What Is Dynamics 365 Business Central? (2024)

Dynamics 365 Business Centralis Microsoft’s modern ERP solution designed for small and medium-sized businesses. It helps organizations manage their financials, sales, service, and operations all in one place.

I have sold Business Central to dozens of customers and also told several potential customers in certain situations that Business Central may not be right for them.

In this article, I’ll introduce you to Business Central’s core features, pricing, target market, and some simple criteria for learning if you should explore this ERP further for your business. Let’s start with this summary table. Further details on each point are below.

How Business Central and the Microsoft Stack Meet Your Needs

As I often tell potential customers, like other general-purpose ERP solutions, Dynamics 365 Business Central will perform the majority of any business’ functional needs itself — with the remaining requirements being filled by extensions, integrations, or interoperability with other popular apps.

In this respect, Business Central is similar to other ERP solutions. What differentiates it is the ease of interoperability with the rest of the Microsoft stack (Office, Power Platform, Copilot, Dynamics 365 CRM, etc.) allowing you to address your full business needs within a single platform.

License Pricing

The table below gives prices for the three main Dynamics 365 Business Central license types. For further details, and guidance on the right license types for your company, see our overview of Business Central licensingand our comparison of Business Central Premium and Essentials.

Note: Pricing is subject to change without notice. Always contact Encorefor the most current product pricing, and for specific advice tailored to your situation.

AI Capabilities in Dynamics 365 Business Central

Every major new release of Business Central contains generative AI features to improve productivity. More importantly, Microsoft recognizes the need to maintain the security and integrity of your data and IP.

Microsoft Copilot respects the policies set up and in place for your data, and your data is not consumed outside of your organization to train other LLMs (Large Language Models), or exposed to the web in any way. Some of the published features for Copilot in Dynamics 365 Business Central include:

• Natural Language Query and Search with Copilot
• Marketing Text Suggestions with Copilot
• Enhanced Bank Reconciliation with Copilot
• Inventory Forecasting
• Late Payment Prediction
• Cash Flow Analysis

Learn more about the recently added functionality of Copilot in Dynamics 365 Business Central.

What Kinds of Companies Is Business Central Right For?

Business Central can serve as the primary ERP solution for mid-market companies either migrating up from other systems such as Dynamics GP, QuickBooks, Sage, or NetSuite, to those already using Microsoft product suites, such as Microsoft 365 and Power Platform who want to leverage the interoperability and power of being a true Microsoft shop.

As earlier mentioned, this can fit any number of industries from not-for-profit organizations to service, distribution, and manufacturing.

Make sure to speak with an experienced Dynamics 365 Business Central Partner about your specific needs.

Who Might Business Central Not Be Right For?

I have spoken to many companies about Business Central, and although it is an excellent ERP choice in a wide range of scenarios, there are some situations where it may not be a great fit.

For example, maybe your company wants to work in G-Suite (Google Workspace). You may not be able to really benefit from all the extended functionality and interoperability offered in Business Central and could just as easily fit any other ERP solution.

Or maybe you have a unique industry where very specific requirements would not be found in general-purpose ERP software, such as Engineering. In these cases, the typical scenario is that the industry-specific software can handle the operational business needs and then will leverage the ERP for what it does best which is accounting, inventory management, etc., in more of a traditional hub and spoke model.

Implementing Dynamics 365 Business Central

To maximize the ROI of Business Central for your company, it’s crucial to approach the implementation thoughtfully with a partner who can help you:

• recommend best practices,
• understand your business processes to determine where automation can improve efficiency and productivity, and
• navigate the overwhelming number of options available to you when you start searching the Internet for solutions.

At Encore, we aim to understand your current business, technology, processes, and challenges while strategizing how to successfully transform to your desired future state.

You may also be interested in these related resources:

• The 5-Step ERP Implementation Process
• Overcoming Challenges in Your Dynamics 365 Business Central Implementation

Dynamics 365 Business Central Training and Support

As part of your implementation, and in order to leverage your solution effectively over time, you’ll also need training and support from a Dynamics Partner.

Each Business Central implementation is unique, and most implementations will include some extensions, integrations, or even customizations. So, it’s usually best for the company that provides your implementation to also provide training and support.

At Encore, we offer support and training as well as implementations for Business Central clients.

For training, one of the methods we recommend is to have Encore “train the trainer” – building up the skills of a small number of power users or product experts at your company, who then go on to educate the rest of your staff.

Learn More About Business Central

To learn more about Dynamics 365 Business Central, please explore our many articles about the product or watch our training video playlist.

To learn more about us at Encore and how we can help with your Dynamics 365 Business Central needs, please visit our About Us page, or simply contact us. We’d love to talk.