Having run many Dynamics NAV implementation and upgrade projects over the last 10 years, I have learned that one of the most important (and often difficult) tasks is to ensure that none of the parameters are missing when the application is set-up. This becomes even more important when the client has more than one company to worry about and each of these companies must be constantly checked for completeness of these set up parameters.
In the past I used a collection of spreadsheets tracking various areas of Microsoft Dynamics NAV in each company, tracking who was responsible for the data and where it was up to. Considering that one of our goals in any implementation has been to reduce the use of spreadsheets, what I was doing didn’t set a good example! So we decided to move this application set-up management into NAV itself to ensure there was only one version and it was available to all users (both for Fenwick and for the client) to keep things up-to date.
The result was a new and improved “Set-up Check list”. During initial workshops the areas that need data input are decided upon and loaded into this Checklist. Each are allocated a person responsible; status; and comments, all based on decisions made in the workshops. From each record, one-click access is available to check or input the data required.
This “Set-up Check list” has become a key tool for the PEAK Adventure Travel group as they roll out NAV to new subsidiaries around the world. It allows them to see at a glance the status of progress for each company. As part of the Fenwick Gold Foundation suite, this facility is available to all new Fenwick Software implementations to help projects run more smoothly.
