Organizations currently running instances of Dynamics AX may be contemplating shifting to Dynamics 365. Changing your enterprise resource planning (ER) solution is a major business decision, so you want to ensure you understand the pros and cons of Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations vs. AX. Let’s look at what each platform offers and what your company can gain by moving to a cloud-based ERP Dynamics 365 Finance.
What is Dynamics AX?
Microsoft designed the ERP platform to help medium-sized and large organizations help users work more effectively and compete at a global level. It functions similarly to other Microsoft software, making it more user-friendly to companies already working with its suite of business tools.
Dynamics AX automates and streamlines business intelligence, financial, and supply chain processes. You can optimize the way materials and goods flow using advanced logistics management capabilities. Placing goods in customers’ hands faster improves their experience and builds loyalty to your company.
The software gives you greater visibility into operations by tracking assets, cutting down on reporting areas, and adding automation to streamline everyday business processes. Dynamics AX comes with predictive analytics and data collection functions to gain more insight into what’s happening at every point of your supply chain.
Employees get help making decisions and performing essential business tasks. You can add automation to make business processes run more smoothly and integrate with other necessary business tools. It also adapts to accommodate new business requirements to help you expand your organization’s reach.
Additional Dynamics AX Benefits
Dynamics AX works well for companies based in various industries, including retail and manufacturing. The platform helps you:
- Connect with customers using omnichannel control anywhere in the world
- Engage more with customers and glean real-time insights about their purchasing behavior
- Grow eCommerce efforts
- Adapt to changing customer demands
- Improve efficiency and streamline internal processes
- Help workers perform their job roles more effectively
What is Dynamics 365 Finance?
Dynamics 365 Finance, formerly Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations, monitors financial operation performance in real-time. The cloud-based ERP also makes predictive outcomes and helps organizations make decisions based on data. The capabilities of Dynamics 365 Finance include business intelligence to help organizations:
- Set up budgeting and forecasting — Companies need the ability to budget accurately and make timely forecasts to maintain financial stability. Dynamics 365 lets you set up transaction-level details for budget needs. You can also create budget and forecast reports and contrast them with your actual business performance during a given period. In addition, your organization can add alerts when you hit specific budget targets or limits.
- Automate business processes — Dynamics 365 Finance integrates your core business processes with financials. You can also set up automation of manual tasks to speed up productivity and increase your financial performance.
- Enable AI-powered data insights — Get a better understanding of your organization’s cash-flow position to help you be more proactive about improving your standing.
- Grow your company — Improve the profitability of your business using Dynamics 365 Finance’s predictive recommendations. You can lower costs and improve efficiency by using internal financial control tools. The solution scales rapidly when you want to expand your company organically, partner with other businesses, or set up subsidiaries.
Additional Dynamics 365 Finance Benefits
The scalable ERP foundation set by Dynamics 365 finance integrates seamlessly with other cloud applications. You can achieve greater business growth and handle fluctuating market demands by:
- Providing you with advanced analytics for improved report analysis
- Integrating with Microsoft Power BI to set up a centralized analytical workspace
- Resolve finance issues faster using machine learning (ML)
- Establishing role-based workflows and security
- Supporting global operations with multiple languages and financial requirements
- Integrating with popular business software
Another great feature of Dynamics 365 Finance is how it allows you to set up customized role-based workspaces for various teams. It’s easier for those groups to complete tasks and collaborate on projects to work out any issues. Process automation helps you optimize your financial management strategies.
What Are the Major Differences Between Dynamics 365 and Dynamics AX?
The upfront costs are the main difference between Dynamics 365 Finance vs. Dynamics AX. Because you have to host the platform on-premises, you’ll have to pay out thousands in up-front server costs. Since Dynamics 365 is built on the Azure Cloud platform, making that kind of investment is no longer necessary.
Licensing pricing also works differently. With Dynamics AX, you pay for perpetual user and server licenses. Because Dynamics 365 Finance is subscription-based, you pay a monthly fee for each user.
If you are having trouble setting up reports to your satisfaction in Dynamics AX, you may find the upgraded reports in Dynamics 365 Finance easier to deal with. Organizations can integrate data from other sources to analyze and provide business insights to relevant stakeholders.
Another reason to consider shifting from Dynamics AX to Dynamics 365 Finance is the support. Many partners no longer support the product, so you’ll need to ensure that you have someone available who can offer guidance when there are problems with the instance.
Finally, there’s no built-in disaster recovery within Dynamics AX. You do get those capabilities when you switch over to Dynamics 365 Finance. There’s also more security protection offered thanks to the investments Microsoft continually makes in supporting its Azure cloud platform.
Get Ready for the Future
Making a change from the familiar to something new is often challenging. If you’re worried about moving from a legacy instance of Dynamics AX to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance, Internet eBusiness Solutions (IES) can help. We have experience designing effective cloud migration strategies for companies of all sizes. If you’re interested in finding a partner to help you transition, reach out to IES today to set up an expert consultation.
