Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS), discontinued vs. Microsoft Dynamics AX (discontinued)

JICS is well suited for schools that have long-used Jenzabar products or are looking for a stripped down, direct data management system. If someone is seeking innovation or the latest in features and technology, I do not believe they would be as pleased with JICS. It's a bare bones system alternative.

Incentivized

It integrates fully with the other Microsoft software we use daily, and this coordination speeds up our work and gives us the agility to run easily. For example, in a purchase inquiry, the customer, after submitting a request, identifies the teams that should work on the project, and if they need further review by other people, they are added to the process, and everything is managed seamlessly rather than the sales process. Get the result as fast as possible.

Incentivized

• Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS) is good at interacting with the Jenzabar database.
• Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS) can integrate with Active Directory to allow for one set of credentials and also has its own credential management system for local accounts to be created.
• Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS) will display grades as soon as they are entered into the Jenzabar database.

Incentivized

• Microsoft Dynamics AX's scalability to meet our regional office needs provide flexibility to the team's requirements.
• Combined with Citrix Xenapp, the application offers seamless access for users on high latency unreliable network connection to the application.
• Application maintenance and updates are easy which makes it possible for us to manage remotely considering the servers are located in a remote Asia site.

Incentivized

• Jenzabar is unwilling to work with other companies to integrate information across multiple platforms.
• The quality of JICS is contingent upon appropriate use and entry by those on campus. While not a limitation to JICS itself, there seems to be more problems with JICS in this regard than I have noticed on other campuses with other platforms.
• JICS is typically behind on the times. Features it adds today were commonplace for others much earlier.

Incentivized

• MRP can be slow to adapt to changes in actual production or supply chain transactions.
• Setting up number sequences seems a trivial matter, but these numbers ID transactions once they are in the ledger and are key--easy to miss this point in the implementation process.
• Bank rec being easily automated and able to quickly plug into a bank back end to get data is not the best.
• Payment processing can be 'clunky' based on checks, ACH, Wires...as some of these items are not triggered out of the box in AX, bur are easily added --talking ACH and Wires specifically.

Incentivized

Microsoft Dynamics continues to evolve by bringing more functionality to the customer. Also there are several independent software providers that offer a wide range of solutions for vertical markets.

Incentivized

Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS) is very usable and easy to maintain. With us having students log in with their AD credentials, they don't have to remember an extra username and password. Also, I have been able to update and customize some of the coding, which has allowed us to make sure the site works just the way we want it to.

Incentivized

Overall the product does what we need it to do in order for us to function as a company. While there are some concerns over ongoing costs, the belief is, once we have it fully acclimated to our business the cost should settle into alignment with our original expectations. The new features that are consistently being added do add value to the product as they are usually customer request directed.

Incentivized

Some integration and high volume ramping challenges, particularly with BizTalk and SQL Server, but getting sorted out. Outages over time appeared to be more dependent on integration complexity than AX MES.

Some integration and high volume ramping challenges, particularly with BizTalk and SQL Server, but getting sorted out. Outages over time appeared to be more dependent on integration complexity than AX MES.

Support is generally very helpful. There are some support staff that really try to go the extra mile and help with solving the problem you have, not just answering your initial question. If you don't understand a feature that is offered in the Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS) environment, they also have a portal with on-demand webinars/courses that you can watch to get a better idea of offerings at your own base.

Incentivized

We use a 3rd-party Microsoft Partner for the system. They are responsive and very knowledgeable. While costs have been mentioned several times in this review they are very aware of costs and have developers who are more economical they use to help offset the level of work required to meet our changes and fix our issues.

Incentivized

It took a lot of work, but Microsoft ultimately did a good job with in-person training, including being onsite in multiple global locations for extended periods.

Our solution deviated from a number of key out-of-the-box standards that were included in Online training. We just used that for introduction to the general functionality.

Some rough spots, but ultimately worked out. The contract didn't appear to be structured to support the level of overlapping facility deployments required to meet timeline commitments. Merging cultures on the program was also challenging. Overall, not an easy implementation by any stretch. Everyone did the best they could.

We selected JICS many years ago as it was a cost-effective option that was streamlined and straight-forward. Today, no one is ever thrilled with their SIS, and I can anticipate major difficulties if we attempted to move from JICS. However, from a features and revolutionary standpoint, I do feel we will always be a step behind if we continue with Jenzabar.

Incentivized

I was not part of the decision making process to select Microsoft Dynamics AX, however, I do know that an exhaustive search was done and many options were considered alongside Microsoft Dynamics AX and I feel that the right decision was made in choosing this solution.

Incentivized

• Jenzabar has allowed us to house all data in one system, which was badly needed.
• Jenzabar allows us to speak one language across campus, although many offices still work outside of Jenzabar due to limitations within JICS.
• Jenzabar has not been effective in being a leader in new features or developments. I always feel like we are a step behind.

Incentivized

• With the robust built-in reporting we were able to drop an external reporting platform that costed about $40,000.
• API integrations have saved manual entry and reduced having to hire 2-3 people to manage data.
• Several administrators and developers are required for this which costs about 200-300 thousand in employee costs.

Incentivized