A lot of companies are suing NetSuite/partners for a messed up implementation.

I mean it's been a while since I dealt with this kind of thing, but I thought that NetSuite's implementation terms were pretty ironclad, such that basically they don't have any liability, and basically the only thing you can recoup is your licensing costs.

Still, if they are able to get the license cost back, that should count as bad, right?

oh yeah, I'd imagine something went horribly wrong if someone was able to recover the license costs

But my point to raise was NetSuite is messing up the implementations.... like why? how?

I mean I've seen countless implementations go wrong for so many reasons: sales overpromising, bad discovery/scoping, lack of resources on client side and/or implementation side, rushed go-live (i.e. before the system is actually ready), etc., etc. Usually it's a combination of factors. Just like most accidents involve multiple risk factors (e.g. driving in the rain, distracted driving, poor signage, etc.)

But partners also mess up

Random anecdote but I would never recommend NetSuite PS to do any implementations. It's been my experience in the past that they put new people on projects but still charge like $275-300/hr. So you're paying for them to learn the basics AND do your implementation. A solid partner route would be the recommendation i'd always make. It can still happen with a partner but you're much more likely for it to go well.

Hard agree

That code they write is obscene too. The last I saw of it, they basically have templated files and they just comment out stuff and leave it and fit in whatever functionality was requested (whether it was available natively or not because #billablehours)

I have seen the scripts written by NetSuite PS. That was the shittiest code anyone can write for $275+ / hour.

True. I'd venture to say like 75% of netsuite code i've seen is that way. Not being an ass/bigheaded it's just honestly written poorly

Yeah, agreed. Everything is under the big "afterSubmit"

BUT... I honestly think a lot of comes from not having any good examples to go on. Almost all the companies have "that one guy" that did it and everyone just asks them. There's no real engineering thought (design patterns/standards in general) going into most code written. It's not scalable in a lot of situations and like we've mentioned, written poorly.

Exactly. People expect the best from "NetSuite" itself. Even if it not best, atleast break your code in functions!

That is my #1 gripe with code I see in accounts today. You SOMETIMES get functions. I'd like to see reusable modules being implemented but that's a dream.

I once identified the problem with NetSuite script written by PS. They were blaming the issue to me so I had to dig in, and told them the exact line number that was causing the problem. Didn't hear a word after that 😄

Yeah, can't argue much if you point out the code.

9 years here.

I think their contracts basically say that if you are live and using the system, the implementation must have been "successful." Similar to how if you can login to the system, even if you can't actually do anything, they consider that "uptime."

Is a very complex topic, research your partner, reach out to former customers etc… I have seen many crazy stuff: • Back in 2016 an end User with opinions like: Do not modify or write code to trick the system, NetSuite is very complex (because they had that one guy @creece mentioned) who told them that. • Fast-forward to 2018, a company in New Jersey using a very reputable partner in New York who turns out outsourced its development to someone in latin-america that never seen NetSuite before and write code with parseInt(123) without radix. • Then excellent partner with super structured development lifecycle and wonderful deliverables. You will find everything in NetSuite realm, because when there is good honey (money) there will be many bees 🐝 …

But that's the point. You are a giant company with customers all around the world and their business rely on your application. You should be more careful and try not to F-up the implementation. Make the partners accountable - things that should be there but aren't.

I've seen NetSuite PS write code that literally uses the same field labels as Native. Also seen the internal ID be so close to the suiteapp NS produces that we frequently disabled the wrong fields

If it's anything like other partners, the money isn't really in professional services so they probably do not care about it honestly

This isn't a NetSuite specific problem as well. ERP system implementations are resource intensive, costly and have a ton of variables. Companies want the new system to fix every single issue they had previously and they demand the system do a bunch of questionable logic to justify the change and price. The same thing happens all the time with SAP and other systems as well. There's a reason a lot of big company are running ancient systems and it's because it's hard to change. My state failed a "simple" DMV system implementation and spent $100 million + doing it. It happens, unfortunately.

Code is not the biggest issue, it is easy to fix in the end. The biggest problems are 1) and misunderstanding of the requirements 2) inability to say "no" to the customer. When these two take over turn the lights off.

In my experience, I would say code might be easy to fix but it still costs. The customer pays twice - first for the shitty code, then for fixing it.

You can always go and pay a cheap developer to build whatever you want them to build, but it's not necessarily what should be built. It's hard to bridge the gap between business knowledgeable people and development knowledgeable people. That's where things fail in the poor understanding between the two.

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In my opinion, it is difficult to bridge that gap with a partner. With independent consultants working dedicatedly with that customer know ins and out of the business flow and current implementations. Partners tend to assign whoever is available and that can change.

True, but it it also means the quality of "whoever" varies from person to person and it is unavoidable. To remediate it there has to be internal collaboration and often it is limited due to the company culture and ways things are. Learning from each other is an acquired skill

Exactly. And more often juniors are working while seniors are assigned to 4 other projects.