Posted: Feb. 16, 2004

Microsoft Business Solutions (MBS) has four main enterprise resource planning (ERP) product lines, each of which is intended for a slightly different market. (For a chart summarizing functions, target markets, and customer adoption of the MBS ERP products, see "MBS ERP Product Overview".)

Axapta. Acquired in the Navision deal, the Axapta product line is Microsoft’s highest-end ERP offering, targeting businesses with 100 to 5,000 employees and up to US$1 billion in annual revenue. Axapta has broad multilanguage support, ships in more than 30 languages and more than 30 country-specific versions, and targets multinational companies, particularly those with complex manufacturing or distribution needs. Because of its somewhat narrower target market, Axapta has seen slower adoption than Microsoft’s other ERP products (3,500 customers to date) and is supported by a smaller number of partners (about 700).

Great Plains. Acquired in 2001, Great Plains offers ERP software for mid-size businesses, with an emphasis on professional services (such as consulting or accounting firms), manufacturing, and wholesalers and retailers. It is sold by roughly 1,600 partners, primarily in North America, and has some 30,000 customers. The Great Plains modules are available in two editions. The high-end product line, called Great Plains, is designed for larger organizations with 100 to 5,000 employees and US$50 million to US$250 million in annual revenues. Great Plains Standard is based on the same code base as Great Plains but is geared toward businesses with 25 to 99 employees.

Small Business Manager (SBM), based on the Great Plains code base, is for businesses with 25 or fewer employees and less than US$5 million in annual revenues. (There are no corresponding small business solutions in other MBS product lines.)

Navision. The Navision product line (formerly called Attain) is a set of accounting and business management packages for businesses with five to 1,000 employees and between US$1 million and US$800 million in annual revenue. The product is functionally similar to Great Plains and is sold through a network of about 1,800 channel partners. The product is popular with wholesale and manufacturing businesses and has garnered about 36,000 customers to date, mostly in Europe. Microsoft also offers a lower-priced Navision Standard, aimed at companies with 25 to 99 employees and annual revenues less than US$25 million.

Solomon. Prior to Microsoft’s acquisition, Great Plains acquired Solomon Software to fill gaps in its product line. Specifically, Solomon targets companies doing project-based work—professional services companies and construction firms, for example. Like Great Plains, it is sold predominantly in North America; Solomon is sold by more than 600 partners and has about 13,000 customers. Like Great Plains and Navision, Solomon is available in a lower-priced Standard Edition for companies with between 25 and 99 employees.