January 2010 Newsletter | AVF Consulting

President's Letter

Jet Reports 2009

Jet Reports Training from AVF

Sales Offers

Upcoming Events

Nonprofit Organization Benefits from Serenic Navigator 2009's Role Tailored Client

RSF Social Finance, a nonprofit based in San Francisco, recently upgraded to Navigator 2009 to help their users get more organized and streamline their work. Using the Role Tailored Interface, RSF has created a number of Role Centers that are specifically tailored to the employees within the organization.

RSF employees saw the value of working from their Role Centers right away. Having a visual map with elements specific to their own job has created . Fields and functions not required by a specific role can simply be hidden. This has made user adoption fast, as Role Centers simplify tasks across the organization.

RSF created several Role Centers for their team including:

Accounting Manager
Client Development
Controller
Junior Accountant
Philanthropic Services
Staff Accountant
Strategic Development

The creation of personnel specific Role Centers has provided RSF's team with a streamlined view of their work space. Now employees can quickly and easily get to the pieces of the system most relevant to their role in the organization.

"We captured what people do most often, so they can go to their home pages and have a queue of items that are updated," said Rebecca Newton, RSF's manager of systems and operation. "It gives you a shortcut to what needs to be done each day. Users are really excited about this feature and that it incorporates Outlook. One user used to keep her task list on an Excel spreadsheet, but she moved it into Outlook so she can see her to-do list in her Role Center and check off tasks as she completes them."

For more information on how RSF Social Finance is using Serenic Navigator 2009's Role Tailored Interface, download the RSF Social Finance Case Study.

If you are interested in discussing an upgrade to Serenic Navigator 2009, contact Jeremy Fass at 410-296-5100.

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Jet Reports Maintenance Forgiveness Offer

Jet Reports has informed AVF Consulting that several of our clients have not renewed their Jet Reports Maintenance. In recognition of the current state of the economy and in an effort to continue providing the best in Excel based reporting for Microsoft Dynamics NAV, Jet Reports has agreed to waive maintenance fees for all but the current year of maintenance. Until February 26, 2010, current Jet Reports customers who have not renewed their maintenance can renew for the cost of this year's maintenance alone.

In the next few days, Jeremy Fass will contact each Jet Reports customer who has not paid their maintenance in full and provide more details. In the meantime, if you would like to discuss renewing maintenance, or an upgrade to Jet Reports 2009, contact Jeremy Fass at 410-296-5100.

Serenic Sales Promotion: 20% Off New User Licenses & Additional Software

Have you been considering purchasing the Employee Information Portal or the GL Inquiry Portal to provide easier access to Serenic Navigator data via the Web? Perhaps you need AwardVision to better manage your awards and grants? Or maybe you just need a couple more user licenses to accommodate your growing staff?

From now until February 28th, 2010 AVF Consulting customers on Serenic Navigator can get a 20% discount on the purchase of additional user licenses and products.

If you have any questions or would like to take advantage of this offer, please contact Jeremy Fass at 410-296-5100 or jfass@avfconsulting.com

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Jet Reports 2009 Offers Improved Performance and New Features

Jet Reports 2009, released in September 2009, improves the solution in a number of areas including faster performance. Clients with very large, complex databases have reported at a 10-20% improvement in processing time.

Jet Reports 2009 also offers several new features:

Report Builder - Create reports in minutes from multiple tables.
Improved Scheduler - Include report information in the e-mail subject and body as well as attachments. Distribute email with either Outlook or SMTP.
Browser - Provides access to tables and fields so that you can drag and drop into Excel to create reports.
Enhanced Link= -Create multiple links and nested links to any table in you want. Lets you build sophisticated reports quicker and easier.
Data Views - Simplify report creation in Report Builder with a relevant set of fields from multiple tables.
Data View Creator - Easily create, edit, export/import, and combine tables into custom sets of fields from the NAV data dictionaries for use in Report Builder.
.NET Architecture - All new .NET modular architecture gives Jet 2009 easy integration and growth with latest technologies and developments.
High Performance - On average 2x faster than previous versions of Jet Reports.

Jet Reports is offering a free demonstration of Jet Reports 2009 on Wednesday, February 10 at 3:00 pm EST. If you would like to attend, register here!

To learn more about Jet Reports 2009, download the Jet Reports 2009 fact sheet.

Get the Most From Jet Reports with Training from AVF Consulting!

If you aren't using Jet Reports to its fullest benefit, then AVF can help with training and consulting services from David Opdahl, CPA, and NAV Consultant. Our training sessions include two full days of instruction that will give you a thorough understanding on how to build static format reports, dynamic format reports, grouping lists, and using the Jet Scheduler.

Five Reasons to Train for Jet Reports with AVF:

Training can be done with your organization's database, allowing students to get experience creating the reports they will need with the data they will be using.
Use of our training room equipped with several computer terminals for student use and a presentation system to help guide students through the process.
Breakfast snack and lunch are provided.
Training is led by our resident Jet Reports expert Dave Opdahl, a CPA with over 25 years experience in financial management and reporting processes.
Prices compare favorably with similar online trainings offered directly by Jet Reports.

“Working with any relational database software like Microsoft Dynamics NAV can be a challenge,” says Opdahl. “Getting the data and reports just the way you want them takes time and practice in using the software. I really enjoy helping people get the information they need in the format they need it in. It’s a real accomplishment to be able to help move your business forward.”

For more information on Jet Reports Training, including a pricing guide and requirements sheet please refer to the Jet Reports Fact Sheet. Dave is available to answer any questions you may have or provide basic Jet Reports support, just like any other AVF consultant.

If you would like more information about Jet Reports or about receiving training or consulting from David Opdahl, contact Lori Ricard at 443-279-1030 or lricard@avfconsulting.com.

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Freeze Panes in Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009

One of the new features in Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009 is the ability to freeze panes in a List Place. Freezing a pane allows you to freeze a column on your list and scroll to other other columns on the list while it remains in place. Here is how to do it!

Step 1:

Determine the pane you would like to freeze. In this example we will freeze Entry No. column.

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Step 2:

Click the Panes button in the upper right-hand corner of the screen and select Choose Columns on the drop down list. This will open the list customization screen where you can reorder the columns on your list.

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Step 3:

From the list customization screen, select the column you would like to freeze and press add freeze pane. NAV will indicate the addition of the freeze pane in the column order field.

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Step 4:

Press OK to save your freeze pane.

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As you can see, the column you selected will remain in place, allowing you to navigate through other columns in the list while viewing the data in the frozen column.

Click to Enlarge

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Serenic Explorations Early Bird Discount: Serenic Explorations: September 15 - 18, 2010, in Denver, Colorado

Serenic Explorations is an annual User Conference for Serenic Navigator users. The event provides Navigator Users the chance to learn about new products, network with other users and Serenic Employees.

Explorations is an excellent opportunity for nonprofit and school district customers to stay up to date on current events and best practices related to their Serenic Navigator software.

From now until March 31, Serenic is offering an early bird registration discount on tickets to the conference. Tickets purchased before March 31 cost just $695, so register now to ensure you get the best rate!

In addition to the early bird rate, Serenic is also offering the following group and advanced registration discounts:

Date Registered	Cost Per Person
December 16, 2009 - March 31, 2010	$695
April 1, 2010 - July 31, 2010	$795
August 1, 2010 - September 15, 2010	$895

Group Discount Available until August 14, 2010
As a special offer, if three people from the same organization each register and purchase a conference registration, the fourth person from your organization is half-price!

Companion Information
Companion Fee of $190 Per Person includes: Wednesday's Welcome Reception and Thursday evening's event at Lucky Strike (companions must be 21 years of age or older).

For more information on Explorations 2010 visit Serenic's Website or register here to purchase your tickets.

Microsoft Convergence 2010: April 24 - 27, 2010, in Atlanta, Georgia
Microsoft's Convergence 2010 is the premier event for Microsoft Dynamics users. Convergence brings customers, partners, and industry experts together to discuss solutions and business needs, while providing attendees with a community of resources that can be leveraged throughout the year. We recommend Convergence 2010 for all customers who are looking to increase their knowledge and stay current with the information regarding their Microsoft Dynamics NAV software.

Convergence is your opportunity to participate in an exceptional program including a variety of tracks, speakers, detailed product demonstrations and hands-on learning sessions to better understand how you can further leverage your existing business solution to tighten supply chains, deepen customer relationships, empower your workforce and sustain profitability.

Sessions: Convergence 2010 features nearly 400 sessions covering Microsoft Dynamics and the latest Microsoft-based products. Each year, we strive to deliver the most relevant information and content to users. As part of this effort, the Dynamics User Groups will be heavily involved in determining the sessions.
Hands-on experiences: Grab the opportunity to evaluate products from Microsoft and our most important industry partners.
Community and Learning Center: Considered the hub of Convergence, this area is designed to be a one-stop shop for networking and learning outside of conference sessions - while only having to visit one room! We offer free technical support, research activities and opportunities to meet fellow users and product experts.
Connections with the community: An event that brings Microsoft Dynamics customers, partners, team members and industry experts together translates into an endless number of opportunities to make lasting connections within the Microsoft community.

For more information or to register for Convergence visit the Convergence 2010 website.

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