Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central vs. Unit4 Enterprise Resource Planning

It addresses well some integration and connectivity issues with other software and adapted technologies: formulation and manufacturing batching software, scanners and bar codes, inventory, financials, emailing of invoices and statement, sales and purchasing... etc. I believe it to be better suited to a medium to large company. Not as simple and seamless as we expected for migrating from another Microsoft Dynamics software product (we moved from GP to NAV). Our staff is going through a tougher time than we thought to learn some procedures. Normal growing pains?!

Incentivized

Unit4 is good for small and mid-level companies where they need a single platform to manage their functionality.

• Automate the creation of bills of materials for production. We can now generate a BoM from a sales order.
• Organization of all data pertaining to thousands of parts, assemblies, and finished goods. Engineering and purchasing have a common portal.
• We can create sales orders from quotations instead of re-entering them (this did require some bolt-on software). Less redundant work with fewer entry errors.
• Accounting can provide reports based on specific criteria stored in NAV. We can pull better and more detailed intelligence.

Incentivized

• Since the software is built with your needs in mind, it can be tailored to your specific needs.
• System security is also created with your specific needs in mind and can be extremely detailed for various roles within the organization.
• The various modules integrate well, if thought through system processes when building.

Incentivized

• The version of software that we currently use isn't compatible with Windows 7, therefore we had to install it using the virtual computer under Windows XP. This created a few additional steps that the users had to go through in order to access the software which generated more calls to our IT Helpdesk.
• We did research how much it would cost to upgrade the software so that we could get a version compatible with Windows 7, but the cost was way too expensive for our organization. Also, when we need to make updates or changes to the software, there are very few consultants who are familiar with the software so we are limited in who we can use for consulting services. Since we are limited in choosing consultants who can make updates and changes to the software the fees are usually really expensive for their services.
• There is a .zup file that we constantly have to delete in order for the database to work properly and update. Users get a pop-up about once a week asking if they want to replace the .zup file and if the file is not deleted then the opening page for the software will not show up correctly and the database will not have the most up to date information.

Incentivized

• Their layout and limited web capabilities are a turn-off
• They lack basic functionality in their web [version]
• The implementation phase is bumpy since their guides and process documents are not step by step and are usually confusing

Incentivized

We've already decided to continue using this software. It is too expensive for us to upgrade so we made a workaround by using the virtual computer with Windows XP installed on it. We did research replacing this software, but it was a better financial decision to keep what we had instead

Incentivized

It has simplified all processes and reduces turnaround time for month end processes. You can easily navigate through the dashboard which is very user friendly and easily guides you to different functionalities. Duplications of Invoices is avoided because NAV rejects posting of an invoice number already in the system so you increase accuracy.

Unit4 is very easy to use. One can use it without much technical knowledge.

It provides one to efficiently be able to manage bookkeeping and inventory without much challenges. One can easily navigate through workflow processes while managing usages and budgets. Being able to produce reports in Word, Excel or PDF means one is able to have a working document to produce trends and graphs or produce pivot tables.

Their consultant and support service is also very responsive.

I have personally supported all of the Dynamic family of ERP systems and made the decision to concentrate on NAV as the solution of choice. From a support and development standpoint there are few if any packages that can compare. It is not uncommon for most of the companies that I support to only call me once or twice a month after the first year. This is due to the ease of tracking down problems and errors and the ability for a developer to provide the end-user with routines that automatically correct the most basic kind of error

Incentivized

I have used Fund EZ and QuickBooks. Unit4 is for larger organizations and was needed for our scaling.

Incentivized

• Automation processing, including EDI functionality, has increased employee efficiency and prevented the need for adding additional employees.
• Implementation of the warehouse functionality, including cycle counts, has resulted in better inventory control/less shrinkage.
• Implementation of e-Ship and e-Receive, has resulted in greater efficiency and order accuracy.

Incentivized

• Our business processes were in flux when the initial build of our system was taking place - this made lives very difficult. Make sure processes are set!
• Time - beyond what could have been imagined - this is a huge project, that needs proper resources assigned to it within a company when planning to install.

Incentivized