Egypt and Middle East-based Internet service provider (ISP) LINKdotNET wanted a new customer relationship management (CRM) solution to support customers and expand its offering. It engaged LINK Development to implement Microsoft Dynamics® CRM integrated with Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Portal Server and Microsoft Forecaster in Microsoft Dynamics GP for integration of financial data, saving hundreds of hours’ work daily.

New Belgium Brewing, makers of Fat Tire Amber Ale and other inspiring craft beers, has been experiencing double-digit year-over-year growth. To help keep a close eye on inventory sales and costs, New Belgium has extended the reach of its Microsoft Dynamics® GP business management solution and has incorporated Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007 to increase access to information and enhance communication and collaboration across the company. Manufacturing, production, sales forecasting, and budgeting have all benefited from the expanded solution, and in recent years the company has been able to cut its shipment forecast error in half, from 8 percent to 4 percent, dramatically reducing production overruns and product outages. New Belgium credits its information technology solutions with helping it manage sustainable growth as it expands into new markets and introduces new products.

Olsen Thielen is a regional Certified Public Accounting firm in St. Paul, Minnesota. With a stable base of tax and audit clients in manufacturing, distribution, not-for-profit, business services, and utilities, the firm wanted to expand its services without jeopardizing the long-term relationships it had with existing clients. The firm created Olsen Thielen Technologies (OTT), a subsidiary responsible for offering financial management solutions. Now a Microsoft® Gold Certified Partner, OTT decided to participate in the Microsoft Dynamics® Partner Program. As a member of the Microsoft Dynamics Partner Program, the company can diversify its offerings and meet its clients’ critical business needs while lowering the risk of IT projects for clients. Now, OTT enjoys a 60 percent increase in revenue, increased marketing opportunities, and dependable solution offerings for its clients.

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory was filling stores with customers, selling new franchises, and constantly renovating stores. But customers might see three systems in one visit thanks to a patchwork of old electronic cash registers (ECRs) in every shop. Collecting information from them was sporadic and required tinkering. Data was inadequate for reports, and prospective franchisees saw ECRs as a weak spot. The RSC Group had tailored the company’s Microsoft Dynamics® GP ERP system, so its recommendation of Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System opened doors. All sales functions now occur on one register and transactions are four times as fast. Daily polling delivers accurate data from every store, and information slides into Microsoft Dynamics GP. Store owners and executives have data on sales, stock levels, a customer loyalty program, and reports to manage growth.

Copa Airlines is an international air carrier based in Panama that is well known for its customer service. Copa deployed a virtualization solution using Windows Server® 2008 with Hyper-V™, and Microsoft® System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, saving in hardware costs and gaining high-availability for key applications.

SchoolKidz provides a simple, cost-effective approach to fulfilling the school-supply needs of students, parents, and educators. In 2007, the company was acquired by Staples—a 60,000-employee corporation. Staples plans to aggressively grow SchoolKidz’s annual revenue. SchoolKidz upgraded its business management solution from Great Plains 7.5 (now Microsoft Dynamics® GP) to Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 and deployed Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007 to support the forecasted growth. With Microsoft Dynamics GP, SchoolKidz employees create reports, place orders, specify delivery methods, and share this information through Office SharePoint Server 2007. Now, employees can coordinate efforts to make better decisions and drive productivity. Since the deployment, SchoolKidz has doubled in number of employees, and Microsoft Dynamics GP has scaled to support this growth.

Microsoft® Business Solutions (MBS) specializes in the development and support of the Microsoft Dynamics® product line. Acquisitions left MBS with 11 financial systems that led to internal inefficiencies, including nonstandardized processes across locations and an inconsistent customer service experience. With U.S.$1 billion in revenue and growth of 20 percent a year, MBS understood that current systems would not support growth in terms of transaction volume and revenue. To operate effectively as one business group, MBS worked with Microsoft IT and Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Wipro Technologies to deploy Microsoft Dynamics® AX. The solution helps MBS streamline operations, reducing IT support and staffing requirements. And now that business data resides in one database, MBS can improve business insight, help ensure compliance, and provide more responsive customer service.

The Gurango Software Corporation strives to differentiate itself from its peers and maintain a highly motivated and educated software development team. The company gives the highest priority to Microsoft® Certification as a means for determining internal promotion, motivating 90 percent of its employees to hold at least one certification. With this selling point, Gurango Software has successfully closed an impressive rate of deals. In addition, the company credits Microsoft Certification in helping to deliver shorter development cycles and faster implementation. Microsoft Certification has also resulted in fewer errors in the development and delivery phases of projects, which has boosted client satisfaction and referrals. Gurango Software is happy to reap the benefits of increased profitability.

Heel Inc., a large manufacturer of homeopathic products, needed a server solution to protect confidential company data, relieve IT staff demands, and to integrate with its existing Microsoft technologies for a more robust, high-performance network. An upgrade from Windows Server® 2003 R2 to Windows Server® 2008 Standard, along with Windows® Web Server 2008, provided the server manageability and security it needed, while boosting IT productivity.

WETandFORGET, a New Zealand company specialising in the manufacturing and distribution of a range of practical and proven products and services including “WetandForget”, a moss, mould and gunge remover, identified an opportunity for technology to support the growth plans of the company. By deploying Microsoft Business Solutions–Great Plains, WETandFORGET installed a flexible system that has since enabled better management of their present business resources and information. In addition, the modular design of Microsoft Great Plains has ensured the system is scalable to handle WETandFORGET’s business plans for growth, including new products, an online presence, and ventures into new markets while still being centralised in the Auckland head office.