Only One Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP System Is the Right Solution for Your Business

Are you looking to upgrade from an older Microsoft ERP system, like Dynamics AX, Dynamics NAV, Dynamics GP, or Dynamics SL? Or are you considering Microsoft Dynamics 365 as your first modern cloud ERP solution? In either case, you have the luxury of choosing between two Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP solutions, both of them widely adopted and well-reviewed: Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management and Dynamics 365 Business Central. To help you understand the different capabilities of these ERP solutions and see which business needs they support, you can download our recent ebook, Choosing the Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP system that suits your business, and watch a webinar where Sikich experts discuss how they support different business models and requirements, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central or F&SCM: Which is Right For Me?

For an overview of what you should know about Dynamics 365 ERP solutions, you can view our infographic below.

Might this be your last ERP deployment ever?

An ERP selection is a highly consequential decision, because the right ERP system can make a huge difference in your company’s long-term success and empower your team members while it makes their lives easier. Also keep in mind that, once you’ve made your decision and are preparing for the implementation, you may never have to do this again. Dynamics 365 cloud ERP is designed to support your business as long as it exists. On the Azure cloud, it has the scalability to adapt to growing numbers of transactions and benefits from the continuously enhanced, world-class security of the Microsoft data center network. It receives regularly scheduled updates and enhancements from Microsoft as tested, vetted innovations and more stringent cybersecurity capabilities become available.

Today’s ERP is infused with innovation

Today’s ERP systems are a far cry from the powerful, yet fairly rigid and hard-to-learn technology of years past. They are optimized for people in real-life business roles, enabled for mobility, and open to secure access by a work-from-anywhere workforce. Microsoft Copilot appears in both Dynamics 365 ERP systems as your everyday digital assistant. Dynamics 365 solutions can easily connect with Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Power Platform, so you can achieve more with existing investments in Microsoft skills and technology. ERP users can extend their decision enablement with dashboards built with Power BI and seamlessly access ERP data in their Microsoft 365 apps.

Initial benchmarks for ERP selection

Curious where your business might be at home on the Dynamics 365 cloud? In the ebook, we start with several basic criteria to help you set an ERP direction. One helpful benchmark is annual revenue. We find that companies with revenue below $150 million are often better served by Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, whereas Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management is generally the better fit for businesses with greater revenue. Your implementation budget needs to allow for roughly $100,000 to $300,000 for Business Central. Deployments of Finance and Supply Chain Management can run from approximately $1.5 million to $2.5 million, depending on their complexity and the extent of customizations or additional ISV solutions we integrate. And, while we see many exceptions, most organizations running Business Central equip 25 to 200 users with ERP capabilities, while Finance and Supply Chain Management user populations range from 200 up to several thousand, and average around 500.

The right partner is key for ERP success

Microsoft offers resources and expertise to help guide deployments especially of Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management, but experienced Microsoft partners are essential for facilitating every implementation. With more than 600 Microsoft Dynamics clients and over 150 Dynamics consultants, Sikich is one of the larger and more successful partners. We have strong industry expertise in manufacturing, distribution, and construction, and have developed engineer-to-order (ETO) and rolled-goods manufacturing solutions which we can integrate with Dynamics 365.

Successful deployments can be fast

When Sikich consultants perform a Dynamics 365 deployment for you, they rely on Sikich HEADSTART to accelerate the process and ensure the best possible outcomes. HEADSTART is a proven, efficient implementation methodology that comprises a complete instance of your Dynamics 365 ERP solution with processes optimized according to industry-best practices. It can deliver 85 percent or more of the capabilities companies require, out-of-the-box and without any modifications. On average, HEADSTART reduces the length of deployment projects by approximately 50 percent and their costs by nearly 25 percent. During a HEADSTART project, Sikich also performs data migrations and integrations with your other business systems, ensures that stakeholders and employees have a say in evaluating their new ERP, and helps you manage change with minimal disruption.

Designing ERP to serve you now and in the future

Ranging from acting on acting on obvious improvement opportunities to identifying the most advantageous software licensing, some of the most important work in an ERP upgrade takes place before we perform the implementation. No matter whether you’re new to ERP or are about to modernize, we assess and document your business requirements, which have likely changed if you deployed a legacy ERP system years ago. We interview your stakeholders to understand how the business grows and competes, what makes it unique and competitive, and where you want to take it in the future.

Ensuring outstanding data quality

We assess your data landscape to understand your business’ data quality and integrity. It may make sense to cleanse your data stores to remove duplications, fix inconsistencies, and eliminate obvious errors, so that you can start using your Dynamics 365 ERP solution with the most useful and problem-free data possible. Depending on the nature of your business, we may recommend data model changes to ease the transition to the cloud and ensure the strongest security for your customers’ and your own sensitive information.

Streamlining processes before introducing new technology

It’s always a good idea to review business processes before embarking on an important project like an ERP deployment. In working with you, we want to avoid transferring any current inefficiencies and bottlenecks into the modernized ERP environment. Based on their experience in your industry, our consultants can make sound recommendations for optimizing and simplifying workflows and business roles before we implement your Dynamics 365 ERP solution.

Reducing administrative and support overhead

Most companies can reduce their administrative workload when they move from on-premises to cloud ERP, even if the new ERP system accesses data that resides in specialized solutions in your facilities. It’s also possible that you might be able to do without some software add-ons and customizations, because ERP has matured and gained greater capabilities since your first deployment. That could result in additional savings of time and cost. Because today’s robust Dynamics 365 looks and works much like the well-known Microsoft 365 applications, your requirements for user support and training may greatly decline. As you onboard new team members, they can start working immediately in a Microsoft environment comprising Dynamics 365.

Working toward a confident ERP decision

If you’re unsure whether you should choose Business Central or Finance and Supply Chain Management, because both solutions have compelling advantages—we understand. We can help you delve deeper and come to the right decision. Sikich offers a three-day assessment workshop during which you can compare, contrast, and decide between Business Central and Finance and Supply Chain Management. Our main deliverable from this workshop is a detailed report that lists all the factors for or against either ERP solution, including strategic considerations, fit with your goals and operations, costs, and ROI.

Next steps

Ready to learn more or get your new or upgrade ERP project started? You can:

• Contact us.
• Download the ebook Choosing the Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP system that suits your business.
• Watch the webinar Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central or F&SCM: Which is Right For Me?
• Find out about our ERP services and the ERP solutions we recommend and support.