Why do so many people choose & love Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central ERP ?

Most Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC) clients are using BC to handle significantly more than standard accounting and ERP functionality. 

When implementing Business Central, most clients ask their Microsoft partner to add fields, tables, and processes to reduce their dependence on spreadsheets, time-consuming manual processes, and other applications related to accounting.

However, it's not long before they realize that Business Central can be a platform for transforming departments company-wide, and they re-engage their partner to do so. As a result, they achieve more efficiencies than they originally thought possible. This is Nirvana for all involved... BC fits them like a glove, and they can't imagine ever being without it.

But given the numerous ERP products available today, how did they know to choose Business Central in the first place?  We have identified 12 ways our clients have differentiated BC from the masses and made the ultimate decision to choose BC... never having to look back and question their decision. Can you imagine being that confident in your ERP decision?

Why our clients choose and love Business Central:

​(1) Full ERP Functionality for Less

Business Central offers robust features for Finance, Sales, Supply Chain, Project Management, Service Management, Warehouse Management, and Manufacturing. However Microsoft has set BC's price well below the market value if they were to base the price upon its capabilities. This is to achieve the vision for Business Central, in the future, to be as central to everyone's business and daily work as Microsoft Dynamics 365 / "Office" (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Teams) is today. When prospects see its rich functionality they also realize that Business Central is comparatively underpriced, so it becomes an attractive option worth further evaluation.

(2) Ease of Analysis with the Power of Dimensions

Unlimited dimensions can be used to easily track and analyze revenue and costs across any user-defined segment of business. Examples: revenue & costs by: customer, product, region, job, project, line of business, salesperson, area, field office, equipment, designer, well site, rig, AFE, and more. Amazingly, Business Central does this without increasing the number of G/L accounts.

(3) High Adaptability

Dynamics 365 Business Central was designed from the beginning (1994 as Navision) with a rapid development environment at its core. The ability to add fields, tables, and logic to match any company's unique ways of doing business, or match an industry's best practices, was, and still is, a game changer for many companies. While most other ERP products are quite limited in their customization abilities, or extremely expensive to do so, Dynamics 365 Business Central is not. This is a major reason for its rise in popularity. Clients have little to no concern regarding BC's ability to accommodate new requirements as they grow, so BC is the last ERP software they will ever need.

(4) Microsoft's feature updates are now easily applied to customized client environments

With Business Central, clients can take advantage all of the scores of latest new BC features from Microsoft (such as Focus, Analyze, and Copilot AI), every time they are released - even if their instance has been highly customized. 

Specifically for clients on Microsoft Dynamics NAV: More than you need to know, but if you need to know, now you'll know it: 

Dynamics NAV users need their developer partner to perform one last upgrade to migrate from NAV to Business Central. This is required since customizations to Dynamics NAV were made by editing and adding logic directly within the Microsoft code base. Thus, when Microsoft updates introduced changes to the NAV code (thousands of lines for each new release), the client customizations which resided in the same area had to be reapplied, merged, debugged, tested, etc. These NAV-to-NAV version upgrades were often at a high enough cost to the client (in time and money) that it became impracticable to upgrade every year when a new NAV version was released. Thus clients missed all the new features every year they chose to defer an upgrade. However, with the architecture of Business Central, this problem no longer exists. 

During the conversion from Dynamics NAV to Dynamics 365 Business Central, a developer who is knowledgeable about your customized functionality and highly skilled, re-creates the customizations into a layer separate from the Microsoft code, called extensions, and determines which hooks to the Microsoft code he needs to trigger the customized logic. (It's actually more complicated than this sounds.) Now, once in BC, with the client customizations being separated from the Microsoft code base, new features from Microsoft can be applied with minimal effort by the partner and at a minimal cost to the client. 

(5) Unmatched Security & Safety of Your Data

Business owners can trust that their data is protected and backed up by Microsoft's world-class infrastructure and security standards, since Business Central is hosted securely by Microsoft. (The U.S. Department of Defense awarded Microsoft their coveted $10 Billion security contract.)

(6) Unmatched Product Stability and Data Integrity

BC is proven and trusted by over 2,000,000 users and over 250,000 companies worldwide. BC's stability and performance are built on the same platform as Dynamics NAV, one of the most popular and widely used ERP systems in the world. Many clients have detailed history spanning over a decade in NAV/BC, yet incidents of lost or corrupt data are virtually unheard of.

(7) Fraud Protection

BC protects your business from internal fraud with features and controls such as user id stamping, audit trails, record and table security, permission sets, and email alerts. BC can monitor and prevent unauthorized changes to fields or records such as vendor name, address, or other critical fields. Workflows and approvals can also be setup to ensure compliance and accountability.

(8) Availability of add-in products

BC has over 2,800 add-in products that enhance its functionality or provide industry-specific solutions. Easily search for the right add-in for your business needs, such as ofsERP for oilfield service and equipment rental. You can also leverage the power of Microsoft's ecosystem of apps, such as Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Excel, and Word.

(9) Assured Upgradability and Product Survival

Microsoft's Dynamics 365 business solutions offer assured upgradability and product survival. Microsoft invests billions of dollars in research and development every year to ensure that its products are always up to date and ahead of the curve.  From focus mode to late payment prediction, the Business Central platform is constantly evolving and innovating to meet the demands of business. 

(10) Use of Artificial Intelligence

Business Central leverages Microsoft's AI Copilot to provide smart insights and predictions for cash flow, inventory, and more. Copilot enhances the management experience and helps create a competitive edge. Insights also delivers valuable information from news feeds, social media, and LinkedIn within Business Central.

(11) Microsoft Compatibility and Interoperability

Business Central has superior compatibility and interoperability with other Microsoft products, such as Office, Teams, and Outlook. Users can easily create contacts, quotes, and invoices from Outlook, export and edit lists in Excel, and sync changes back to Business Central.

(12) Trustworthy Client-Centric Sales & Business Practices

As a long-time Microsoft partner, CBSi can attest to their honest and client-centric business practices. Like ourselves, Microsoft prioritizes transparency and honors their word with partners and clients alike.  They allow recorded meetings, and if we involve Microsoft personnel into our sales process, they are also available and accountable after the sale. Their pricing is clear, giving clients a clear understanding of what they will receive. Partnering with Microsoft and CBSi means working with both a partner and software vendor that values trust and integrity.

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In summary...

Business Central’s adaptability, robust features, and Microsoft’s commitment to innovation and exceptional value, have made it a trusted choice for organizations worldwide. Whether you’re managing finances, operations, or customer relationships, Business Central provides a comprehensive solution that grows with your business.

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