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Dynamics NAV to Business Central Migration

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Hire Dynamics Developers » Services » Upgrade (Migrate) Dynamics NAV to Business Central

Benefits of Migration for Your Business

Dynamics NAV to Business Central migration is a matter of time. Although many companies delay the transition to new software, the old version often ceases to meet the organization’s basic needs. 

The first factor is the end of official support from Microsoft. Thus, due to the lack of automatic security updates, companies look for specialists to provide quality support. Secondly, although NAV is a fairly powerful system, it may not cope with modern challenges. As a result, you may feel that you don’t have enough resources to fulfill your tasks. Finally, there is the issue of integration. Unlike the new cloud-based systems, NAV is more difficult to connect with other software, which makes data exchange more difficult. 

Let’s look at all the benefits of the NAV to Business Central upgrade.

Cloud-Based Platform

  • Accessibility: BC is a cloud-based system. It means you work with tools and data from any device (laptop or smartphone) and easily share materials with colleagues.  
  • Reduced Costs: You don’t have to spend money on third-party software support or custom functionality since Business Center is fully supported by Microsoft, y
  • Flexibility: Cloud infrastructure allows companies to increase or decrease resources. So, the capabilities of your software will grow with your company.

Integration with Microsoft 365 and Other Services

  • Microsoft 365 Suite: BC is easy to integrate with Microsoft 365 apps such as Outlook, Excel, Teams, and other Dynamics modules. This way, you get a common environment to deal with all tasks like managing orders and reports directly within familiar interfaces.
  • Third-Party Integration: You connect different third-party apps to your core platform. It is relevant in programs such as Slack for team communication or Google Suite for workflow organization.

Enhanced Functionality and Flexibility

  • Broader Capabilities: You get modern financial, supply chain, and project management features.
  • Modular Apps and Extensions: Extension-based architecture allows you to easily add or customize functionality without altering the core product.

Improved User Experience

  • Modern Interface: It offers a more intuitive and customizable user interface, where all tools are at your fingertips.
  • Role-based Personalization: Users customize their dashboards based on their roles. It simplifies dealing with specific tasks and allows cope with data more effectively.

Regular Updates and Innovations

  • Microsoft provides regular updates to BC. It includes new features, performance fixes, and compliance updates without major version upgrades. This way, you stay up-to-date and cope with current challenges. 

Lower Total Cost of Ownership

  • Migrate NAV to Business Central means a new subscription pricing model. It reduces upfront costs compared to NAV’s traditional licensing.

Improved Security & Compliance

  • Business Central works according to Microsoft’s security system. It includes data encryption, multi-factor authentication, and compliance to ensure high-level protection of your data.

Mobile and Remote Work Support

  • You get mobile apps for iOS and Android, so you may work on your tasks on the go. It allows you to complete the task quickly and give comprehensive feedback on time.

Advanced Analytics & AI Integration

  • Better Reporting: With built-in Power BI integration, you get comprehensive analytics and work with visual dashboards.
  • AI and Machine Learning: Business Central works with an AI assistant, Copilot. This way, you may automate many tasks and improve cash flow forecasting, late payment prediction, and inventory optimization.

Our Successful Case Study

Our client is a leading Microsoft Dynamics partner specializing in software upgrades to Dynamics 365 Business Central. They use modern approaches, methodologies, and technologies to ensure a smooth transition to modern modules.

The company approached us with a request to hire 3 Microsoft Dynamics consultants within a year, with at least two of them to join the team in the next 3-6 months. They were looking to find highly qualified professionals for the long term to support their growth and expansion plans.

As a result, the client hired an experienced MS Dynamics NAV/BC expert from Bosnia and Herzegovina. We choose a consulting model for this case. It allows our clients to leverage external talent and expertise to address their development needs.

The cooperation proved fruitful and helped the company to expand and improve its services to other regions and gain international recognition. 

Dynamics NAV to Business Central Migration Steps

Navision to Business Central migration is a multi-stage and complex process. It requires careful checking at every step to ensure a smooth data migration and avoid errors. Use the instructions below to make the transition successful and bug-free.

Assessment and Planning

  • Assess your setup: Begin the process by analyzing your NAV setup. Evaluate the tools you have, the amount and condition of data, working integrations, and other elements, and identify the material that needs to be migrated. 
  • Select a deployment option: Decide whether you want to move to Business Central on-premises or Business Central in the cloud. The cloud option is preferred because it offers flexibility and scalability.
  • Create a Business Central migration team: Build a reliable team of specialists who will help you reproduce all the processes efficiently and without losses. You may hire Dynamics Business Central consultants with us and get professional assistance. 

Preparation

  • License: Make sure you have the required Microsoft license. We recommend discussing this issue with an expert to choose the right option. 
  • Infrastructure setup: Prepare the environment for the new software. If you’re planning an on-premises deployment, you’ll need to work with hardware, network, and servers. For the cloud, prepare your Microsoft 365 or Azure environment.
  • Data cleansing: Clean up existing information from duplicates and redundancies. 

Extension and Customization Review

  • Move to extensions model: Business Central uses an extension-based architecture. This means that all customizations are built as extensions outside the core system. As a result, you have to take into account that your custom code from the NAV system has to be rewritten for the appropriate format in the new software. 

Data Migration Planning

  • Data mapping: Create a map that will display all the necessary data: the goal is to map tables/fields with NAV material that will have a corresponding mapping in Business Central. This mapping ensures that the migration will go smoothly. 
  • Choose a migration tool: Microsoft provides the Intelligent Cloud Insights and Data Migration Tool to help you upgrade to Dynamics 365 Business Central. You can also use third-party tools or custom scripts.
  • Test mode: Test your migration strategy to make sure everything works without bugs. Ensure that customers, suppliers, products, and transactions are migrated correctly and without failure.

Upgrade Process

  • Update your data: If you find incompatibilities during your mapping and testing, you’ll need to work on updating your content. This may involve writing more modern code for custom features or reformatting the data. In the end, all information will have a single format that is compatible with BC.
  • Testing and validation: After fixing and structuring, it’s time to test all the processes again. 

Training and Change Management

  • User training: Get ready your team to deal with the new software. Explain how operations will be performed, how to use the tools, and what benefits the new software has. It is essential to ensure the application is used correctly and prevents manual errors. 
  • Organize employee support: Ensure that your employees understand the benefits of migration and are ready to move to the new system. In addition, provide support with the new application to respond quickly to questions and keep things running smoothly.

Go-live Preparation

  • Final data migration: Perform the final NAV to BC migration. Use the prepared strategy and tools and resort to a recovery plan if necessary.
  • Testing in a real environment: Conduct testing in a live environment to ensure the system is functioning properly. Check if all integrations and features are done correctly and do not harm the application.

Post-migration Support

  • Go-live: When all preparations are completed successfully and the system is ready, go live with your Business Central. Monitor its performance during the initial period to avoid bugs and fix problems quickly.
  • Post-migration support: Provide proper support for all customizations. It includes security updates, regular cleanups, and performance optimization. Reliable maintenance ensures the longevity of the platform and the protection of your information.

If you choose to stay with your legacy setup, consider Microsoft Dynamics NAV consulting to keep your system secure and well-optimized.

Cost of Migration from Dynamics NAV to Business Central

Of course, upgrading Dynamics NAV to Business Central is associated with additional costs. This includes licenses, hiring specialists, purchasing migration tools, and other small investments. At the same time, companies that are already using the new software say that the costs are fully justified. Compared to NAV vs Business Central, the new system offers more versatile and flexible tools for managing all aspects of the company. Let's calculate how much the upgrade may cost you.

Licensing Costs

First of all, let’s consider the cost of licenses for new software. It will look like this if you plan to work with a cloud-based system. 

  • Essential License: Typically around $70 per user per month.
  • Premium License: Typically around $100 per user per month.
  • Team Member License: ~$8 per user per month for limited users needing read-only access.

Consider a perpetual license or subscription model if you want to work with on-premises dynamics NAV versions. It is cheaper but requires investment in additional infrastructure.

Infrastructure Costs

By choosing a cloud-based platform, infrastructure costs are reduced to a minimum. You pay for a subscription, and Microsoft manages hosting, backups, and updates. If you choose to deploy Business Central on-premises, the situation is different. In this scenario, you spend money on hardware, server management, security, and future upgrades.

Migration Services

As we have already noted, NAV to Business Central is a rather complex process and therefore requires the expertise of specialists. You may hire an in-house team or engage a Dynamics 365 migration consultant to handle all the tasks. Specialist assistance includes data analysis, strategy preparation, migration, customization, integration, and support. The cost will vary from $10,000 to $100,000+.

Partner Fees

If you choose to work with a Microsoft Partner or consulting firm, they will charge fees for their expertise. Partner fees typically include consultation services, customization, user training, and system support. Fees for a Microsoft partner vary widely, from $15,000 to $75,000+ based on the level of involvement.

Customization and Extension Costs

Customization costs typically range between $10,000 and $50,000+. This includes creating new functionality, writing code for specific tools, and customizing basic solutions to your needs. This step allows you to adapt the software to your goals.

Training Costs

Since your team needs to be trained to work with the platform, you should hire professionals to provide quality training. Their assistance includes conducting a round, supporting employees, and correcting errors in time. Training costs range from $2,000 to $10,000.

Discover Our Engagement Models

We can help you upgrade NAV to Business Central. Our assistance works like this. We find relevant specialists to join your team to help you with the migration tasks. The big advantage is that we offer flexibility and work with several cooperation models. Here is a brief overview of each of them.

A Dedicated Team of Specialists

We may create a full-fledged team to work on your NAV upgrade project 40 hours a week according to your company's stable schedule.

Full-Time Consultant

You can hire one full-time expert to handle your critical tasks.


Part-Time Consultants

If your tasks can be accomplished without full-time involvement, consider hiring on a flexible schedule. This way, the consultant will be with you at the agreed time.

Dynamics Consultant Recruitment

We cover all recruiting steps from start to finish. Thus, we find the right specialists and ensure their onboarding.

Local Hiring

If you are looking for a consultant in a specific region, we offer local hiring. It allows you to gain cultural compatibility and reduce costs.

Technical Interview as a Service

We provide senior experts to conduct technical interviews. It's a great way to test candidates' expertise.

Why Choose Our Migration Specialists?

Why choose us for Dynamics NAV upgrade to Business Central? It's simple: we offer attractive options fully customized to your requirements. This approach allows us to build strong relationships with our customers, which is our value. Here are a few more reasons to choose us:

You Get

View Some of Our Power Platform Developers

Augustin B. – Power Platform Dynamics 365 Lead Specialist
Tymur S. – Microsoft D365 CRM and Power Platform Specialist
Alexander S. – Digitally transforming organizations with Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform
Ruslan P. – Microsoft Power Platform Developer
Ihor K. – Power Apps Architect
Artem A. – D365 Business Central Developer / Solution Developer
Anna G. – BC Developer
Hubert W. – Senior Developer Microsoft Dynamics Finance & Operations
Sergen K. – Finance and Operations Developer | ERP Analyst
Łukasz J. – MS Dynamics 365 FO Developer

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