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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Ellucian Banner

    Score5.2 out of 10
    N/AEllucian offers Banner educational ERP, including its student management system emphasizing control and reporting of process-oriented facets of education such as grading and attendance.N/A

    Microsoft Dynamics SL

    Score5.1 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft Dynamics SL is one of the ERP products in the Dynamics family. This product was acquired from Solomon 2000. The product is typically used by SMBs, particularly in project-based businesses (e.g. construction). It has strong accounting and project management capabilities.N/A

    Munis

    Score5.8 out of 10
    N/ATyler Technologies offers Munis, their ERP suite for public sector entities. The modules are Munis Financial Management, Munis Human Capital Management, Munis Procurement, Munis Revenue, Munis Tax Billing & Collection, and Munis Utility BIlling CIS. Additionally, the ERP may include and integrate modules from the Tyler suite of education products.N/A
    Pricing
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Free Trial
    NoNoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details———
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Considered Multiple Products
    Ellucian
    No answer on this topic
    Microsoft
    No answer on this topic
    Tyler Technologies
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    80%
    Would buy again
    12 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    82%
    Delivers good value for the price
    9 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    80%
    Happy with the feature set
    12 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    83%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    78%
    Implementation went as expected
    7 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Student and Faculty Administration
    Comparison of Student and Faculty Administration features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    8.5
    8 Ratings
    2% above category average
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    -
    Ratings
    Munis
    -
    Ratings
    Integrations with 3rd-Party Education Technology7.98 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Online Registration Management8.97 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    District Communications, such as messaging and alerting8.94 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Roster Management8.56 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Platform Customization8.16 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Teacher Self-Service8.86 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Student Data Security8.67 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Community Support8.66 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Class Scheduling8.67 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    State and National-level Reporting9.27 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Compliance Support8.96 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Teacher and Parent Mobile Application7.25 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    8.5
    2 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Munis
    8.8
    1 Ratings
    16% above category average
    Pay calculation00 Ratings9.62 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Direct deposit files00 Ratings9.01 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration00 Ratings00 Ratings6.01 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    6.0
    6 Ratings
    22% below category average
    Munis
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    28% above category average
    API for custom integration00 Ratings6.06 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Plug-ins00 Ratings6.04 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    8.7
    10 Ratings
    4% above category average
    Munis
    10.0
    2 Ratings
    17% above category average
    Single sign-on capability00 Ratings7.49 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions00 Ratings10.09 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    8.0
    10 Ratings
    6% above category average
    Munis
    9.3
    3 Ratings
    21% above category average
    Dashboards00 Ratings8.06 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Standard reports00 Ratings8.010 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Custom reports00 Ratings8.010 Ratings8.03 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    7.1
    11 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Munis
    9.8
    3 Ratings
    24% above category average
    Accounts payable00 Ratings6.011 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Accounts receivable00 Ratings6.08 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Global Financial Support00 Ratings6.02 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Primary and Secondary Ledgers00 Ratings6.63 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Journals and Reconciliations00 Ratings3.04 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Configurable Accounting00 Ratings8.03 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Standardized Processes00 Ratings6.03 Ratings9.13 Ratings
    Inventory Management
    Comparison of Inventory Management features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    5.7
    6 Ratings
    33% below category average
    Munis
    -
    Ratings
    Inventory tracking00 Ratings5.06 Ratings00 Ratings
    Location management00 Ratings6.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    6.2
    4 Ratings
    24% below category average
    Munis
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    23% above category average
    Pricing00 Ratings6.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Order entry00 Ratings3.04 Ratings00 Ratings
    Credit card processing00 Ratings7.02 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold00 Ratings7.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Subledger and Financial Process
    Comparison of Subledger and Financial Process features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    5.7
    4 Ratings
    28% below category average
    Munis
    9.5
    3 Ratings
    23% above category average
    Billing Management00 Ratings6.02 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Cash and Asset Management00 Ratings7.33 Ratings9.13 Ratings
    Travel & Expense Management00 Ratings5.01 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Budgetary Control & Encumbrance Accounting00 Ratings6.32 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Period Close00 Ratings6.04 Ratings9.13 Ratings
    Project Financial Management
    Comparison of Project Financial Management features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    4.7
    3 Ratings
    47% below category average
    Munis
    9.5
    2 Ratings
    23% above category average
    Budgeting and Forecasting00 Ratings7.33 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Project Costing00 Ratings6.33 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    Cost Capture00 Ratings2.12 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    Capital Project Management00 Ratings8.01 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Project Revenue Recognition00 Ratings2.01 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Customer Contract Compliance00 Ratings00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Grants Management
    Comparison of Grants Management features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    6.3
    1 Ratings
    16% below category average
    Munis
    -
    Ratings
    Award Lifecycle Management00 Ratings6.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Manufacturing
    Comparison of Manufacturing features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    6.0
    1 Ratings
    22% below category average
    Munis
    -
    Ratings
    Production Management00 Ratings6.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Supply Chain
    Comparison of Supply Chain features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    6.0
    1 Ratings
    20% below category average
    Munis
    -
    Ratings
    Inventory Planning00 Ratings6.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Procurement
    Comparison of Procurement features of Ellucian Banner and Microsoft Dynamics SL and Munis
    Feature
    Ellucian Banner
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Dynamics SL
    -
    Ratings
    Munis
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    34% above category average
    Requisitions-to-Purchase Orders Integrated00 Ratings00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Schoolmint Hero
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Schoolmint Hero
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics AX (discontinued)
    Score4.8 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics AX (discontinued)
    Score4.8 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Likelihood to Recommend
    7.4
    (21 ratings)
    5.0
    (18 ratings)
    9.1
    (3 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    5.4
    (8 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    8.0
    (2 ratings)
    3.0
    (7 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Availability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    9.9
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    1.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.0
    (5 ratings)
    9.5
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    1.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    9.0
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    1.4
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Ellucian BannerMicrosoft Dynamics SLMunis
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Ellucian
    As a SIS, Banner Pages is the full meal deal. There are multiple modules that integrate out of the box. Because Banner is all I've ever used as a SIS, I can't contrast it with another program. I can say, it gets the job done for us. I will also say that a tremendous amount of time goes into strategizing how to get new functions to work for us and there always seems to be some catch that requires even more work. In general, the university has been hesitant to build too many modifications into Banner because they take a lot of time to maintain. Inevitably, a new update (of which there are MANY for Banner) will break stuff that isn't "vanilla." This is unfortunate because we've had some great ideas for how to make Banner better for us, but also understandable. If you're looking for a highly modular system, this isn't it. Banner has lots of components, but the components work the way they work and that's that. Also, don't expect very quick responses to bugs or glitches. If the bug is major, yes, it will be addressed. But, little function issues seem to be regularly overlooked.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    For a small to mid-size business, MS Dynamics SL is effective. We are capable of managing our finances with a very low risk of error. We have worked with MS Dynamics for almost 15 years and have more than doubled the size of our business in that time with very few issues from the program. We have exponentially increased our revenue and reporting demands and have found SL to be very dependable and stable. The program does have the occasional glitch and those are sometimes outside of the realm of expertise of our IT department. SL support is excellent, but their timeliness is not as urgent as ours.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    Munis is great for any sort of data keeping and accounting work. There are features of Munis that I am still not familiar with even after 6 years of use. Munis would not be very good for a point of sale sort of operation like a retail store because it just simply is not set up for that sort of operation.
    Incentivized
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    Pros
    Ellucian
    • I think it's great to use if you are tracking grades for certain classes, especially if you'd like to see how students do, comparing midterm to final grades. If you have the permissions, you can see both.
    • It's also good to track students individually. You can look up a certain semester, and see how they did in that particular time frame, but you can also see their cumulative gpa, or even look up their entire course history.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    • Provides flexibility for complex project based cost accounting
    • Strong and flexible allocation processer for cost allocations, markups, and pricing
    • A "Flexible Billing" module under the project controller series that allows for multiple billing formats ranging from fixed price schedule of values, T&M or Cost Plus, and scheduled billing.
    • Flexible reporting with options using Crystal Reports, SSRS, a Quick Query tool, and ability to tie into MS Office tools such as MS Access and MS Excel
    • Tight integration with Financials, but also the ability to integrate with modules such as Sales Order, Inventory, and Field Service
    • Customization abilities ranging from a VBA (visual basic for application) foundation to allow customizing existing forms to the ability to use the SDK (Software Development Kit) to build more complex customizations that integrate with Dynamics SL.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    • Excellent for the municipal Financial program. Completely paperless.
    • Workflow is easy and easy to adjust.
    • Very Very user friendly even for the non computer savvy employees.
    • Windows based so easy to navigate.
    • Excellent help desk.
    Incentivized
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    Cons
    Ellucian
    • One thing I miss from the previous version of Ellucian Banner, is the control + page down. I struggle with alt + page down.
    • I love the Ellucian Banner favorites; however, it is a little difficult to navigate.
    • I can honestly only think of 2 things that could be improved. I use Ellucian Banner daily.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    • Reporting in the Project module is lacking functionality. I understand that most companies have specific needs when it comes to tracking project information but the standard reports are not good.
    • I would recommend a product like Management Reporter that is for Projects only. Project Reporter should allow users to pull in all Project related data into reports.
    • Fixing suspended batches. Obviously all of us users have experienced this mess. SL knows what needs to be corrected and there could be some step by step fixes in a separate repair module to do the steps we do in Query Analyzer.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    • Submitting a purchase order requires lots of tabbing through fields
    • The product has lots of features, but they require additional training to understand how to use
    • Generating reports can sometimes be difficult
    Incentivized
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    Likelihood to Renew
    Ellucian
    We have no reason not to renew with Ellucian - we are in deep with the ecosystem, and have Ellucian providing us with information technology support. If anything, should the opportunity arise, we'd probably consider adding a different ellucian tools into the suite of applications we already have on board.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Unfortunately, Dynamics' lack of ability to smoothly integrate with our CRM system is causing us to look at other solutions. The efficiencies that we gain by using Dynamics for our day to day accounting are lost in the constant headaches of getting sales quotes to import properly into the system for invoicing. Another major issue for us has been budgeting and reporting. We currently do all of our budgeting and board reporting in Excel, which is too time consuming and inefficient, especially when a system as robust as Dynamics should easily be able to handle this relatively simple task.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    Ellucian
    You definitely have to learn it before it becomes easy to use. It's better than it was, but it's still not entirely intuitive. You can't just look at it and play around to figure out how it works
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    I rate it a 10 because we have removed the fields we don't need so users can really crank the data into the system. The software was designed for the professional services firm in mind but does a tremendous job for construction firms and "blended" companies that are both distribution firms but project centric as well. Perhaps they drop ship inventory to a project where their employees or subs need to work on a project for example.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Reliability and Availability
    Ellucian
    It's pretty much up all the time.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    We have had only one unplanned outage for 2 hours in the last 30 months. We shut down for 30 min to 1 hour once a month, but that is for Microsoft OS updates to the servers. Being a 24/7 world wide operation, the reliability is really important. We do get an 8 hour window on the weekend that we can be down for a short period to install Microsoft Dynamics SL updates, but we do not have many of those. On our last version upgrade, we shut the users out at 9:30 am and were fully operational in less than 6 hours. The upgrade was New SQL server, New SL server and 2 new Citrix servers.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Ellucian
    Has gotten much better due to new hardware.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Ellucian
    Our department generally does not contact the support center for Banner but the IT department does. That being said, in the seven years that I have been here, I have not once needed to contact the support center; we have had no glitches on Banner's side that needed to be addressed.
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    Microsoft
    Support is only used when needed, so unfortunately ,they get all the odd issues. It's a difficult business, but Microsoft and our firm do a great job of meeting customer needs. We get routine feedback that our support services are very good.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Ellucian
    very satisfied, along with the IT staff and ellucian support the upgrades do very well and have minimum down time.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Just to let it take its course. The implementation for me once I became a part of my former organization was pretty seamless. Just get to know the basics and call the support team to ask questions if you need help on an issue, should they arise. They are ready, willing, and able to help!
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Ellucian
    PeopleSoft was more user-friendly. It also provided the ability to save and bookmark queries. PeopleSoft will allow users to use common names to search for queries. Overall, it seemed much more current than Banner. PeopleSoft provided enrollment data for specific sections which allowed one to spot trends of enrollment in a given class.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Of the comparable mid-range ERP systems, Dynamics SL competes at the lower end based on price, but also above the high-end based on flexibility, data, and reporting. Being able to stay with the same core accounting from a $100 million dollar company to a $3 billion dollar company shows the range of capabilities.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Scalability
    Ellucian
    being able to scale with hardware was easy and not cumbersome. We were allowed to user virtual machines which made things very scalable.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Since the backbone of the database is MS SQLServer, the database can be easily scaled.
    Incentivized
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    Tyler Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Ellucian
    • There is positive ROI on the product overall. It had reduced or allowed us to focus our staff members on something which is very use and it does the job in the background.
    • The application has supported in a lot of ways in saving resources and utilizing them in very productive & efficient manner
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    Microsoft
    • More time is spent on manipulating reports which can and should be automated.
    • Lack of electronic invoicing process and other green technology features creates more cost on printing and storage costs.
    • The lack of a user friendly interface requires more training and a bigger learning curve for staff.
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    Tyler Technologies
    • Munis has prevented our office from needing multiple software programs to house all of our information.
    • All of our employees have access to the same information, on the same software.
    • Munis has made day-to-day operations smoother for our office because we are not constantly flipping between programs or software.
    Incentivized
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    ScreenShots