Kevin Machayya is a 14-year veteran of Microsoft and Great Plains Software. He has held various roles in technical support, customer service, and sales operations. For the last 10 years, Kevin has focused on the Microsoft Dynamics partner channel through partner account management, readiness, marketing, resourcing/staffing and development programs.
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Our marketing team has recently partnered with digital marketing agency Metia to offer a robust accelerated digital marketing program for Microsoft partners. Today, they are excited to share this update…
Generating and converting business online continues to grow in importance in today’s fast-paced market. Gain the insight and expertise needed to differentiate your online presence and increase visibility of your website by enrolling in the Digital Marketing Program, a service developed by White Hat Media and being offered in the United States by Metia.
The program will take your business through four key phases of (1) Planning, (2) Site Audit and Analysis, (3) Reporting & Recommendations, and (4) Implementation & Enablement.
Pricing and program details are subject to change.
To learn more, and to take advantage of this valuable offer, visit PartnerSource.
--Kevin
Our Microsoft Dynamics Product Marketing Team has recently created a great new partner resource to assist your during the sales process. The current version of the guide focuses on addressing service infrastructure and operations questions, and has been positioned as follows…
Are you struggling with how to respond to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online RFPs? Partners may use this Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online RFP Response Guide for Partners to help you articulate compelling and accurate responses to commonly asked questions about the service.
The document offers “cut and paste” starting point answers designed to help the partners more quickly and effectively address customer inquiries.
Visit PartnerSource to download the guide.
A Blog Series for Microsoft Dynamics Partners by Kati Hvidtfeldt, US Microsoft Dynamics ERP Cloud Lead.
Scalability is one of the key benefits prospective customers respond to when considering the cloud delivery model. But for many industries, scalability is not just about planning for future growth: It’s about adjusting for busy and slow seasons, year after year. In this week’s blog, Tom Doerner, president of Microsoft Dynamics partner WatServ, outlines how partners can uncover new opportunities by addressing the challenges of seasonal fluctuations through a cloud-based ERP solution.
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WatServ has always helped Microsoft Dynamics ERP customers understand how the cloud can economically address concerns most businesses have around infrastructure, software, data center and IT skills. But 18 months ago we acted on a pattern we were seeing in specific industry niches that have unique challenges around the need to ramp their systems up or down seasonally. It started with a tax preparation company that had more than a thousand users on ERP for 3 or 4 months, followed by 9 months when only 60 employees used ERP. Agricultural and educational businesses had similar issues.
Until recently, companies in these kinds of industries have had to purchase infrastructure and software to support the high user counts and transaction volumes of their busy season, even though they have an excess of computing resources during the majority of the year. These companies also needed to provide an appropriate computer room and adequate IT staffing. This high cost of doing business is very inefficient.
By implementing cloud-based Microsoft Dynamics ERP solutions, seasonal companies can address these challenges economically.
WatServ is one of the largest, most experienced providers of hosted Microsoft Dynamics ERP in North America. Click here to learn about how you can partner with WatServ to provide cloud services to your customers.
To learn more about how to incorporate cloud-based solutions into your business plans visit the Microsoft Dynamics Countdown to the Cloud page on PartnerSource. Go to www.microsoft.com/dynamics/growyourbusiness for resources that demonstrate to customers how Microsoft Dynamics ERP cloud, hybrid and on-premise solutions can benefit their businesses.
Since you may have missed the announcement of this new promotion on PartnerSource last week, I’m excited to share the details here.
Eligible Microsoft Dynamics ERP partners can extend a US$2000 customer rebate on an initial customer order for at least three users for the Advanced Management (AM) or Business Essential (BE) edition of Microsoft Dynamics ERP (Microsoft Dynamics AX, Microsoft Dynamics NAV, Microsoft Dynamics GP or Microsoft Dynamics SL) through Microsoft’s SPLA Licensing program in the United States.
This promotion is available from, February 1, 2012, until end of business on, February 29, 2012.
Visit PartnerSource for complete terms and conditions as well as rebate instructions.
Also, don’t forget to register on the Partner Learning Center for the upcoming Microsoft Dynamics Sales Professional Community Call focused on FY12 H2 Offers scheduled for February 21 at 11:00AM PT.
Next Microsoft Dynamics CRM service update will include a new, cloud-based, cross-platform, native mobile application.
REDMOND, Wash. — Feb. 6, 2012 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that Microsoft Dynamics CRM will release its next service update in Q2 2012. This service update will deliver the capability for customers to access the complete functionality of Microsoft Dynamics CRM on virtually any device with a new cloud-based, cross-platform, native mobile client service for Windows Phone 7, iPad, iPhone, Android and BlackBerry mobile devices.
Maintaining Microsoft’s commitment to delivering rapid innovation to customers, the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Q2 2012 service update also includes enhanced social functionality and new enterprise-class features, and adds multiple Web browser options for users, including Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox and Safari, running on PC, Macintosh and iPad devices.
To access the complete press release, please visit the Microsoft News Center.
Periodically, I’ll post a non-work related blog leaning toward more personal observations. I hope you still enjoy the read.
First off, yes, I know the building blocks of life are more biological in nature (cells, genes, etc.). But, in this post I’m focusing on the building of knowledge and awareness through hands on learning.
Second, I’m a huge Lego fan! One of my childhood passions has been totally revised by having two young daughters. If you doubt me, here’s an excerpt from a letter my parents received almost 30 years ago…
Thank you for your nice letter and for sending the newspaper article and photographs relating to your son, Kevin’s, “Transformer” creations. We are glad to hear that Kevin enjoys building with LEGO® products. He certainly seems to have very creative and innovative talent with the models he has made….We will be happy to post the newspaper article and photographs our Company bulletin board for our employees and visitors to enjoy and admire.
Now, as a youngster, I was completely amazed to receive this letter (plus they threw in a gift right before my birthday too!), but looking back, it’s great to see how this remarkable response has really stuck with me over the years. In the pre-internet information age, there was no such thing as an instant response. Someone carved out a little time in their busy day to personally mail a note back.
Finally, circling back to building knowledge and awareness, I’m really excited to see this year Lego introduced a line of products specifically targeted at girls – LEGO® Friends. I’m all for Star Wars, Harry Potter, etc. but right now I’m pretty sure my “dolls rule the world” daughters will be really excited to play with these. I can hardly wait to see their imaginations run wild. Easily hours of enjoyment for the whole family!
A Blog Series for Microsoft Dynamics Partners by Christian Lindberg, Solution Sales & Marketing, Microsoft Dynamics Partner Team.
After learning about the Microsoft Dynamics Marketplace, a website where partners can post their solutions for prospective customers, ZSL was quick to join. Says Manick Vel, Practice Head for Mid Market Solutions at ZSL, “The customer buying habit for add-ons was already to purchase over the web. In fact, 90 percent of our leads for add-on sales came through that channel. When Microsoft made the Microsoft Dynamics Marketplace available, we saw that it could help us build the validity of our add-ons, provide a venue for showcasing them, and ultimately help us further grow our sales because it made it easier for customers to find the solutions they needed.”
In adopting the Microsoft Dynamics Marketplace, ZSL has taken an incremental approach, starting with its add-ons for Microsoft Dynamics CRM. From this, the company has, with little effort, achieved 10 customer inquiries of which one led to a sale. Says Vel, “We’re still in the early stages of using the Microsoft Dynamics Marketplace, but we, Microsoft, and many other partners are working hard to promote it. In the future, customers won’t search the web for add-on solutions; instead, they will go straight to the marketplace—and that will be a huge value-add for us.”
Read the full story: http://bit.ly/zfeVMj
Two valuable tools are now available to you!
Schedule Builder enables attendees to make a customized Convergence session schedule, so that you can plan your time from (almost) dawn to dusk. An important note is that while this is a helpful tool to maximize time at Convergence, it is not a placeholder and session attendance is available on a first come, first serve basis only.
Convergence Connect is a structured networking tool that makes it easy to connect and network with fellow attendees. This tool is open to all Convergence attendees and allows you to find people you'd like to meet with by searching profiles for keywords, geographies, Microsoft Dynamics product, industry, and more.
Access both of these resources under the After You Register menu item on the Convergence website.
Microsoft today launches its newest version of Microsoft Dynamics AX for Retail, software that will help businesses handle just about anything the changing world of retail can throw at them, be it rapid expansion, complex pricing and inventory, or evolving means of customer interaction.
Learn more on the Microsoft News Center.
You can also access a variety of resources on the US Launch Portal for Microsoft Dynamics AX for Retail on PartnerSource.
On the heels of the successful 3-city Business Leader Roadshow which concluded last week, we are excited to announce a new series of remotely-delivered sessions specifically for partner business owners and executive management teams. As our partner readiness & training team explains…
These sessions leverage the concepts and ideas introduced at the 2012 Business Leader Roadshow – with a deep look specifically into the Sales and Service Delivery functions of Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM practices. This session is a must for everyone – those who attended the Roadshow and those who were unable to make the event.
Like the roadshow, the continuation series is aligned to two tracks based on the business model structure needed to successfully support and serve customers in your core competency area::
We will also be holding a 90-minute Marketing & Sales Strategy Review for Marketers session on February 16.
To learn more and to register for any of the upcoming activities, please visit PartnerSource.
A big thank you to all partners who were able to attend the Irvine, Dallas, and Tampa events!