MicrosoftI think that is a little harsh - at least the vendors are posting. Still no answer from Microsoft on my question about any guaranteed lifecycle (beyond 1 years notice) for one of the suggested replacements, Project Server Subscription Edition. Many of the vendors have built their businesses filling gaps to fit a market that it was obvious Microsoft had given up on. Some will also be losing large revenue streams with this change too. I don't blame them for making the most of this news. Maybe I should come out of retirement?
Maybe it is a little harsh. I just get frustrated from 100 vendors selling the same **bleep** modifications of Project Accelerator; which Microsoft will no longer update.
We can both agree that this is the latest in poor communication from Microsoft.
I agree its a fine line psawyer. As vendors, of course we do want to drive revenue but also as someone who has implemented the Microsoft Enterprise Solutions since Project Central and built a Worldwide Microsoft Project Partner of the Year practice I'm conscious that customers on Project Online don't have an equivalent now from Microsoft to move, to so its going to be a difficult decision as to what to do next.
I was lucky enough to see Project for the Web mid development and speaking with the Microsoft team it was clear the target market was the Monday.com and Click-up space with huge numbers of potential users but simple functionality.
In 2021 having really spent time really testing Project for the Web and Dataverse and understanding the issues and future roadmap, we made the decision to build the solution we had wanted to see from Microsoft - a full SAAS enterprise solution built on Microsoft Azure, using Azure SQL for scale and not dataverse and enabling organisations to manage Business Transformation from Strategy to Benefit encompassing full Enterprise PPM. 4 years on edison365 we now have a large development team and a complete solution in use by organisations across the globe.
There's a difference between the Microsoft accelerator and what [most] Partners are selling. At TPG, ProjectPowerPack has a development team and a roadmap. It is updated regularly and the same version is provided to all customers so it can be upgraded. It can also be extended for / by a customer.
There are many partners that are selling the default Microsoft accelerator with minor changes but as MrCCPond said, there are also some great partners out there who have taken the time to build some great solutions. As a customer all you can do is research thoroughly for your next move. It's an opportunity to review and refresh your PPM requirements, go to market to find a tool that can align to the business and re-engage your user community. Yes it's going to be a busy 12 months for many PMOs, the time scales are the downside but start now so you can find the correct tool to transition to.
Agree on the lack of communication - the message center in my tenant says this is medium impact for me, despite Project being the only additional paid subscription. Yet a minor Outlook for the Web change is flagged as High, yet I never use that product. The published lifecycle for Project Online hasn't yet been updated, and no banner on my PWA site - and I was also able to create a new one just yesterday with no indication of the pending retirement. Plenty of other marketing and support web pages not updated. Not the comms you'd hope for from an apparent billion dollar business in the largest software company - but the Project Online product was not the only part of the Planner/Project ecosystem that lacked investement.
From the partners, there are quite a few that could be described as modifications of the Accelerator, but also many that go a great deal further. There are also some that took a different approach and aren't as tied to the Power Platform.
My biggest concern are the customers who may not live on LinkedIn, don't visit the TechCommunity (or maybe only looked at the Project blog and not Planner) and may not have access to the Message Center in their tenant. Hopefully the message will get to them somehow.
