Bottomline Technologies_® Customer Hydra-Power Systems TAPs into Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012
If you attended Convergence this year you may have heard Steve Ballmer highlight Bottomline’s MSTAP customer, Hydra Power Systems, during the Keynote speech.  Check out this video of the Convergence opening address.

Hydra Power systems uses Create!form to produce and output reports, design and distribute customer and vendor facing documents, and they will be using Create!form in AX 2012 to print and distribute checks. Some of the reports produced include: Sales Quotation, Confirmation, Picking List, Packing Slip, Invoicing, Purchase Orders, Commissions Transactions, Customer Account Statements, etc.

In addition, Hydra Power uses Create!form to design and distribute all of their customer and vendor facing transactional documents. Documents are distributed via print, fax, and email and Hydra Power systems uses Create!form to distribute the reports as they are processed;  both as single report processing and batch processing.

Hydra Power was also highlighted in a white paper that was distributed during Convergence,  in which Bottomline is mentioned as one of the key partners in their implementation of AX 2012.   Here is a link to the Hydra-Power Systems white paper.

About Hydra Power systems:  Hydra-Power Systems, is a distributor and manufacturer of hydraulic and pneumatic systems, they have used Microsoft Dynamics AX for years and joined the Microsoft Technology Adoption Program (TAP) to gain early access to Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012.   In the white paper Hydra-Power states that they updated Bottomline’s Create!form™ solution for Microsoft Dynamics to integrate with Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, Create!form offers an easy-to-use, drag-and drop design tool for technology users who need to format data outputs to design forms and distribute them.  Bottomline’s powerful, next-generation e-forms solution accommodates Microsoft Dynamics AX customer’s most intense output and reporting needs by providing complete formatting flexibility on a simple, intuitive platform.

For more information regarding innovation solutions from Bottomline visit:  www.bottomline.com

This week brings you tips from Mark Rockwell of Rockton Software

1. In preparing for Convergence, consider joining The Spot or co-marketing with other Partners. There are lots of ways to team up. Perhaps you can find another ISV that has a similar or complementary business offering. Split the costs of giving away a nice prize to attendees for visiting both of your booths.
2. At Convergence, train your staff to ask leading questions to passers-by that walk down the aisles in front of your booth. We’ve had great success at Rockton asking “Do you use (Microsoft) Dynamics GP?” It quickly weeds out the non-GP users, and amazingly engages the passer-by to answer a follow-up question such as “Have you heard of Rockton and what we offer?” By being aggressive in “fishing” the aisles to bring people into our booth, we get roughly 50% more attendees to step into our booth and hold a conversation with us.

This week brings you tips from John Kleb of Sikich

1.  You are not going to the conference to eat or sleep.  There will be ample eating, enough sleeping, but the goal is to gain as much new information as you can and to make as many connections as you can handle.

2.  Be sure your suitcase or backpack has room to bring home more than you brought as you will go home with more.

3.  Be sure to attend the keynote sessions.  The keynotes with Microsoft Executives will help you align your future with theirs.  In fact, you will often see a future you hadn’t yet imagined.  The keynote(s) with non-Microsoft speakers are always a fantastic as that is why that presenter was engaged.

4.  Look beyond the sessions.  There is no question the sessions carry a lot of value, but if all you do at Convergence is attend sessions, you will have left behind a lot of opportunity.

5.  You have ideas or needs – share them with your product technical team.  One of two things will happen.  Either you will find an answer/grow an idea or the technical team will receive an insight into the real world that will help them build an even better product.

6.  Meet as many members of the Microsoft Executive team as you are able and share with them how your business is going as well as how your Dynamics product(s) enables your business.  Don’t hesitate to provide them with a short list of things they can do/change to make your life better.  They love this stuff and you will help guide their thinking.

7.  Believe it or not – attend the parties.  The environment created by a social event allows conservative professional  barriers to be lowered and can often provide you with real insight or, at worst, a great new relationship with someone like you.  Remember, everyone there shares Dynamics in common so you will never be stuck for lack of something to talk about.

8.  If you are an end-user, engage with your partner.  Convergence is a big opportunity for free consulting ;-).  If you are a partner, engage with your end-users as there will be nothing to build loyalty better than the Convergence connections you can make and the solution sharing you can provide.

If you would like to provide a Convergence tip for a future post, please contact Jasmine@thepartnerchannel.com.