If you have been in the Dynamics world for any extended period of time chances are you have heard the term “ISV” or “third party product” and you have probably thought to yourself “What and who are these people?”
ISV stands for Independent Software Vendor. In the Dynamics world, these are companies that specifically write software for Dynamics products. Due to the large footprint that Dynamics has, there are hundreds if not thousands of ISVs out there. Most of these ISVs, or third party products, are industry specific. There are ones that focus on basic accounting processes such as Accounts Payable, Document Management, Fixed Assets, etc. There are also industry specific ISVs that focus on Sales Order Processing, eCommerce, Warehouse Management, Association Management, Grants Management, etc. Whatever industry your organization lands in, chances are there are more than one ISV that can aid your business.
The blessing of ISVs is clearly that there are so many to choose from. However, the curse is the same. There are just SO MANY to choose from. It can be almost impossible to make a decision. This is why it is imperitive to use your Dynamics partner. Partners or VARs (Value Added Resellers) have been educated on many of these ISV products, so they know the specific qualifications to look for and the questions to ask. For example, some ISVs have a stronger integration to ERP systems than others. Some licensing is unlimited, concurrent user, or named user based. Most importantly, there are two crucial elements to picking an ISV that one has to look out for.
The first crucial element is the integration to the ERP. All of these ISVs that have a Dynamics integration will claim that it is “seamless”; however, that is just not true for all of them. I have seen many ISVs that claim to have this seamless integration and the fact of the matter is, there are a lot of holes. Meaning there are places where the system does not integrate and it is up to the end user to manually enter or manipulate information. This defeats the entire purpose of having a third party product integrated to your ERP, you want to eliminate manual data entry, not create more. Once your partner finds an ISV that will integrate seamlessly into your system, it’s a blessing. As for the others, they can be the curse.
The other important element of choosing an ISV is the level of support by the ISV. Since these are third party products, chances are your Dynamics partner will not be the one supporting the application. If this application is aiding you in the running of your business, the support needs to be top notch, with quick response time and a real person on the other end of the phone with a contact name you can always reach out to. Once you have a name and valuable contact person, it’s always a blessing.
If you are considering an ISV product in conjunction with your current Dynamics ERP or CRM system, reach out KTL by contacting Mary at 301.360.0001 or emailing sales@ktlsolutions.com. We pride ourselves in our insights and knowledge on these companies with plenty of documented personal experience in working with them. We have your best interest at heart. We also have our own list of trusted ISV’s that know what will work for your individual needs.
MARY CHARUHAS | Junior Business Development/Internal Sales
Mary Charuhas has been with KTL since 2013, starting as a sales intern in the summer of 2013 and moving to Business Development and Internal Sales in the spring of 2014. She is currently pursuing her Associates Degree in Business Management from Frederick Community College and hopes to continue her education at the University of Maryland next spring. Mary also possesses several Microsoft Dynamics and Acumatica Cloud ERP Sales certifications. Mary assists the sales team in finding new and exciting opportunities. She also manages KTL’s existing customers through providing them with ongoing knowledge of the products, assisting them with upgrades and continuing projects, keeping them informed about updates/new releases, events, and training opportunities. Her charisma and passion for providing excellent customer service make her a valuable asset to KTL’s sales department.
