Remember when you had to record your time on a spreadsheet? Then your boss had to approve it and send it to HR in order for you to get paid? Spreadsheets are still an important way to track information; however, tracking your time and expenses on a spreadsheet can become time-consuming and leaves room for more inaccuracy. WebSan Solutions has developed an add-on to eliminate spreadsheets in order to create efficiency within your organization.

The benefits of our system include:

• Seamless integration with Dynamics GP database
• Handle Canadian VAT (value added tax) and US taxes seamlessly
• Track days off, holiday and vacation time
• Internal reporting for timesheet status, expense reports, and history
• Supports attaching receipts and documents to expense and timesheets
• No need to use PDK to approve timesheets, ONE complete integrated solution
• Full browser interoperability, so you can use your favorite browser and not just IE.

We fully integrate with Microsoft Dynamics GP, there are no firewall issues and our solution is 90% easier to setup and use! To find our more information about our Time and Expense Management System, contact us today!

Natalie Williams, Marketing Coordinator, WebSan Solutions Inc.

There is much heated debate about CRM systems in the marketplace. Many companies have invested thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars into a new CRM system that the sales reps won't touch with a 10-foot pole.

The funny irony is that all companies have customers and all companies have some way of keeping information in a spreadsheet or accounting system of who their customers are and some characteristics of that customer. So why is it so difficult for companies to make the quantum leap forward to formalize their CRM processes?

What companies need to keep in mind when looking to formalize their CRM practices with an investment in technology is that the technology should facilitate their sales process and improve key sales metrics like:

• suspect to lead close ratios
• sales revenue per rep
• more effective use of marketing $

We specialize in both Salesforce.com and MS Dynamics CRM. Both are very capable systems, but what makes the difference is how the system is implemented and how it is inculcated into the organization to maximize adoption of the new system.

Contact us if you're thinking about an investment in CRM and we can help!

There's a lot of debate out there on forums regarding hosted ERP solutions.

Obviously, much success has been had with Software as a Service (SaaS) in the CRM (Customer Relationship Management) space, but CRM really isn't "mission critical." If a company chooses to outsource mission critical applications, such as shipping software, WMS, or manufacturing software, then what will happen if the company loses their internet connection?

There are many pros to going with a fully hosted solution over an on-premise solution. They include, but are not limited to:

• The initial cost for the ERP solution is usually significantly less than an on-premise solution.
• Total cost of ownership (TCO) over time can still be less than on-premise, depending on the outsource provider and their capabilities
• The initial implementation time line can also be accelerated by hosting because much of the underlying configuration infrastructure can be shared, therefore consulting time is minimized
• Internal IT support staff is not required for a hosted solution
• The hosting provider takes care of system updates, patches, regression testing, etc.

The one advantage on-premise solutions have over hosted is that they are indeed, on the premises of the client. They don't go down unless your business does, and then, you've got bigger fish to fry.

That being said, if you could combine the benefits of on-premise with the benefits of hosted, in a hybrid solution, then you would have the best of both worlds.

Look for a solution that offers to have your mission critical applications on site, like:

Professional services organizations (PSO's)– management consulting, marketing agencies, law firms, legal and financial firms – are some of the most difficult businesses to manage. This ever-changing industry relies heavily on the skills and services their people provide. Clients base their decision on the knowledge, expertise and advice given to them and as a result, it makes it hard for a PSO to sell and quantify their product. Accounting for invoices, tracking hours for each resource, overseeing projects and managing client relations can be a little overwhelming and for a budding PSO, challenges can become even more complex. Using a robust software solution such as WebSan’s Microsoft Dynamics GP solution for professional services can relieve companies in this industry from their financial and project management challenges by:

• Shortening deployment times with the use of tools which install the system within minutes, set up core functionality, and quickly transfer and update data.
• Providing more visibility in projects and their status – increasing customer satisfaction by improving collaboration with clients and employees.
• Connecting and streamlining business processes - billing, tracking hours, or invoicing.
• Optimizing efficiency and communication with customizable add-ons and solutions.

To learn more about the robust capabilities and comprehensive tools of Microsoft Dynamics GP, visit our website or contact us for a demo.

By: Mabelle Gonzales, Marketing Coordinator at WebSan Solutions Inc, a Canadian Certified Microsoft Dynamics Partner.

Microsoft is offering significant discounts to customers who migrate from Intuit Quickbooks, Exact (Macola) and Sage (all editions) to Dynamics GP.

Contact us for more details!

Today companies struggle with a volume of information that has the force of a tidal wave. You can either float or sink into that wave, depending on whether or not you can leverage the exponential growth of business data.

The current thinking around big data though, tends to be built around a very simplistic model. According to that, you acquire large amounts of data in lots of formats from various sources. Then apply some business intelligence into that mix and get your solution. However, this data has to make sense and be as simple as possible.

The world is changing…companies are looking more and more towards “the cloud” for their computing needs. It started with CRM systems, which some organizations consider “not business critical”, but now the cloud has encompassed full-blown Enterprise software and Microsoft Dynamics GP is no different.

So what is driving this trend towards Hosted solutions? Is it cost? Is it efficiency, or is it just a passing fad?

Aberdeen (c) reports recently released a study that highlighted the fact that the number of small to medium companies looking towards hosted solutions has increased substantially since 2009.

What’s driving organizations into the Cloud?

What I’ve found with my Clients and interactions with “soon to be” Clients is that cost is not the biggest driver pushing people into the Cloud. It’s strategy and focus. In other words, some organizations realize that their expertise does not lie with maintaining servers and upgrading system patches. They reserve those efforts for others while they remain laser-focused on growing their business effectively and efficiently. They let others worry about keeping their systems up to date and working properly…as they should.

When a company can find a “best of breed” accounting system like MS Dynamics GP available in the Cloud as a Hosted solution, then the decision is relatively simple. Microsoft has ingeniously developed a business model whereby their VARs (Value Added Resellers) can now offer Dynamics GP as a Hosted system. It’s quite competitively priced against other Cloud ERP systems (eg: NetSuite). Since Microsoft is still heavily investing R&D $’s in the future of MS Dynamics GP, the competition is going to struggle to keep up.

Outlined below is a list of features that are planned to be released from April 2023 through September 2023 for Dynamics 365 Sales. Copilot Effortlessly elevate your sales pitch using Copilot email assistance Revenue Intelligence Manage opportunities more effectively using the new pipeline view Improve forecast accuracy with yearly and weekly forec...

As 2013 comes to a close, we are all considering our New Year’s Resolutions to make 2014 the best year ever. This is a great opportunity to consider last minute adjustments for fine-tuning your business. Remember to follow all the recommended year-end procedures so that all associated systems are ready for the challenges of the New Year.

• Reconcile all your books - Prepare your Balance Sheet, Profit and Loss Statement, Statement of Cash Flows and Statement of Retained Earnings.
• Complete the posting procedures and the closing procedures for all relevant modules.
• Post the final adjusting entries in General Ledger.
• Make a backup.
• Print any year-end financial statements that are required.
• Set up a new fiscal year.
• Close the fiscal year.

Another thing to verify as part of the year-end closing process is the company’s backup procedures. Many organizations have poor or non-existent backup procedures. If there is a hardware failure, the organization may not have a secure offsite copy of its business data to ensure things can pick back up quickly. WebSan provides top cloud security with our Hosted Dynamics GP solution, maintained in our state-of-the-art SAS 70 certified data centre located in Toronto

If you want to learn more about year-end procedures in Microsoft Dynamics GP, join our webinar on Thursday, December 19^th, at 11:00 am EST and learn how to successfully close your books.

We help you make it a success every year!

Doriana Kote, Marketing Assistant, WebSan Solutions Inc., a Channel Elite Awards Winner for 2013

WebSan Solutions is featured again in the Globe and Mail Challenge Revisited column, where experts provide advice to help small and medium – sized companies overcome key issues. This time WebSan, is showcasing the challenge of clients failing to stick to their testing and training schedules.

Andrew King, Managing Director of WebSan Solutions Inc., explains how he had a problem that was spiralling out of control. “How do I manage a positive client relationship while enforcing my contractual terms?” he wondered last spring.

Check out the full article here: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/the-challenge/what-happens-when-customers-are-naughty-not-nice/article16003601/

Doriana Kote, Marketing Assistant, WebSan Solutions Inc., a Channel Elite Awards Winner for 2013

Almost every single company I speak with today asks me about our hosting services for Dynamics GP. I think it's due to a few factors :

- The economy is forcing many companies to lean out costs in non-core areas. Maintaining IT equipment, backups, and  service pack upgrades are not exactly value-add for many organizations. Hosting your ERP system in the "Cloud" alleviates those responsibilities to a third party that you can hold accountable.

- Internet access is becoming more and more reliable every day. Every single prospective Client asks me about disaster recovery plans. The fact of the matter is that our ability to recover from a disaster is probably far better than any Client we have. One simple alternative a laptop with a battery and an internet stick from a mobile phone supplier. The odds are that our hosted system will be up...Clients just need a way to get onto the internet.

- The environment and sustainability is becoming more important every day. Did you know that subscribing to an ERP system, rather than installing it on your local server actually saves energy? All of our Clients' systems are shared on virtualized servers, thereby reducing electricity and the carbon footprint of the entire solution.

So there are some key benefits of looking to the "Cloud" for your ERP needs. If you think it's for you, don't hesitate to give us a ring.

On July 19th WebSan held a SmartList Builder Webinar. We discussed how to link tables and calculate fields, create defaults for more user-friendly environment and create summary SmartLists. To be kept up to date with our latest webinars, send us a message or e-mail us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

You can view the recorded webinar and other Microsoft Dynamics GP training videos at our YouTube Channel.

I’ve heard people say that Software as a service (SaaS) is the “best thing since life’s bread” and I’ve also heard others claim that it’s just the newest thing and it will pass.

The best analysis I’ve seen on the subject came from an associate of mine, Pat Gray, in his blog on “Cloud Computing for Mere Mortals”.

His analogy was that determining whether SaaS is right for your company is the same as making a “make/buy” decision when procuring product for a company. You have to take a look at the ENTIRE picture (cost, strategy, capabilities…) to determine the right course of action.

For instance, if I’m selling coffee, then I need to look at the costs of procuring it from the various sources out there, or is it more economical for me to purchase a coffee plantation in South America and make my own beans? If I’m not really in the business of managing coffee growers directly, then why don’t I focus on what I’m good at, the marketing and sale of coffee, rather than the actual manufacturing of it?

Dynamics GP vs. Hosted Dynamics GP

This is the same analysis I need to do when evaluating whether to purchase Dynamics GP or subscribe to Hosted (SaaS) Dynamics GP:

Did you know you can receive up to $100K in government funding through IRAP Digital Technology Adoption Pilot Program(DTAPP)?

DTAPP is a component of the Government of Canada’s overall strategy to boost the productivity of small and medium – sized enterprises (SMEs) and improve Canada’s digital economy. The contribution acts a cost sharing mechanism and will be applicable to the expenses associated with the analysis, implementation and customization of new software or the direct labor and consulting components of implementing new digital technologies. If your proposal is accepted by the program, the government will also provide up to 80% of the payroll costs and 75% of the applicable sub-contractors fees for a project up to $100k contribution.

To be eligible for DTAPP services or funding, your firm must:

• have 500 employees or less
• be incorporated, for-profit and operate in Canada
• be growth oriented
• demonstrate plans to carry out a project designed to adopt digital technologies

WebSan Solutions Inc. will work with you and your company to find the best small-medium enterprise solution that will help your business grow and become more efficient. If you are considering implementing a new ERP project, contact us to learn more about the IRAP DTAPP funding opportunity.

Doriana Kote, Marketing Assistant, WebSan Solutions Inc.

I read an interesting article today from Aberdeen research. It went into great detail on what is really driving companies towards SaaS (Software as a Service)/Hosted ERP solutions vs. the traditional On-Premise solutions.

For the record, the number of companies installing On-Premise ERP solutions still far outweighs the number going live with a hosted solution, but that trend is slowly reversing itself.

The number one driver for implementing an ERP in the Small-to-Medium Business market is to reduce costs (no surprise there). Thus the number one impetus which would push a company to invest in ERP is finding an affordable solution at minimal risk. This is where the SaaS model fits in quite well.

SaaS total cost of ownership is less than On-Premise when you consider backups, hardware, IT staff, upgrades and service packs (bug fixes). A lot of companies are looking to outsource providers to host their ERP systems and take care of the "maintenance" of the system that their own staff would traditionally have to handle. The main cost considerations that drive the appeal of SaaS are :

• Lower total cost of ownership
• Reduces the cost and efforts of upgrades
• Lower up front costs
• Company has limited IT staff and no interest in hiring more
• Seeking the best fit solution to their business needs
• No emotional attachment to having it in-house
• Strategy to focus resources elsewhere

Because of these driving factors, the number of companies considering SaaS ERP has jumped 61% from 2009 to 2010 (source : Aberdeen SaaS ERP : Trends and Observations 2010).

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PR Log (Press Release) – Feb 01, 2010 – WebSan Solutions Inc. an Aurora, ON based Certified MS Dynamics Partner, announces expanded Salesforce.com service offerings.

"WebSan has been working with Salesforce.com as a Referral partner for a number of years and have successfully implemented the product numerous times. Our expertise in the ERP/CRM space and specifically with MS Dynamics GP, has resulted in a number of very interesting and complex integration projects between the products.  Naturally it made sense to formalize our relationship with SFDC so we can be kept abreast of the leading developments and the product roadmap at SFDC." stated Andrew King, Senior Partner.

Andrew continued that "This new SFDC offering allow us to complement and round out our other CRM service offering, such as Microsoft CRM, and provide service to a customer with which ever leading CRM solution that best fits their requirements. "

On May 29^th WebSan held a SQL Reporting Services Webinar. We discussed the ability to export reports to any other formats like Word, Excel, PDF etc. and we toured of the most popular SQL Reports. To be kept up to date latest webinars, send us a message or e-mail us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

You can view the recorded webinar and other Microsoft Dynamics GP training videos at our YouTube Channel.

Join us for our upcoming June webinars!

-          Move from QuickBooks to Microsoft Dynamics GP on June 21 @ 2:00 p.m. EST

-          10 Tricks in 30 minutes – The Top 10 Features of Dynamics  GP You’re Not Using and Should Be! On June 19 @ 11:00 a.m. EST

Executives from all industries are keeping a close eye on the economy these days. While the Canadian economy seems to be recovering, there is no collective sigh of relief in the US.

So while some companies "hunker down" and reduce all expenses, leading companies are looking to invest in technology according to the following strategies (source Aberdeen© Reports):

• Streamline and accelerate processes to improve efficiency and productivity
• Standardize business processes
• Optimize the use of current capacity (both personnel and equipment)
• Provide visibility to business processes across functions and departments
• Modernize technology infrastructure and applications

In times of economic turmoil, those companies that invest now in preparation for a turnaround are more likely to outperform the competition after the recession is over.

Many companies are turning to "hosted" or SaaS (Software as a Service) solutions to reduce the capital expenditure typically required to purchase Enterprise software packages. Our strategy has been to support both implementation methodologies, On-Premise and Hosted. The Hosted solution can reduce a Client's investment by over 60% and accelerate the ROI dramatically.

The software acquired as a Hosted solution is identical to that of the On-Premise solution.

If you're interested in learning more, please feel free to contact us.

I don’t have anything against a mouse – a computer mouse that is – but sometimes I find I can be more efficient using the keyboard.  Over the years, you have probably gotten so familiar with some keyboard shortcuts that you find yourself even using the shortcut keys when you speak instead of the actual function it is used for – “Just Control+V that in the email.”

Sound like you?  If it does, you may find some of these Microsoft Dynamics GP Keyboard Shortcuts to be quite handy:

• ALT+F:  Activates the File menu in a GP window
• ALT+E:  Activates the Edit menu in a GP window
• ALT+M:  Activates the Microsoft Dynamics GP menu on the main toolbar
• ALT+R:  Activates the Reports menu on the main toolbar
• ALT+A:  Activates the Transactions menu on the main toolbar
• ALT+I:  Activates the Inquiry menu on the main toolbar
• ALT+C:  Activates the Cards menu on the main toolbar
• ALT+H:  Activates the Help menu
• CTRL+L: Opens a Lookup Window

 By: Rahim Jiwani, Application Specialist,WebSan Solutions Inc.

WebSan Solutions Inc. has won silver in the Best Small Business Solution category for this year’s CDN Channel Elite Awards. http://www.computerdealernews.com/channel-elite-awards/winners

This award honors the partner that has created the most innovative and problem-solving hardware, networking, cloud or software-based solution for an organization or department with up to 100 seats or less using the solution.

CDN is the voice of Canada's IT channel community for more than 25 years and defines an information technology solution provider as an organization that resells computer hardware, software or peripheral products along with providing IT-related professional services, support services, consulting in a cloud or on-demand environment, on-premise fashion or as managed service.

Congratulations WebSan Solutions! Well done team!

By: Natalie Williams, Application Developer, WebSan Solutions Inc. a Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner and 2013 Canadian Channel Elite Awards Winner.