Jenzabar Internet Campus Solution (JICS), discontinued vs. Sage 500 ERP

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

Sage 500 ERP is great for companies with core accounting needs, distributors, and discrete manufacturers. Some areas, such as process manufacturing, would require a companion product from an ISV for the software to be truly functional. Some areas, such as construction or retail apparel, may simply not be well-served.

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

• Sage is the one-stop-shop for all of our needs. We're able to control contracts, subcontracts, and field reports from the program.
• Another strength is the ability to database all the information and export it to excel. This makes data-based investigations a breeze.
• The ability for Timberscan to be imported to Sage is a huge help with invoice management. Prior to this it all had to be done manually and slowed the process to an essential halt as there are thousands of invoices per month.

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

• The biggest concern/complaint of Sage 500 users is speed. Some of the screen take a while to load.
• The user interface needs some refreshing. Screens need to be updated to take advantage of shortcuts and to be more intuitive.

Incentivized

It's too pricey for our size of company.

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

I have been using Intacct for almost 10 years in 2 different companies and I just simply love it. I tried SAP (GUI) and Netsuite and they dont come close to what Ive seen.

Incentivized

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

The online training courses are not up to date. We experienced technical issues with two of the classes.

Incentivized

Keep your database and application in different servers.
Install Microsoft Office on your application server so you can use some of the data analysis tools in Sage.

Incentivized

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

500 seems much smoother at handling some of the basic accounting tasks, for example both issuing and later reconciling checks in Dynamics AX seems a little tedious.

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

• Positive: The program allows for a lot of data entry and splitting of information. It has the capability of replacing multiple programs and therefore saving cost.
• Negative: The modules are cumbersome and not user friendly at all. As a result not many user are comfortable using it. This means that the program is not being used to its capacity.
• Negative: Although the program has the capacity to be great, the user interface destroys that potential. Sage needs to seriously work on their program to simplify it. It's as if it still uses Command-line entries from 1995. Needs to be updated ASAP.

Incentivized