NAV Decisions 2009 virtual conference organized by MSDynamicsWorld.com , the independent authority for news and views on Microsoft Dynamics. NAV Decisions 2009 is a virtual conference & tradeshow for Microsoft Dynamics NAV Professionals seeking implementation…

Take that project you are currently running, and imagine, just for a second, that it came with only 3% budget overrun. Most of people in software industry would call it wild success. In motion picture industry, however, trampling measly 2% or 3% over initial budget would be considered a failure.

Another one’s down, so let me give it a quick glance over my shoulder before I move on: March 2009. This was the best month ever for this blog: it has seen most posts from me, most visits from you, most subscribers to the feed , and I’ve covered a wide range of topics which I am not yet sure if it has got me or lost me more visitors.

One of the biggest absurdities about ERP systems springs from the very word we use so often when describing ERP: integrated . ERP is an integrated system: it integrates all data and processes into a single application. Different modules look over different aspects of data and processes, but a change in one module automatically reflects in all others.

You can’t avoid customizations. Vanilla ERP is a great first step, and a valuable tool for establishing common language between the customer and the consultant. But in the long run? Probably not. Pristine uncustomized ERP won’t be sufficient, because of the gaps between your way and ERP’s way.

– “We need a report which groups our sales by product components.” – “And we need it broken down by cost centers.” – “And it must show comparison with last month, quarter and year, and with budget and forecast, with indexes and trends. In linear regression.” – “And it must let you choose if it is by posting date or by document date.

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Swallowing it all at once might be tempting as it has all the potential you need to get into the next edition of Guinness World Records . Likewise, trying it with an ERP implementation has all the potential you need to get into to the next edition of Chaos Report .