Does it Matter if You Choose a Silver of Gold Competency Dynamics GP Partner?

What does this have to do with choosing a Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner? Just that when it comes to competency levels, there are times when Silver might be a better choice than Gold.

Our team at Dexpro Dynamics is proud to have earned Microsoft ERP Silver competency. For a small, woman-owned organization, this is a pretty significant achievement. But we want you to know how our Silver competency benefits our Dynamics GP clients and why we think it might be every bit as valuable as Gold.

In setting its standards, Microsoft states that Silver level competency demonstrates consistent capability, expertise, and commitment. What that means for our clients is that they can feel confident that choosing us, they are selecting a Partner that is legitimate, dependable, and recognized by Microsoft. You’re not just getting a lone consultant calling themself a Microsoft Partner; the designation has been earned. In addition, companies with Silver or Gold competency have established a closer relationship with Microsoft and have access to more direct channels of communication. This relationship with Microsoft means that when it comes to troubleshooting challenging issues, response times will be much faster.

But there is more to it than that.

Your first thought might be Microsoft’s designation of Gold or Silver is a reflection of the Partner’s skill level. But that is not what the Gold or Silver is based on. In reality, the competency level is more about the company’s ability to sell to new customers. An organization might have a very high skill level. But, if they work only with existing customers and are not continually onboarding new clients, they will never earn the higher competency rankings.

So the question is: if you are selecting a Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner, how much does the competency level matter? Let’s review your options:

You may employ a single consultant to support and troubleshoot your Dynamics GP system. There are many out there, and some are highly knowledgeable. These solo consultants often will not sell Dynamics GP to new customers. Rather, they work with clients who were unhappy with the level of support they were receiving or who needed to be rescued from failed implementations. They probably do not have a relationship with Microsoft, and if you work with the solo consultant, you depend on the skills of one person, not on the combined talents of a team.

Silver competency indicates that the Partner has a relationship with Microsoft so they can power through difficult issues and get the support they need with a quicker response time. Silver Partners are allotted advisory hours each year from Microsoft that they can use as they wish. When a particularly complex system issue arises, they can offer this additional Microsoft support to a client that needs it, and they can choose to do this at no extra charge to the client.

To attain Silver competency, a Partner must sell a certain amount of new Dynamics GP solutions every year. We could easily keep our Dexpro Dynamics team busy just serving our present Dynamics GP users. But we realize there are advantages to selling to new customers, too. Being in the marketplace keeps our knowledge of the product up to date. And we are more aware of the competitive landscape, the other technology available, and how it compares with our offerings. Microsoft Dynamics is innovating, and we want to keep up.  

I am a technical engineer, not a salesperson. The sales levels required of a Microsoft Silver Partner are manageable for us, and we can still focus on supporting our existing clients. Our Dexpro Dynamics team of technical and functional consultants have at least 15 years of hands-on experience supporting Microsoft products.

Gold Competency

To achieve Microsoft Gold competency, a Partner must be larger and more sales-focused. Generally speaking, Gold Partners are large companies that have sales teams, pipelines, and quotas.

I once worked with a large Gold Microsoft Partner as a consultant. It was frustrating because I wasn’t allowed even to suggest add-on solutions for our clients; that was the responsibility of the sales team. I was the only worker that crossed between the functional consulting team and the technical consulting team. The functional consultants could not assist clients with technical needs, so clients had to pay for internal communication between the sales, functional, and technical teams, even if they were simply asking for system advice.

Microsoft might give Gold Partners a bit more personal attention and slightly faster support. But our Microsoft Silver competency team still has very fast support time with Microsoft, and we can charge less because we don’t have to pass questions between several separate internal teams.

As a Silver Partner, we can operate leaner and maintain lower costs. We have a team with a very impressive skill set, and I know we can give more personal attention to our clients than any Gold Partner can deliver.

We know that you want to choose the best software solutions and the best Microsoft Partner to implement and support them. But when it comes to Microsoft ERP competencies and working with a Partner that can focus on your business needs, Silver may just set the standard.

At Dexpro Dynamics, we offer all new or prospective customers a free half-hour Dynamics GP consultation to let you see if our approach and expertise are a match for your business. If you have a question or have encountered an issue that nobody could resolve, contact our Silver competency team at Dexpro.

By Dexpro Dynamics, www.dexprodynamics.com