Choosing the right Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance implementation partner is one of the most critical decisions your project-driven organization will make. The right partner doesn’t just install software; they act as a strategic advisor who understands the unique fabric of your business and helps you build a foundation for growth, predictability, and profitability.
The wrong partner can leave you with a generic system full of process gaps, forcing your teams back into the spreadsheets and manual work you sought to eliminate.
As you evaluate your options, don’t settle for a generalist. Demand a partner who can prove their expertise in these three critical areas:
1. Verifiable Project Expertise
Many consulting firms claim to serve project-based companies, but their experience is often spread thinly across dozens of industries. For a business like yours, whether in ETO manufacturing, engineering, construction, aerospace, defense, biotech, pharma, or other professional services, a generalist approach is a recipe for failure. You need a partner whose entire focus is on the project-driven world you live in.
Before signing a contract, ask for specifics:
- Are their consultants from project companies like yours? Do the people going to implement your system and provide valuable process advice understand your business? Or are they generalist Dynamics consultants trying to adapt?
A partner with resources from project-driven companies with many years of experience will have a profound advantage when working with your team, understanding the nuances of your project processes from end to end.
- Is their practice dedicated to project-driven companies? Look for a partner who exclusively serves project-based organizations. This ensures they have deep expertise in the unique financial, operational, and governance requirements that generic ERP systems can’t handle.
Learn how to empower your people and processes with D365. All of them.
Download this ebook:
Managing Projects in D365 Finance
Most project-driven organizations using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance still rely on spreadsheets and disconnected tools to manage complex projects. How do you fix that?
This quick-read guide helps you understand how to use D365 Finance to empower your people and processes across the board:
- What your people do today that they shouldn’t have to
- Why D365 Finance (even with Supply Chain) leaves a project control gap that bogs down your people
- What critical processes are missing in D365 for project companies
- What PlanAutomate has that Project Operations does not—and when to use each
- How to decide which solution is right for your project environment
2. A “Process-First” Approach
Effective digital transformation starts with your business processes, not with technology. A partner who immediately dives into software features without first understanding your workflows is putting the cart before the horse. This “technology-first” approach often leaves your core processes with gaps and forces your teams into awkward, inefficient workarounds.
A premier partner will insist on a “process-first” methodology. This means they invest the time upfront to:
- Analyze and map your current project business processes.
- Work with you to redesign and optimize those processes for maximum impact and efficiency.
- Systemize your newly refined processes within the D365 Finance platform.
This approach ensures the technology is configured to serve your business, not the other way around. The result is a solution that feels intuitive, eliminates friction, and delivers faster time to value.
3. The Most Advanced Technology Solutions
Your goal is to run more efficient, predictable, and profitable projects. To do that, you need a comprehensive and intelligent system, not mediocre technology that only addresses a fraction of your needs. Don’t settle for a disconnected “bolt-on” or point solution that forces you to augment your work with spreadsheets and out-of-system processes.
Demand a partner who delivers a solution that is both comprehensive and genuinely innovative:
Unified Platform:
Does their solution cover the entire project lifecycle in one system, from estimation and financials to operations, execution, and closeout? This creates a single version of truth, eliminating the silos between your project and finance teams.
Empowering AI:
Is their approach to AI truly empowering, or is it just gimmicky features like automated task creation? True innovation lies in creating a system of intelligence, not just a system of record with some AI features.
Look for AI that can identify risks before they escalate, analyze the root causes of schedule and budget issues, and provide actionable recommendations to keep projects on track. This elevates your project professionals from data administrators to strategic decision-makers.
By prioritizing these three qualities, deep project expertise, a process-first methodology, and advanced, unified technology, you can select a Microsoft partner who will help you not only implement a system but truly transform your project-driven business, setting you up for long-term success.
Are you a project-driven business looking for an experience D365 Finance Partner?
