Sage has announced the retirement of Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500. But what does it mean for businesses currently relying on these systems to manage their financial data and business processes?
I recently caught up with Stuart Morland, our Support Director, to understand a bit more about the announcement and what it means to our customers.
Stuart talked me through everything Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500 users need to know about Sage’s end of life plan, including key dates to bear in mind, and also offered advice on what businesses should do next in terms of migration.
Watch the interview here or read on to find out more about the Sage 1000 end of life plan.
What is the announcement about Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500?
“The announcement from Sage was the Sage 1000 end of life plan and the Sage Line 500 retirement plan. Between now and the end of 2024, Sage will gradually reduce the levels of support they provide to us and our customers. Ultimately, rendering the products unsupported.”
What does that really mean to the businesses that are on Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500?
“It means that between now and the end of 2024, Sage will reduce levels of support across various elements, whether that be functional issues, developer support, compliance support, the platform the product sits on and ultimately they'll remove the help desk that we use when we need to escalate issues to them regarding Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500.”
Will businesses currently on Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500 feel an impact today?
“Thankfully, the impact is minimal. Over time it will be reduced. Currently, cosmetic issues are no longer being addressed. Compliance and legislative requirements have been paused. The platform support has been frozen. However, the developer resource and help desk function will continue, although it, itself will reduce over time.”
2024 feels like a big milestone. Is that the end for Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500?
“Yes and no. Yes from a Sage point of view, the end of 2024 is the milestone date at which point they'll cease supporting Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500. Sage are going to issue a five year licence which will take customers through to 2029, and Datel will continue to support all our customers (albeit on a reasonable endeavours basis) through that period.”
What level of support is Datel planning to provide during this period?
“Support will be as it is today, a business as usual scenario. The general support that we provide to customers will be there. Our Support Services; Monitor, Manage, and Assist will also continue. And in fact, we may see that there's value in them for customers as they migrate to other solutions like Sage X3, Sage 200 and Sage Intacct. The third party support for products will be influenced by those third parties themselves. However, the help desk function will continue.”
We've got quite a few people who are experts in Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500 - both in our support team and the consultancy teams. What's the plan for them?
“Our people are much loved by the customers and the company. The plan is that they will continue to provide support as they do today. The same familiar voices, the knowledge, the approachability, and as we progress, we’ll see customers migrating to other solutions such as Sage X3, Sage 200 and Sage Intacct. We'll also be looking at whether there's an opportunity to cross train and migrate those staff into other teams so that we retain that knowledge and experience.”
Can customers stay on Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500 until 2029?
“Yes, with the licence from Sage that will allow them to continue to use the software. The support will continue on this reasonable endeavours basis. However, what is likely to happen is that the customers will potentially face issues both internally and externally, which may force a discussion that the businesses aren't quite ready for. My advice is, rather than waiting for issues to arise, start conversations now. Think about what the next steps are for the business.”
If businesses are thinking about looking at other options such as Sage X3, Sage 200 and Sage Intacct, what’s the best approach to this?
“Businesses should start the discussions of migrating to other solutions as soon as possible. Start by thinking about the strategic goals and objectives of the business, the things you need and require, and build that into your requirements and then start there.”
Where can Datel help with that?
“In exactly the same way as we have done historically. Our partnership, our engagement and our knowledge of the customers is what drives our discussions. We help advise and guide on whether or not the solutions that we have in Sage X3, Sage 200 or Sage Intacct could be relevant to those customers.”
If a business is on Sage 1000 or Sage Line 500, and wants to start looking at Sage X3, Sage 200 or Sage Intacct, what's the best way of starting that process?
“The businesses account manager is the key to this. They can draw on the resources, they can draw on the knowledge that we have within the business. That will be a great first step to help support things moving from there.”
Please get in contact with us for more information on the Sage 1000 and Sage Line 500 end of life and retirement plan.
