Debunking Business Central Myths

Debunking Business Central Myths

At some point, every company needs to evaluate if the business system that got them where they are today, is going to continue getting them where they want to go into the future. Your business may be outgrowing your current Microsoft Dynamics Great Plains (GP) solution and you’re considering Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC). But do you have some misgivings about BC because of all the conflicting opinions you’re coming across?

 

We’ve rounded up some common Business Central myths and the truths behind them to help put your mind at ease and lay out all the facts to make your next step a clearer one.

 

 

Myth 1: Business Central doesn’t have the functionality needed to run my business compared to GP:

You may be comfortable with your current Dynamics GP situation to provide the features you need, but with many of the companies on Dynamics GP are moving (if they haven’t already) to Business Central, meaning that the breadth of BC’s functionality is ever-growing. Microsoft is constantly investing in further enhancing Business Central, incorporating most requested features to ensure the product delivers the functionality that businesses need.

 

Myth 2: Business Central is the more expensive option

The real savings occur when taking advantage of Microsoft’s cloud platform to eliminate your internal spend for infrastructure and resources. With an on-premise setup, you are responsible for the costs of maintaining backups, maintenance, and security. When you move to the cloud, then you no longer need to pay your IT team to complete these upgrades, as those responsibilities are shifted to Microsoft. Also with Business Central, you pay for what you need, and scale up or down as needed.

 

Microsoft’s ‘Bridge to Cloud’ promotion lets existing Dynamics GP customers renew their Enhancement on a monthly basis and receive Dynamics 365 Business Central online licenses at a 60% discounted price for up to four years.  Customers who enroll in this promotion can continue to use their on-premises GP in parallel with Business Central online while maintaining Enhancement benefits on their on-premises license throughout the promo term.

 

MYTH 3: My business isn’t secure in the cloud

Dynamics GP was architected over 20 years ago as an on-premise accounting system – one that sits on a server supporting people within the four walls of a business. It was never envisioned that people would need to access sensitive information from remote. Microsoft’s more modern cloud-based accounting and ERP platform, Business Central comes with in-built Cloud Security to protect all your cloud-based services, applications, programs, technology, and provide threat management.

 

It is tightly integrated into productivity tools like Office 365, MS Teams, and Power BI reporting with native hooks and integration. It’s built to run on any device from any location without impediment. It’s built with a security-first architecture so there is no risk of malware or ransomware intrusion which is on the rise in small to mid-sized businesses. Workers are now knowledge workers and need good insights to make data-driven decisions. This information needs to happen in real-time on-demand. Cloud architecture supports all of this.

 

MYTH 4: Business Central is harder and more expensive to maintain

Like Dynamics GP, Dynamics 365 Business Central has regular major updates. The difference is, with Business Central, Microsoft automatically pushes out regular bug fixes and updates, included in your monthly licensing fee (can you hear your IT team’s sigh of relief?). Most updates take place overnight, with major updates happening twice a year. For more significant changes, Business Central provides a sandbox environment so you can safely test, train, or troubleshoot without disturbing your company’s work processes or business data.

 

Myth 5: Business Central is only for large businesses

This is less true for BC than it was for GP. The cloud subscription makes BC even more affordable for smaller businesses, without the cost of multiple servers, infrastructure maintenance, and implementations. And BC has a lot of features that can be customized to meet your business needs.

 

Myth 6: Business Central is a simple upgrade from Dynamics GP

If you’ve done this before, you know that moving from one system to another isn’t as easy as it sounds on the surface. And even though you are moving from one Microsoft product to another, you’re going between two completely different platforms. Thus, you may not necessarily be able to shift your data across in a simple click, but with a good partner can make it a pain-free process.

 

Partner with the Experts

Customers have countless options when evaluating which partner to work with on their BC implementation. As indicated, BC is a rich and deep ecosystem, and you may want to consider a partner who has experience migrating GP to BC, implementing BC, and providing support, as well as their pricing models.

 

SMB Suite’s one-price approach means there are no upfront fees, and not only does it include the hardware, but we are also responsible for the backups, data management security, emergency services, product upgrades. And don’t forget unlimited support, if you ever have any questions or concerns at all, we’re just a phone call away. Read more about our All-in-One price offering.

 

SMB Suite has over 30 years of experience as a Microsoft partner and has been deploying in the cloud for 20 years. We offer Microsoft ERP solutions so that our customers can grow with us using the best of breed software on the market.

 

At SMB Suite we’re committed to growing with you. As your business expands, we’ll help you uncover the solutions best suited to your business needs. We support Business Central with our trademark customer-first, with a problem-solving attitude that has made us the partner of choice for growing businesses across the country.

 

To learn more about Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, give us a call at 866-956-1636 or reach out to our sales team.

 

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Steve’s been with SMB Suite since 1998 and has been involved with nearly every aspects of the Company’s business as a strategist, professional services executive, cloud solutions architect, and senior consultant. In his current role, Steve is responsible for SMB Suite’s revenue and oversees the execution of ERP, CRM and BI projects for customers across a broad range of industries. Steve combines his expertise in MS Dynamics GP, CRM and other Microsoft products with a strong foundation in accounting and business to identify gaps and streamline customers’ processes. Prior to co-founding SMB Suite, Steve was previously Corporate Controller for MEHLE Behr and, prior to that, Audit Senior for Ernst & Young. Steve holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Texas at Arlington.

Jeremy is responsible for SMB Suite’s technology vision, strategy and implementation and is the architect of the Company’s Dynamics Cloud Platform. Highly adept in every facet of managed services, ERP systems and e-commerce platforms, Jeremy’s expertise spans the implementation and support of business and financial software solutions, as well as the customization and integration of SMB Suite’s cloud ERP technology stack. He holds numerous Microsoft and industry-related certifications, and was primarily responsible for designing the Company’s progressive business services platform in the early days of the Cloud. Prior to SMB Suite, Jeremy served as the financial analyst, systems administrator, and information systems liaison for a $2 billion financial services corporation.

Monty is responsible for SMB Suite’s day-to-day operation and, most importantly, its customers. As a leader, motivator and mentor, Monty creates loyal high performance teams willing to “walk through walls” to accomplish their goals. Prior to SMB Suite, Monty served as President of The Bradshaw Group (TBG), a global distributor, manufacturer, and repair facility for digital printers. In this role, he was the Company’s ambassador to its most important domestic, European and Latin American customers and TBG achieved a best-in-class Net Promoter Score of 74 for its superb customer satisfaction. Prior to TBG, Monty served as the General Manager of Sam’s Clubs three highest grossing U.S. stores and was named Regional Operator of the Year in 1999. Monty holds a BBA in Marketing from Texas Tech University and is an active member of Business Navigators. He has been active in Vistage International, Executives in Action, the Dallas/Fort Worth Retail Executives Association, as well as, A.P.I.C.S., the leading professional association for supply chain and operations management. Monty also volunteers with Hunger Busters and ManeGait, a therapeutic horsemanship organization.

David is a proven financial and information technology professional with expertise in providing business accounting software and computing solutions. He began his career by starting and managing a successful independent consulting practice for several years. He then launched the local systems consulting unit of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneurial Services Group, leading the office into the hi-tech consulting arena. After successfully developing the unit for Ernst & Young, David founded NextCorp (which became SMB Suite in 2013) to serve the business software needs of clients throughout the US. David has made SMB Suite one of the best cloud ERP providers in the industry. In addition to being a successful entrepreneur and leader, he is a software and technology specialist, holding certifications in various Microsoft and other technologies.