Before buying a well-advertised system, ask those who have bought it about its actual opportunities. I had been working in the company “Technosila” for a year when they tried to start “Axapta”. (I was starting my project).
After starting the system “Axapta” in the company “Technosila” all businessmen (there are hundreds of them only in the office) showed their strong disapproval for it. The sense of ANY program product is to enable businessmen to PROCESS MUCH INFORMATION to receive AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE THE MOST NECESSARY AND THE MOST VALUABLE INFORMATION FOR WORK AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
For that (it is not difficult if to realize for what) on your system desktops there are installed a lot of program FILTERS for various parameters, for example, “for brand”, “for price”, “for model”, for volume (for logists), for “the warehouse location”, for “type in product classifier” etc. THERE WAS NO FILTER here. And hundreds of businessmen had to HANDLE HUNDREDS OF MODELS MANUALLY EVERY TIME (from thousandth price-list and database) to find a model required. Much more time was spent and, of course, the weak system overloaded (the queue was made to work in the system). The whole Technosila laughed: Do not hinder Axapta to work.
Unfortunately, (ALL) programmers do not know how the businessmen work, of what the product model, price-list, product classifier etc. consist. They do not realize what “the most valuable information” is and how to “filter” it. Only BUSINESSMEN realize it. The company “Columbus” did not (and does not) employ any businessmen but only programmers. While writing the Technical assignment they FORGOT TO ASK technosila BUSINESSMEN (!!!) what they want. So AFTER STARTING (!!!) the system the Technosila businessmen was offered to state “BRIEFLY” what “THE MOST IMPORTANT” for them shall be added to the “WORKING” system “Axapta”. The result was A HUNDRED PAGED book (they “ARE IMPROVING” it up to now. By the way, what “Technosila” has been removed from the company “Columbus” site (www.columbus.ru), as “a honorary client” for??
But in programming such systems, serious additions (after starting) of opportunities usually finish with its full “hanging”. Your database is a table where all elements are ALREADY linked with program codes. OPPORTUNITIES addition (structure change) results in CELLS ADDITION to your database. Those cells shall be linked with program codes to all others ones very carefully, otherwise your system will “hang” or “think for a very long time” on them. It is not so simply. It is simplier to rewrite (any programmer knows about it).
While developing a system it shall be made MORE, not LESS. What I have done (to demonstrate all my system takes 4-5 hours). I know what BUSINESSMEN and MANAGEMENT (and programmer) want for optimal and convenient work with my system. I have HUNDREDS OF FILTERS for many commercial parameters enabling BUSINESSMEN and MANAGEMENT (and programmers) to work with the system extremely PRODUCTIVELY and RAPIDLY. Also I wrote hundreds of PROMPTS and INSTRUCTIONS (hundreds of iterations of the whole design were made).
As per its structure the system like “Axapta” is the SIMPLE BOOKKEEPING SYSTEM with the elements of the simplest STATISTICS (sales analysis), and absolutely WITHOUT even the simplest COMMERCIAL OPPORTUNITIES. And it is utterly IMPOSSIBLE to add any commercial opportunities (regardless of their advertisement).
As per their structure the company “Sap” products are also the SIMPLE BOOKKEEPING SYSTEMS with the elements of the simplest STATISTICS (sales analysis). And it is utterly impossible to add any commercial opportunities to it. (”?So many people tried to improve it that in places it was forgotten where and what had been altered (the words of the former administrator of the Eldorado company)”).

HOW TO REDURE THE RUSSIAN RISKS ACTUALLY

About ten years ago there were large profits, turnovers and practically there was not competition. So the companies could afford “NOT TO THINK ABOUT RISKS”.
Now there are small profit and many competitors. Also there appeared “terrorists” against whom in Russia there is not insurance and FOR A DAY YOU CAN LOSE WHAT YOU HAVE EARNED FOR 10 years. In yours warehouses (in Russia) there shall be as little as possible your products.
(Firstly). For that it is necessary with maximum precision to know your shops demand linked (in real time) to the specific regional commercial conditions (weather etc). Each your shop or client in your system shall have opportunity for executing and editing (in real time) its “ORDER”. After treating them you receive THE MOST PRECISE demand of your shop and clients. (In this way my enterprise system works).
(Secondly). You shall have maximum information about your competitors. You shall have price-lists of your competitors that are also renewed in your system in real time. Only in this way you can determine MAXIMUM prices of tour product sale and not to bring distress products that will be on your warehouse for a long time. Apart from that, for your shops you can take “good” products of your competitors transferring all risks to them. (In this way my enterprise system works). Actually you can have MAXIMUM PROFIT with MINIMUM RISK.
The companies “Columbus” (Axapta) and “Sap” were created in 1970-1980th when the Internet and powerful computers (cheap) did mot exist. Their “bookkeeping” systems ARE NOT LINKED TO THE EXTERNAL WORLD ALTOGETHER. Instead of “BUYER” they have “the fact of product sale”. “The demand of products” is formed only on the basis of these “facts of sale”. It is a very rude “demand” that is averaged and not linked to the changed commercial conditions, clearance sales etc. It results in jamming the warehouse with the products for several months.
It is utterly impossible to put any “orders” here. There are not any competitors and it is utterly impossible to treat their price-lists. Instead of them the computer has in some way (I do not realize in what??) to determine selling prices (usually the least profitable).
As a result you are forced to sell products not for optimal prices, to jam warehouses illiquid assets and at most to expose yourself to all various RISKS (terrorists, customs officers, weather etc.).
Of course the company “Sap” and the company “Columbus” (Axapta) are aware of my project (finished) and the questions I ask them. I proposed cooperation to them. But until now they can not answer me. You can ask them the same questions. As per difficulty creation of such large system ban be compared to writing the novel “War and Peace” by Leo Tolstoy, full correspondence of all pages and texts plus enormous experience and market knowledge.
Even 100 programmers can not do it.

Yours respectfully, Pavel Karpov. (The general manager and developer of the site www.technobazar.ru)
(telephone +7 985 766 67 87)

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