We're the first to admit that ‘Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central’ is a bit of a mouthful. Let us break it down for you and help demystify Business Central's place in the Microsoft Dynamics portfolio of products
What is Microsoft Dynamics 365?
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is the name for a family of products designed to work together and integrate with your existing M365 apps like Outlook, Excel and Teams.
Dynamics apps can be used in isolation or in combination to meet the needs of individual businesses - across all industries and covering a range of company sizes.
Because Dynamics products all work together, you can build a complete solution that connects and manages all your business operations.
Launchpad is a subscription plan for Business Central, the small business finance offering from the Dynamics Portfolio.
How does Business Central fit into Dynamics?
Business Central is a cloud-based accounting system designed specifically for small businesses. It helps to manage, automate and connect a company's financials, sales, purchase, inventory and operations.
The two most common integrations that we see between Business Central and other Dynamics products are:
- Sales Professional - a dedicated customer relationship management system, also designed for small businesses.
- Power Platform - a set of no-code / low-code tools that open up enormous potential for a business in terms of data analysis, process automation and the use of AI to build apps and virtual agents.
Was Business Central previously called something else?
Business Central was originally called Dynamics NAV, and before that Navision. Dynamics NAV was one of the original products in the Dynamics family. It was rebranded to represent the expansion in its capabilities beyond just finance. Business Central is also ‘born in the cloud’ while NAV was primarily hosted on-premises, as well as more recently in private clouds such as Microsoft Azure.
What are the benefits of Business Central?
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central helps power the growth of your business. It is packed full of useful features to help your business take control of processes and streamline operations.
Using the power of AI and real-time data reporting, Business Central helps connect people, data, productivity and business - helping businesses scale and grow. With integration into the full suite of Microsoft applications, Business Central's advanced accounting and reporting tools are all brought together in an intuitive and user-friendly interface.
- It is evergreen so automatic updates happen overnight, and Business Central is always compliant.
- It's modular and flexible so you can start small and add extra functionality to the system as your business grows.
- It integrates with Power BI to offer reporting across your entire business.
- It's cloud-based so there is no need for servers or expensive hosting costs.
Why does Business Central vary in price?
Microsoft sets the license prices for Dynamics products, but it is up to individual partners to price support and setup costs. Business Central is a system that can meet the needs of a wide range of businesses and therefore pricing varies depending on several factors, such as scoping, development and customization requirements.
Launchpad is a unique fixed-price Business Central subscription offering that includes setup as well as ongoing support. Pricing is available online - take a look here.
Our award-winning implementation method of starting with just the basics has made Business Central accessible to increasing numbers of small businesses around the world. Ongoing support from our expert consultants enables customers to add extra functionality to their system over time as their business grows.
