Forbes Advisor recently named its top ERPs of 2023 and recognized Dynamics 365 Business Central as the overall premier cloud ERP solution for small and medium-sized businesses against its competitors including NetSuite, SAP, Acumatica etc. This confirmation not only showcases the platform’s robust capabilities but also echoes TMC’s longstanding insights and recommendations to our clients over the years.
Forbe Advisor’s Pros/Cons Overview
Pros
- Wide range of features for large businesses and enterprises
- Transparent pricing
- Free 30-day trial
- Mobile app
- Warehouse management and reporting capabilities
In addition to Forbes pros, it is worth mentioning that Microsoft’s AI, Copilot within the entire Dynamics 365 suite including Business Central has helped users save significant time on repetitive tasks and streamlines workflows across various applications, leading to demonstrably higher productivity (e.g., studies show users complete tasks 27% faster).
Cons
- Software integration available as an add-on
- No free version available
While there are cons to every system, these drawbacks are not deal-breakers. Even though Business Central does not offer a free plan, it does offer a free trial, which can help you evaluate the system before you buy it.
Although BC requires add-ons for software integrations, the availability of add-ons provides flexibility for businesses to tailor the system according to their specific needs, ensuring a more customized and optimized solution.
Why Business Central is Forbes Advisor’s OVERALL Top Choice
“Microsoft Dynamics 365 [BC] ranks as one of the best ERP systems because it is a comprehensive platform that meets all the requirements for business management. It boasts a range of applications to help manage essential operations, including sales, marketing, customer service, finance, supply chain and human resources.
While Microsoft’s ERP has a diverse range of applications, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central was specifically designed to meet the unique needs of small and medium-sized businesses. Not surprisingly, it is both affordable and scalable, so it can support growing businesses that scale rapidly.”
– Forbes Advisor
For years, we’ve recommended Business Central to clients experiencing rapid growth, struggling with the challenges of managing multiple systems, and seeking to streamline their operations due to the cumbersome and time-consuming nature of their current setup. As noted by Forbes, Business Central is intentionally designed to centralize essential functions within a single platform, to simplify processes, reduce complexity, and enhancing efficiency for its users across their organization’s departments.
To conclude their top pick, Forbes Advisor broke down the advantages of BC over its competitors in the market. Let’s dive into them!
Core Features
Cloud-Based Deployment
One of Business Central’s praised core features is its cloud-based deployment. Forbes Advisor stated,
“As a cloud-based solution, it can consolidate all data and support business growth without large investments on IT infrastructure. There’s no need to manage hardware and software maintenance tasks such as backups and patches—because Microsoft can do it for you.
Since all data is in a central hub, employees in different offices and departments can access information easily for better teamwork.”
In addition, we’ve heard from clients who migrated from their on-premises ERP to Business Central that before implementing Business Central, a lot of things were manual and had to be done offline to reflect their accounting books and external financial reporting. However, since adopting Business Central, users rave about its data synchronization which saves them time and ultimately their bottom line.
Financial Management and Accounting
Forbes Advisor highlights the exceptional ability of Business Central to handle financial operations as a key business feature. This includes managing accounts payable and receivable, performing bank reconciliation, maintaining general ledger, managing fixed assets, and overseeing cash flow.
“BC maximizes sales by collecting product reviews, collecting payments across multiple currencies and setting up subscriptions for customer segments. You can also uncover little-known financial insights by aggregating data from accounting, sales and inventory.”
– Forbes Advisor
What does this mean for you? By harnessing BC’s capacity to gather product reviews, you’re not just fostering engagement with your customers but also gaining crucial insight into their preferences. This knowledge enables you to finetune the products and services you offer. In addition, BC’s multi-currency payment processing opens up your business to an international audience by making transactions seamless and improving overall customer satisfaction. With BC aggregating data from various sectors like sales, accounting, and inventory, you’ll have a clear overview of your financial performance which empowers your business to make data-driven decisions that fuel growth and increase profits!
Reporting and Analytics
Forbes also praises Business Central for empowering executives and managers with its data-driven insights for conscious decision-making. It features built-in dashboards and KPIs updated in real-time to aid in budgeting, forecasting, and resource allocation.
Furthermore, it allows for the creation of financial reports and customized analytics. To distribute this important data, Business Central connects with Power BI, enabling you to generate and share data visualizations with your team.
Financial Management and Accounting
Forbes Advisor highlights the exceptional ability of Business Central to handle financial operations as a key business feature. This includes managing accounts payable and receivable, performing bank reconciliation, maintaining general ledger, managing fixed assets, and overseeing cash flow.
“BC maximizes sales by collecting product reviews, collecting payments across multiple currencies and setting up subscriptions for customer segments. You can also uncover little-known financial insights by aggregating data from accounting, sales and inventory.”
– Forbes Advisor
What does this mean for you? By harnessing BC’s capacity to gather product reviews, you’re not just fostering engagement with your customers but also gaining crucial insight into their preferences. This knowledge enables you to finetune the products and services you offer. In addition, BC’s multi-currency payment processing opens up your business to an international audience by making transactions seamless and improving overall customer satisfaction. With BC aggregating data from various sectors like sales, accounting, and inventory, you’ll have a clear overview of your financial performance which empowers your business to make data-driven decisions that fuel growth and increase profits!
Reporting and Analytics
Forbes also praises Business Central for empowering executives and managers with its data-driven insights for conscious decision-making. It features built-in dashboards and KPIs updated in real-time to aid in budgeting, forecasting, and resource allocation.
Furthermore, it allows for the creation of financial reports and customized analytics. To distribute this important data, Business Central connects with Power BI, enabling you to generate and share data visualizations with your team.
Streamlined Human Resources
Thanks to BC’s tools for payroll, employee management, benefits administration, and performance evaluation, businesses can effectively manage their human resources. Additionally, you can automate workflows, audit trails, and compliance checks for streamlined operations.
Advanced AI and Data Analytics Integration
With Microsoft’s substantial investment in AI, including Copilot in their Dynamics 365 suite solutions, you can leverage its updated AI features and data analytics seamlessly integrated with Power BI and Power Platform. Create data visualizations, dashboards, and key performance indicators (KPIs) to share among your team members.
Inclusions and Extras
Mobile App
In Forbes’ view, the Microsoft Dynamics 365 mobile app is a game-changer for businesses on the move. This includes the ability to handle business data and refresh sales records. Additionally, this mobile application provides an effortless integration with other Microsoft services like Power Apps and Power BI, perfecting the synergy of your business tools.
Third-Party Integrations
“With Microsoft Dynamics 365 BC, you can access AppSource to find potential integrations from Microsoft and select partners. For one, it is equipped with pre-built Microsoft applications such as Microsoft 365, Power BI and Power Platform. This means Microsoft users can integrate the solution into their current workflow and take advantage of other Microsoft tools.” – Forbes Advisor
Leveraging integrations within the Microsoft ecosystem is extremely powerful. For instance, if you’re already using Microsoft 365 for your business, integrating it with Business Central will centralize your customer data, emails, and documents within a unified ecosystem. This not only improves collaboration among teams but also ensures data consistency and accuracy across different departments.
Should you need to incorporate non-Microsoft applications like the widely-used Calendly and HubSpot Sales into your operations, rest assured, the process of integration is straightforward and simple.
Ease of Use
“One of the advantages of Business Central is that it has a familiar Microsoft interface, which makes it easy to learn for Microsoft users. Additionally, the system is highly customizable, so businesses can customize it to meet their specific needs and workflows.” – Forbes Advisor
That’s right, if you’re already a Microsoft user, it will be intuitive and easy for you to learn and navigate the system. Also, BC’s ability to be highly customizable won over many users as they compared it to its competitors (e.g. NetSuite). Here’s what a BC user has to say,
“We saw the BC demo, and what stood out to me were the streamlined processes and intuitive functionalities that made sense. During our demo, we were able to customize certain aspects. Its high level of customization for the specific features we wanted was fantastic. Moreover, the interface felt natural and well-thought-out, which reflects how BC has designed it.” – Senior Director of Finance
Security
In comparison to its competitors, Forbes praises the Dynamics 365 suite (including Business Central) for being equipped with industry-standard encryption and multifactor authentication. With certifications such as SOC 1, SOC 2, and ISO 27001 attesting to its robust security and privacy measures. If there is a data loss, rest assured, Dynamics 365 has the capability to automatically backup and recover data.
“Microsoft Dynamics 365 has a range of security features to help protect customer data and maintain the privacy of sensitive information. Role-based security lets administrators control access to information and functionalities based on user roles and responsibilities.” -Forbes Advisor
Customer Service and Support
Microsoft Dynamics 365 delivers a comprehensive support service featuring digital messaging, voice channels, and live chat. For businesses requiring further assistance, there’s an option to opt for a quick response expert service at a nominal charge of $9 per user per month. Additionally, it provides a consolidated enterprise package, specifically designed for corporations deeply relying on Microsoft technologies.
Additional Features
Sales and Service Management
Business Central is equipped with efficient tools to handle sales and service operations. This includes managing customers, controlling sales orders, and administering service orders.
Project Management
“Managing tasks and timelines are much easier thanks to Microsoft Dynamic 365’s project management capabilities. The platform allows you to manage contracts with forecasting, estimation and project quotes.” – Forbes Advisor
BC’s project planning features indeed provide a comprehensive solution for project management. They allow you to craft your project plans, set tasks, and timelines in an organized manner. The ability to assign tasks to fit employees based on their availability and expertise further enhances productivity. Plus, when it comes to budget, Forbes stated,
“Don’t worry about overspending; you can easily track expenses associated with your projects and monitor your budget.”
Warehouse and Supply Chain Management
“Microsoft Dynamics 365 has everything you need to manage your supply chain. It provides a complete overview of your supply chain’s visibility across time zones and geographies.” – Forbes Advisor
In our global business environment, it’s essential to have real-time insights into inventory and production schedules across multiple regions and time zones to maintain operational efficiency and satisfy customer needs. Dynamics 365 BC offers robust supply chain management features, enabling users to actively monitor goods movement, identify potential bottlenecks and delays, and make informed decisions to streamline their processes. From managing inventory to fast-tracking order fulfillment, Dynamics 365 provides the tools needed for agility and responsiveness in a dynamic marketplace.
Furthermore, it offers insights into supply chain performance across various geographies, helping users identify trends, predict demand changes, and adjust their strategies. This proactive approach to supply chain management not only bolsters operational efficiency but also positions businesses to outperform competitors and deliver superior customer experiences.
Automation
Another core feature of BC that contributed to its recognition as the best overall ERP is its automated functionality with Sales Force Automation (SFA), which optimizes sales operations. This feature enables users to track leads, manage sales pipelines, organize meetings, and streamline overall sales workflows. Forbes stated,
“Maximizing productivity seems impossible when your task list is cluttered with repetitive tasks that waste time and money. Fortunately, Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 lets you automate workflows and processes.
It’s easy and fast to create AI, audit trails and workflows, leading to improved performance and productivity.”
How does Dynamics 365 Business Central Compare to Other ERP Systems?
“Microsoft Dynamics 365 compares favorably with other ERP systems.”-Forbes Advisor
Forbes Advisor compares Dynamics 365 Business Central to three other ERP systems: Oracle NetSuite OneWorld, SAP Business One Professional and Acumatica. Here’s a summary of how they stack up:
Oracle NetSuite OneWorld
Netsuite is a cloud-based ERP system that has a diverse range of features for accounting, warehouse management, supply chain management and reporting.
“Similar to Microsoft Dynamics 365 BC, its popularity is thanks to its suite of tools for accounting, warehouse management, supply chain management and reporting…[However] Dynamics 365 BC is known for its strong integration with other Microsoft products and familiar interface.” – Forbes Advisor
In addition, when compared to BC’s cost, functionality, integration, interface and support –NetSuite falls short.
SAP Business One Professional
SAP is a cloud-based and on-premises ERP system that has a broad range of features for financial management, supply chain management and HR functionalities. However, Forbes Advisor indicated that,
“Dynamics 365 BC is equipped with a modern and intuitive user interface that is consistent with the look and feel of most Microsoft products. However, SAP Business One Professional has a slightly more traditional and complex user interface.”
Acumatica
Acumatica is also a cloud-based ERP system that has customizable workflows, automation and flexibility. However, ex-Acumatica users have complained about its inventory management capabilities and support.
As you can see, each ERP system has its own strengths and weaknesses, and the best one for you depends on your business needs, preferences and budget. However, we believe that Dynamics 365 Business Central offers a balanced and comprehensive solution that can suit most businesses, especially those that use Microsoft products or cloud applications.
Why Work with the Best Microsoft Partner for Implementing Dynamics 365 Business Central?
If you’re convinced that Dynamics 365 Business Central is the right ERP system for you, the next important step is to work with the best Microsoft partner to guide you in implementing it. Why is this so crucial?
Because implementing an ERP system is not a simple task. It involves planning, data migration, configuration, customization, integration, testing, training and support. Without the right partner, you might encounter challenges such as delays, errors, compatibility issues, data loss, security breaches and user dissatisfaction.
By working with a premier Microsoft partner like TMC, you can avoid these pitfalls and enjoy the following benefits:
- Expertise and experience: TMC possesses exceptional expertise and skill in the seamless deployment of Dynamics 365 Business Central, strictly adhering to top-tier standards and proven methodologies. Leveraging our vast experience from previous BC implementations, we have the foresight to pinpoint and tackle potential challenges before they occur, guaranteeing a smooth implementation journey.
- Personalization and optimization: TMC specializes in tailoring Dynamics 365 Business Central to suit your unique business requirements and workflows. Our team stands out in personalizing and refining the platform, promising uninterrupted workflows of your current systems. Our customized methodology ensures streamlined operations that synchronize perfectly with your business goals.
- Training and support: Partnering with TMC allows you to leverage our comprehensive training and ongoing support services, to empower you and your team. From the initital onboarding steps through continuous assistance including maintenance and system updates, TMC is committed to making sure your system operates efficiently and safely. This leaves you free to concentrate on driving your business forward.
Are you interested in implementing Dynamics 365 Business Central for your business? Contact us today and let us show you why we are the best Microsoft partner for the job.
