The Pitfalls and Pains of Microsoft D365 – How to Avoid Them and How to be Successful

Like any digital transformation process, implementing Microsoft Dynamics365 (D365) has challenges that need to be overcome for it to be successful. Unlike implementing other digital transformations there are several challenges that are unique to D365.

Here we have listed some of the most common issues when it comes to the implementation of D365 and how you can overcome these and start to see the benefits.

Like any digital transformation process, implementing D365 has challenges that need to be overcome for it to be successful. Unlike implementing other digital transformations there are several challenges that are unique to D365.

A powerful yet flexible CRM or ERP solution, D 365 can be an indispensable tool for businesses of all sizes, providing scalable systems that grow with your business. The effectiveness of this solution can be directly correlated to its implementation, so getting it right the first time can save a lot of time, money, and headaches.

There are various reasons for D365 implementation failures. Here are a few and how Access plc’s team of experts can help you turn a D365 implementation failure into your latest success story.

Inadequate Communication

Just because you sent an email to the rest of your organisation letting them know that you are adopting D365, it doesn’t mean that individuals are prepared for the personal changes they must make to bring a business transformation to life.

A multi-channel approach in letting your employees know of the changes that they should expect both individually and departmentally is an incredibly helpful way to make sure that your implementation runs smoothly with few complaints or questions from employees.

Multiple outlets that can be utilised include team and department meetings, 1:1 check-in for individual questions, utilising website messaging / intranet services, social networking sites for your organisation (internal sites), company newsletter (digital or print) and even video messages can play a part in helping make sure you have clearly communicated the positive impact of your latest digital transformation.

Not Selecting the Right Partner

When you select your D365 partner, you are not only choosing someone who only helps you implement the software but also someone who can help you leverage your solution’s full capabilities.

Whilst D365 has some powerful out of the box capabilities, but if you want to meet long-term business goals, then you will need to select your partner carefully.

There are several different key factors to consider when picking a partner. You need a partner with incredible product knowledge, as well as industry experience to help anticipate needs and challenges. They must also have a professional team to cover all areas, understand your business values and have great communication skills to maintain a transparent relationship.

If you stick to these points, your D365 partner will be someone that can help you utilize all the software capabilities effortlessly.

Underestimating the Organizational Impact

When implementing D365, it’s easy to focus solely on the changes people will experience with a new system. However, when it comes to digital transformation throughout an entire organisation, you need to consider the impact this will have throughout various departments and create a change management strategy.

This strategy should include several key points including business processes, tools and mobile apps that may be used throughout areas of the business, job roles/responsibilities, training and any new job skills needed.

Lack of A Planning

One of the biggest reasons for a D365 failure is a lack of a plan of what the business wants to do with the system once it’s live. Whilst this may seem obvious, planning long term goals to continually get the most out of the platform is vital to maintaining success.

Creating a plan that helps you, and your partner of choice, understand what you need from the system, the exact steps in building this and how to maintain high levels of success. An important aspect to consider when planning is to work with key stakeholders in your business and train them to train your staff in how to use D365, making your plans become a reality.

Setting and Understanding Your Budget

Budget and cost are major considerations for anyone during a D365 implementation. If you don’t plan out a proper budget, you could end up paying over the odds and see a smaller ROI.

Understanding your own business needs and the techniques required to help you implement this will help you plan your budget accordingly. Discussing the total cost of ownership, software (or hardware upgrades), and IT resources with your partner of choice will help make this a faster, easier task.

Data Migration

A Microsoft Dynamics Salary Survey showcased that 39% of users said they worried about data migration when moving to D365. Almost every business is going to have some data to carry over into a new system, and no one wants any business-critical information to fall through the cracks.

A general rule of thumb is that data migration will make up around 25-35% of your overall implementation time. So, factoring in a small sample set of data that are representative of your entire databank and migrating that first to flag up any issues could save you a lot of time and should be something to consider within the planning stages of your D365 implementation.

D365 is a complex solution, and it requires a skilled team of developers, consultants, and project managers to implement the software without running into the issues.

All businesses want to be client-centric as much as possible to create a positive experience for their customers. D365 can leverage customer relationship insights to provide superior customer service, manage your financials, automate processes securely and maximise productivity and profitability.

An estimate for a current Access plc client calculated an ROI at 500% when factoring in the saving expensive maintenance of old solutions, new dynamic technology, reduced resources time and the vastly reduced cost of ownership.

We understand that an agile or dynamic shift in your organisational structure can be a daunting process, and if done wrong could do more damage than good. Access plc has a team of experienced, dedicated D365 experts.

Author: Mark Thackeray