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Migrating from Dynamics GP to Dynamics 365 Business Central

Migrating from Dynamics GP to Dynamics 365 Business Central: Your Gateway to a Smarter ERP Future Table of Contents Is your business still running on Microsoft Dynamics GP? If yes, it might be time to ask yourself a bigger question: Is your ERP system preparing you for tomorrow—or holding you back today?   In an era where businesses are scaling faster, operating remotely, and relying on real-time data, sticking with a legacy ERP like Dynamics GP can quietly cost you more than you realize. That’s why hundreds of businesses are making the leap to Dynamics 365 Business Central—Microsoft’s modern, cloud-first ERP that’s built for agility, insight, and future growth.   Let’s explore why this migration isn’t just an upgrade—it’s a strategic evolution. Why Migrate to Business Central? 1. Cloud ERP = No More Servers, Downtime, or IT Overhead Dynamics GP runs on on-prem infrastructure. That means maintenance, upgrades, and surprise IT costs.Business Central is fully cloud-based—secure, always up-to-date, and accessible anywhere.   2. AI Built In, Right Out of the Box Business Central comes with Microsoft Copilot, your AI-powered assistant for faster data entry, smarter forecasting, and simplified processes. Think of it as adding an intelligent teammate to your finance, sales, and operations teams.   3. Unified with Microsoft Ecosystem Seamlessly integrates with Excel, Outlook, Teams, Power BI, and more. No more jumping between systems. Workflows become smarter, faster, and more connected.   4. Real-Time Insights for Faster Decision-Making With Business Central, reporting isn’t a monthly nightmare. It’s instant, customizable, and available anytime—giving your leadership team the tools to make better decisions on the fly.   5. Flexible Licensing & Scalable Architecture Pay only for what you use. Business Central grows with you—perfect for small, mid-size, and growing enterprises. When Should You Migrate? When support costs for GP keep rising When remote work and real-time visibility are no longer optional When reporting is manual and time-consuming When adding new integrations feels like duct-taping your tech stack When you’re ready to scale—but your ERP isn’t   If you checked even one of these, it’s time to explore the move. What Makes Business Central the Right Fit? Responsive Table Feature Dynamics GP Business Central Deployment On-premises Cloud-first (also hybrid) Updates Manual/Periodic Automatic, bi-annual Integration Limited Seamless with Microsoft 365 AI Capabilities Not available Built-in (Copilot, Insights, etc.) Mobile Accessibility Minimal Full mobility Licensing Model Perpetual Subscription-based How Ascent Innovations Ensures a Smooth Migration Migrating an ERP is a big step—but it doesn’t have to be complicated. At Ascent Innovations, we specialize in Dynamics GP to Business Central migrations with a proven, step-by-step process:   1. Discovery & Roadmap We evaluate your existing GP environment, understand your processes, and design a migration plan aligned with your goals.   2. Data Migration Securely move all critical data—customers, vendors, transactions, GLs—with 100% integrity.   3. System Configuration We tailor Business Central to match your operations and set up necessary workflows, reports, and extensions.   4. Training & Go-Live Our experts train your team and offer post-launch support to ensure a seamless transition. Why Partner with Ascent Innovations? Over a decade of Microsoft ERP experience Dedicated experts in GP and Business Central Tailored solutions for manufacturing, distribution, services, and more Personalized support from assessment to go-live   We don’t just migrate your ERP. We modernize your business. Final Thought: Upgrade Your ERP, Unlock Your Future If you’re still running Dynamics GP, the question isn’t if you should move—it’s when. And every day you delay, you lose a little more agility, visibility, and efficiency.   Let’s talk today. Your future ERP is waiting.   Schedule a Free Migration Assessment About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy. . John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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Migrating from Dynamics GP to Business Central

Migrating from Dynamics GP to Business Central: Is Your Business Ready for the Leap? Table of Contents Still running on Microsoft Dynamics GP? You’re not alone—but you might be holding your business back.   As technology evolves, staying competitive means more than just “keeping up.” It means transforming—and migrating to Dynamics 365 Business Central is your first step in that direction. This isn’t just an upgrade. It’s a shift from maintenance mode to momentum mode. Why Move from Dynamics GP to Business Central? Here’s the truth: Dynamics GP has been a reliable workhorse for decades. But today’s business landscape is driven by agility, automation, and real-time insights—capabilities GP just wasn’t built for.   Here’s what you get when you switch:   Cloud Power, No Infrastructure Hassles Business Central runs natively in the cloud, offering 24/7 accessibility, automatic updates, and zero server headaches. Say goodbye to expensive hardware and hello to flexibility.   Built-in Intelligence with Microsoft Copilot AI is baked right into Business Central. With Copilot, your teams get smarter recommendations, faster data entry, and even predictive insights—something GP users only dream of.   Seamless Integrations Business Central connects easily with your Microsoft 365 apps, Power BI, Teams, and Power Platform, breaking down silos and supercharging productivity across departments.   Real-Time Financials & Reporting Move beyond batch processes. Get live data, faster closes, and customizable dashboards that make decision-making effortless.   Better Security, Compliance & Scalability Microsoft handles security, backups, and compliance updates—so you can scale without stress. Signs It’s Time to Migrate If any of the following sound familiar, your business is ready for Business Central: Your team is wasting time with manual processes or duplicate entries Upgrades and support for GP are getting costlier Remote access and collaboration are limited Reporting takes longer than decision windows allow You’re relying on too many disconnected systems The Migration Journey: How Ascent Innovations Makes It Seamless At Ascent Innovations, we specialize in Dynamics GP to Business Central migrations—and we know that every business has a unique journey.   Here’s what to expect:   Step 1: Assessment & Roadmap We evaluate your existing GP setup, including customizations, ISVs, and workflows. Then we build a migration plan tailored to your goals.   Step 2: Data Migration We migrate your masters, open transactions, and historical data safely—ensuring accuracy, integrity, and compliance.   Step 3: Setup & Optimization We configure Business Central to match (and improve on) your GP processes. Customizations? Integrations? Covered.   Step 4: Training & Go-Live Your team gets hands-on training. We stay with you through go-live and beyond with hypercare and support. The Cost of Waiting Every month you delay migration, you’re: Losing productivity Missing out on AI-driven insights Increasing the risk of unsupported systems Spending more on outdated infrastructure   Migration doesn’t have to be disruptive—it just needs to be strategic. Ready to Modernize? Let’s Talk At Ascent Innovations, we’ve helped countless GP users embrace the future with Business Central—and we’re ready to help you too.   Let’s move your business from legacy to legendary.Schedule a free migration consultation today!   Still on GP? Your competition isn’t.Don’t let your ERP hold you back—upgrade to Business Central and unlock the speed, scalability, and smarts your business deserves. About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy. . John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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Beyond Go-Live: Empowering Teams to Unlock D365’s Full Value

Beyond Go-Live: Empowering Teams to Unlock D365’s Full Value Table of Contents Beyond Go-Live: Empowering Teams to Unlock D365’s Full Value You’ve invested in Microsoft Dynamics 365. You’ve gone live. Your teams use it daily.But here’s the real question—are they using it to its full potential? Imagine moving into a beautiful, modern home. It has everything: space, structure, smart technology, great lighting. But from day one, you only know how to use the front door. No one gives you the keys to the garage or the door to the backyard. So every time you take out the trash or want to enjoy your yard, you walk the long way around. Sounds ridiculous, right? Yet this happens in D365 all the time. Teams are doing things the hard way—not because the system lacks features, but because they don’t know what’s possible. The Hidden Cost of Unawareness and Undertraining The real issue isn’t just that features are unused, it’s that people don’t even know they exist.   Awareness means knowing best practices in the first place. Without it, users fall back on what they’ve always done. They create workarounds. They assume, “this is just how it works.” They don’t question inefficiencies because they don’t know there’s a better way.   Training goes further. It’s not just about learning where features live—it’s about changing behaviors and mindsets. Users need to believe they can work differently: faster, smarter, and more confidently. Training gives them tools, but more importantly, it builds the confidence to drive change. Without awareness, people don’t seek solutions. Without training, they can’t apply them. And without both, organizations miss out on the full business impact of D365. Empowered users are bold. Curious. That’s the kind of team D365 was built for. Why It Matters to the Business When users aren’t fully trained, or aware of what’s possible, it shows up in the numbers. Or more accurately, the numbers don’t move. You invested in D365 to modernize the enterprise, drive profitability, and fuel growth. And you’ve laid the right foundation. But if the business hasn’t truly transformed, the next step isn’t more technical consulting, it’s empowering your people to use the system as it was meant to be used.   Without the right training, teams can’t improve cross-functional execution or use analytics to optimize planning. And without trained people, even the best technology can’t deliver ROI. People drive results—not technology, because when users know what’s possible, and how to leverage D365 to increase organizational agility, the EBITDA needle moves. 10 Questions to Ask Yourself About D365 Do our users know how to personalize views and dashboards to match their daily work? Are we using Power Automate to eliminate manual steps or approval bottlenecks? Can team members access role-specific reports without relying on IT or spreadsheets? Is Master Planning/Planning Optimization configured to match real lead times and demand patterns? Are time fences and capacity planning being used to prevent production delays? Are subledger reports being used to drill down into cost and margin performance? Is your team tracking forecast accuracy and budget variance by department? Are we using portals (Power Pages) to reduce repetitive back-and-forth with customers or vendors? Do our power users feel confident supporting their teams with questions or new features? Are we continuously improving how we use D365—or just getting by with what we learned at go-live? You’ve Laid the Foundation—Now Unlock the Full Potential of D365 You’ve made D365 part of your business. The hard work is done. Now it’s time to go further. The tools are in place. The best practices are defined.   Let Ascent help your team unlock what’s next—empowering your people to deliver the full business impact of D365. About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy. . John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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7 Steps to Unlocking Millions in Gross Profit

7 Steps to Unlocking Millions in Gross Profit Table of Contents The 2025 Action Plan: Eliminate Recurring Problems Companies lose gross margin when inefficiencies in planning, execution, and cross-functional workflows create blind spots that result in problems that no one understands how they start or how to eliminate them. Companies that identify and resolve the root causes of recurring operational challenges see significant gross margin improvement. For companies generating $100 million in gross profit, even a 1% improvement can unlock $1 million in additional profit. If you had better planning and execution, how far do you think could you move the gross margin needle? What’s Your Gross Margin Opportunity? The potential impact is real and measurable—the only questions are how much gross profit you are leaving on the table and how much of it can be captured and at what cost. At Ascent Innovations, we help companies initiate low-cost, high-value Agile ROI strategies—delivering measurable improvements within a month. This rapid business impact model helps build executive support for additional efforts. 7 Steps to Unlocking Millions in Gross Margin Step 1: Identify the Problems Costing You Money What Are the Indicators of Opportunity? What kind of problems are we talking about? It varies for every client—but to get your wheels turning, here are some common issues I’ve been helping organizations resolve: High Working Capital – Often a sign of inefficiencies in forecasting, demand planning, inventory management, receivables, or procurement. Margin Compression Despite Strong Sales – May indicate poor pricing governance, uncontrolled discounting, or breakdowns in cost pass-through processes. Frequent Budget Variances and Forecast Misses – Suggest weaknesses in forecast accuracy and cost management, leading to misaligned operational planning. Long Order-to-Delivery Lead Times – A signal of potential workflow misalignment or blind spots between sales, production, and fulfillment. Rising Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) – Points to opportunities in labor, material, and supplier management to better control variable costs. High Labor Costs and Excessive Overtime – Typically reflect upstream planning gaps, such as raw material availability or poor scheduling, limiting production efficiency and capacity. Each of these challenges represents a high-impact opportunity. With focused discovery, we can uncover the root causes behind recurring issues. And here’s the key insight: a single root cause often manifests in different ways across multiple departments. When we address the source, we not only eliminate recurring problems—we unlock broad, measurable performance gains across the organization. Step 2: Quantify the Opportunity Cost of Your Problems How much are recurring problems costing you? Many organizations underestimate the financial impact of daily firefighting—leaving significant value on the table. Through a few focused discovery sessions, we help quantify that opportunity by identifying the business impact of fixing root causes that often manifest as repeated challenges across departments.   Start with strategic goals – Align leadership around core priorities to ensure the focus stays on what drives the most value. Engage at the executive level – Review what’s working, what’s not, and where improvements are most needed. Discuss how these challenges are affecting performance today—and what the organization could achieve if they were resolved. Explore at the departmental level – Assess both functional and cross-functional workflows to identify execution and reporting gaps that hinder strategic goals. Capture how these issues impact daily operations and decision-making. Develop a comprehensive issue list – Document pain points across the organization to uncover root causes and prioritize high-impact opportunities. Identify quick wins with high value – Identify low-cost, high-impact improvements that can be implemented in 3–5 weeks to deliver immediate business results and build momentum.   By structuring discovery this way, we create a clear connection between strategic objectives and operational improvements—with a focus on quick wins that deliver measurable results. These early successes not only improve performance but also build executive and board-level support for further modernization and long-term transformation. Step 3: Fix the Process Gaps Are Cross-functional Hand-offs a Challenge? Businesses are structured vertically—in departments—but value is delivered horizontally, across functions. Customers don’t care about departmental boundaries; they’re impacted by how well the organization executes end-to-end. Functional silos persist within companies when systems and workflows are fragmented, making it difficult to coordinate planning and execution across the value chain. It’s like a relay race—no matter how fast each runner is, if the baton is dropped between exchanges, the race is lost. What type of problems are rooted in a siloed organization? Here are a few common symptoms of cross-functional challenges: Demand & Order Management: Misalignment Creates Delays Inaccurate demand forecasting leads to stockouts or excess inventory, tying up working capital. Manual order processing increases errors, rework, and fulfillment delays. Approval bottlenecks slow down order confirmations, delaying production start times. Impact: Orders take longer to process, increasing lead times, frustrating customers, and reducing sales velocity. Production & Inventory: Inefficiencies Drive Higher Costs Siloed production planning leads to last-minute scheduling changes, increasing labor overtime and machine downtime. Disconnected inventory management causes materials shortages, stalling production and missing customer deadlines. Rigid capacity planning prevents flexibility, making it harder to respond to demand fluctuations. Impact: Production bottlenecks increase operating costs, reduce order fill rates, and weaken gross margin. Logistics & Fulfillment: Shipping Disruptions and Customer Dissatisfaction Poor warehouse coordination leads to delays in picking, packing, and staging shipments. Lack of real-time tracking prevents proactive issue resolution, increasing OTIF failures. Inefficient routing and carrier selection result in higher freight costs and slower deliveries. Impact: Late shipments increase customer penalties, lost contracts, and damaged brand reputation.   Inefficiencies in the order-to-delivery process erode profitability, strain cash flow, and damage customer satisfaction. Ascent helps our clients understand what can be fixed in the current environment and what would be best addressed in a future ERP upgrade.   Step 4: Make Smart, Targeted System Enhancements Leverage your existing ERP for quick, high-impact wins. Rather than waiting a year or longer for the payoff of an ERP upgrade, companies can drive immediate ROI by optimizing what they already have: Fix broken or incomplete ERP processes that complicate daily execution. Improve integration between … Read more

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Winning with AI: Build the BI Race Car Before You Turbocharge It with AI

Winning with AI: Build the BI Race Car Before You Turbocharge It with AI Table of Contents Winning with AI: Build the BI Race Car Before You Turbocharge It with AI AI doesn’t replace human creativity and insight—it enhances them by tracking more variables than any human possibly can, identifying trends and risks in real time. But just like a race car, without the right structure and skilled drivers, adding more speed doesn’t make you faster—it makes you crash harder. Your Best Drivers Will Train AI to Help Them Win AI isn’t here to take the wheel. For the foreseeable future, humans will remain behind the wheel of business, making strategic decisions that drive growth. But AI can be the ultimate co-pilot—alerting leaders to risks, opportunities, and changing conditions before they’re obvious. Building the Race Car: BI Is the Foundation Before you can race ahead with AI, you first need a foundation with sound fundamentals: Integrated workflows and data across departments. Broken processes and reporting blind spots create functional silos, preventing accurate, trusted reporting. Finance, sales, supply chain, and operations must work from one version of the truth. A dashboard that provides real-time visibility into the measures that drive revenue, operating margin, and cash flow. Just as you wouldn’t drive a car by looking out the rear window, business teams need clear visibility into what’s happening now, how performance is trending, and actionable insights on risks and opportunities. Upskill your best drivers—your business SMEs—not just on the tools, but on the cross-functional dependencies that drive performance of your aggregate KPIs. These individuals must be intimately involved—not only to understand the system, but to help design it. They aren’t just passengers; they are the engineers of your team’s BI race car, building the capability to accelerate on the straightaways and brake confidently into the curves.  Learning to Drive Before Adding AI Once BI is in place—with workflows connected and reporting dashboards fine-tuned—teams will begin to trust reports and use them to drive decisions. Teams proactively collaborate to identify risks and opportunities early, while there’s still time to control the outcome. This fosters a culture of teamwork, ownership, and accountability. Individuals and teams master the fundamentals of decision-making using real-time data, which only comes with experience. As teams analyze patterns, identify opportunities, and adjust course in real time, they develop the instincts and expertise needed to push the business forward. Game-changing insight and decisions drive significant business impact during this stage. Once teams are winning races with BI-driven decision-making, they’re ready to supercharge the race car with AI. AI as the Race Strategist—Not the Driver AI doesn’t replace human judgment—it enhances it by tracking more variables than any human possibly can, so your driver can make informed decisions to win the race. Changing Track Conditions. AI alerts you to shifts in market trends, customer behavior, or supply chain disruptions before they impact performance. Crashes You Don’t See Yet. AI detects early warning signs of operational risks or financial stress before they escalate. Fuel Burn Rate & Tire Wear. AI monitors resource utilization, workforce productivity, and cost efficiency, ensuring you’re managing operating margin. Laps Before a Problem Emerges. AI forecasts when issues like cash flow strain, inventory shortages, or capacity constraints could arise, giving teams time to discuss and decide on corrective action. The Winning Formula First, build the race car. Establish BI as the foundation, ensuring trusted data, real-time reporting, and integrated workflows. Fine-tune the dashboard. Make sure your best drivers—your business leaders—have the visibility they need to make strategic decisions. Learn to win races. Your team gains experience, confidence, and passion for team-based problem solving.  Then, and only then, add AI as the turbocharger. Once you know how to drive, AI greatly enhances your ability to anticipate and react to changing business conditions. Don’t Skip Steps—Build First, Then Turbocharge Too many organizations try to bolt AI onto a system that isn’t ready for it. The result? Unreliable insights, lack of adoption, and wasted investment.    At Ascent Innovations, we help businesses build the race car first—integrating processes, structuring data, and designing real-time analytics that empower decision-making. Once that foundation is in place, AI becomes a force multiplier, accelerating what’s already working.     Are you ready to take control of your business performance before adding AI? Let’s build the race car first—so you can win with data and AI when the time is right. About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy.  John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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Planning Optimization in D365: The Nerve Center of Your Supply Chain

Planning Optimization in D365: The Nerve Center of Your Supply Chain Table of Contents Planning Optimization in D365: The Nerve Center of Your Supply Chain As a Chicago native, conversations about the delays at O’Hare airport have long-dominated small-talk topics along with our constant weather changes; construction on the Kennedy; the ’85 Bears; and out-of-state drivers. It’s for a good reason. To paraphrase Klemens von Metternich, “When O’Hare sneezes, the country catches a cold.” O’Hare is a vital airline hub in the United States with flights coming in and out at an astonishing rate. Without proper planning and predictions, it can turn into a mess really fast.   Manufacturing and distribution operations are not entirely dissimilar. With constant shifts in supply and demand, it can be exceptionally difficult to generate the right orders at the right time. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management’s Planning Optimization (formerly Master Planning) module serves as the nerve center of supply chain operations, helping businesses optimize inventory, align production schedules, and ensure timely fulfillment.   Whether managing day-to-day replenishment or long-term strategic planning, Planning Optimization delivers real-time insights and automation to drive efficiency and profitability. Planning Optimization: Your Supply Chain’s Air Traffic Control Using our analogy, think of Planning Optimization in D365 like an air traffic control system at a busy airport. Without it, planes (orders) would take off and land chaotically, leading to: Missed connections → Stockouts and late shipments Crowded runways → Excess inventory and tied-up working capital Major delays → Production bottlenecks and inefficiencies Just as air traffic control ensures planes take off, land, and taxi efficiently, Planning Optimization coordinates supply chain movements, keeping materials, production, and deliveries aligned. Operations scheduling provides a high-level view—like monitoring all flights on a radar. Job scheduling gets into the details, ensuring each plane has a clear path. Time fences act like air traffic rules, controlling when and how flights are scheduled to avoid congestion. With Planning Optimization guiding the supply chain, everything stays in sync—materials arrive on time, production runs smoothly, and customers get what they need, when they need it. Core Planning Methods in D365 At the heart of every efficient airport is a control tower that coordinates the movement of aircraft—balancing the big picture of airspace with the detailed instructions needed for each takeoff and landing. In D365 Planning Optimization, core planning methods function much the same way, managing both the high-level flow of operations and the fine-grained details of execution. Whether you’re looking at operations scheduling to understand the broader capacity landscape or job scheduling to direct specific production tasks, these tools give you the visibility and control needed to keep your supply chain running smoothly and on time. Operations Scheduling vs. Job Scheduling Operations scheduling provides a high-level production estimate without breaking down individual tasks. Useful for long-term capacity planning and understanding overall production flow. Job scheduling is a more detailed scheduling method, where each operation is divided into individual jobs. It considers capacity constraints and shop floor scheduling for short-term execution. Key Planning Time Fences Time fences control how far into the future Planning Optimization calculates requirements. Configuring them correctly is crucial for balancing efficiency and responsiveness. Coverage time fence defines how far ahead demand should be considered for planning. Freeze time fence prevents changes to planned orders within a set period, ensuring stability. Firming time fence automatically converts planned orders into actual purchase or production orders. Forecast plan time fence controls how far into the future forecasted demand influences planning. Capacity time fence ensures production scheduling considers resource constraints and limits. Action message time fence determines the period for generating rescheduling suggestions. Advanced Planning Controls Much like the sophisticated systems used by air traffic control to anticipate weather disruptions, manage flight sequencing, and calculate delays, D365’s advanced planning controls provide the precision needed to optimize your supply chain under real-world conditions. These tools help fine-tune order timing, streamline production flows, and ensure schedules remain realistic—even when disruptions occur. From adjusting for lead times with dynamic buffers to sequencing production orders for efficiency, these advanced settings give planners the ability to respond quickly and intelligently—keeping operations aligned and preventing turbulence across the business. Positive and Negative Days: Optimizing Order Timing Positive days defines how far into the future on-hand inventory can be used to fulfill demand, preventing unnecessary orders. Negative days determines how long the system should wait before creating a new order when supply is delayed. Dynamic positive and negative days adjust automatically based on item lead times, optimizing order timing without manual intervention. Sequencing: Smart Production Order Arrangement Enables planned orders to be arranged based on attributes such as color, size, or packaging. Reduces changeovers, improving production efficiency. Calculated Delays: Ensuring Feasible Production Dates Detects and reports possible order delays, ensuring that production and purchase schedules are based on realistic fulfillment timelines. Requisitions and Demand Planning Planning Optimization can automatically create planned orders for approved requisition demand, ensuring seamless replenishment without manual intervention. Why Planning Optimization Matters Shifting from a reactive supply chain to a proactive, optimized operation is essential for driving efficiency and financial performance. With D365 Planning Optimization, businesses can achieve significant operation improvements: Reduce stockouts and excess inventory, improving working capital efficiency Optimize production schedules by aligning with actual capacity and supplier lead times Enhance supply chain resilience by adjusting dynamically to disruptions and demand shifts Automate aspects of planning processes, reducing manual effort and improving accuracy Greater efficiency creates capacity to drive growth—but it also enables smarter, faster decision-making across the organization. When your planning is intelligent and responsive, your business is positioned to seize opportunities, minimize risk, and consistently deliver for customers. Bringing Blue Skies to Your Supply Chain Just as an air traffic control tower brings order to the complex, fast-moving environment of an airport, Planning Optimization brings clarity and coordination to your supply chain.   With D365 Planning Optimization, your supply chain operates like a well-orchestrated airport, where: Materials, production, and deliveries flow seamlessly Bottlenecks are avoided, and disruptions are … Read more

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Power Platform: The Toolbox That Maximizes Your D365 Investment

Power Platform: The Toolbox That Maximizes Your D365 Investment Table of Contents Power Platform: The Toolbox That Maximizes Your D365 Investment Microsoft Power Platform isn’t just an add-on to Dynamics 365—it’s the toolbox that enables your business teams to continuously expand the return on investment of D365. While D365 provides the structure, automation, and data integrity needed for enterprise operations, Power Platform equips your people with the ability to extend, refine, and optimize processes over time.    By leveraging Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power Pages, organizations can move beyond standard ERP functionality and unlock new ways to drive efficiency, improve decision-making, and enhance customer and supplier engagement.    But the challenge isn’t just having the right tools—it’s knowing where to apply them to drive the most business impact.  The Transformation Journey Has Just Begun Going live on D365 was a major milestone, but it’s not the finish line—it’s the starting point for continuous improvement and innovation. The best-run organizations don’t just operate their ERP as-is; they use it as a foundation for continued business transformation.    At Ascent Innovations, we help organizations identify the most valuable opportunities for process improvement, automation, and analytics—ensuring that Power Platform is used strategically to maximize business impact.  Our approach ensures that: Every investment in Power Platform delivers measurable business value  Your business teams are equipped with the tools and knowledge to optimize execution  The transformation journey remains active, uncovering more opportunities for efficiency and growth  Your D365 ROI is just the beginning—there’s much more opportunity yet to be realized.  Agile ROI: Small, High-Impact Improvements That Drive Continuous Modernization Our Agile ROI methodology focuses on delivering high-value, incremental improvements that create a self-funding cycle for broader transformation.  Phase 1: Identify Opportunities for Improvement Every modernization journey starts by asking the right questions. We work closely with your business teams to uncover areas where manual or non-integrated processes slow things down, customer interactions could be improved, or timely and trust reporting is not available for critical decisions. The goal is to identify high-impact opportunities where Power Platform can deliver immediate value. By linking each opportunity to a tangible business outcome, we ensure that every enhancement has a clear purpose and measurable ROI.    Where can automation replace manual work and accelerate workflows?  What customer or vendor interactions would benefit from a self-service portal?  Which business processes could improve with heightened visibility into performance?  What business impact would these capabilities produce?  Phase 2: Implement Targeted Power Platform Enhancements to Deliver Immediate ROI Once opportunities are identified, we deploy focused Power Platform solutions that deliver results fast. Whether it’s a Power BI dashboard that transforms visibility, a Power App that simplifies approvals, or Power Automate flows that eliminate repetitive tasks—each enhancement is designed to solve a specific pain point. The result is faster workflows, better insights, and real business value in weeks—not months.    Power BI creates real-time dashboards and analytics to enhance process monitoring and management.  Power Automate eliminates manual workflows, ensuring seamless data flow across teams.  Power Apps empowers teams to build custom applications that accelerate execution and streamline approvals.  Power Pages & Portals improve external collaboration, enabling secure self-service access for customers and suppliers.  Phase 3: Train and Develop Your People While Measuring Business Impact Technology alone doesn’t transform a business—people do. That’s why we embed training and hands-on learning into every phase of the journey. As teams engage directly with Power Platform tools, they build confidence and capability, gaining a deeper understanding of how to optimize their processes. This not only supports adoption but also lays the foundation for a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.    Power Platform not only enhances processes—it develops your team’s ability to work and collaborate in new ways.  Employees gain hands-on experience in how modern applications and automation improve workflows, fostering a culture of continuous improvement.  By actively participating in Power Platform enhancements, teams build an informed perspective on how to drive further innovation, preparing them for future transformation initiatives.  Phase 4: Build the Case for Ongoing Digital Modernization With real results in hand—faster processes, fewer errors, better decisions—you now have the proof needed to expand the transformation. We help you measure and communicate the business impact in terms that resonate with leadership and stakeholders. The cycle repeats—with every phase delivering value and unlocking new potential for growth.    Increased operational efficiency, reduced errors, and faster decision-making.  Higher employee productivity and reduced IT burden.  Real-world proof points that captivate executive and equity owner support for further investment—demonstrating that small, strategic improvements lead to larger transformation success.  Unlock the Full Potential of Your D365 System With Power Platform, you can take your D365 environment to the next level, ensuring your investment keeps delivering measurable business impact. At Ascent Innovations, we specialize in helping organizations extend the value of D365 with Power Platform, enabling business-driven improvements that generate immediate ROI while laying the foundation for long-term success.    Want to accelerate the business impact of your D365 investment? Let’s talk about how Power Platform can take your operations from efficient to exceptional.  About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy.    Author: John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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AI: Hype vs. Reality

AI: Hype vs. Reality Table of Contents Understanding AI as an Aggregate Term Businesses hear bold claims about AI revolutionizing industries, yet many leaders struggle to separate hype from reality. What can AI actually do? Where does it deliver value, and what misconceptions should be avoided?   The challenge starts with how AI is discussed. It’s often portrayed as a single, all-powerful technology, when in reality, AI is an umbrella term that encompasses multiple specialized fields. To understand AI’s true capabilities, it’s important to break it down into its key categories, each with distinct functions and applications. The Primary Categories of AI Machine Learning (ML) – The Foundation of AI Machine Learning is a subset of AI that enables systems to learn from data and make predictions or decisions without being explicitly programmed. Before the rise of generative AI, the term AI was often synonymous with machine learning. How It Works: ML models analyze patterns in historical data to predict future outcomes. Where It’s Used: Demand forecasting in supply chains Fraud detection in banking Predictive maintenance in manufacturing Generative AI – Creating, Not Just Predicting Generative AI is a type of machine learning that produces new content rather than analyzing data for predictions. These models generate text, images, audio, and code based on the patterns they’ve learned from vast datasets. How It Works: Instead of recognizing trends, generative models produce new outputs that mimic human-created content. Where It’s Used: AI-generated marketing content Automated code writing Image and video generation Natural Language Processing (NLP) – Making AI Conversational Natural Language Processing (NLP) enables computers to understand, interpret, and generate human language. While NLP powers AI chatbots and virtual assistants, it relies on machine learning and other AI techniques to function. How It Works: NLP algorithms process text or speech to extract meaning, detect sentiment, or generate responses. Where It’s Used: AI-powered customer support Language translation tools Sentiment analysis for brand monitoring Robotic Process Automation (RPA) – Often Mistaken for AI Unlike the other AI subsets, RPA is not artificial intelligence. Instead, it is a form of automation that mimics human actions in software environments, following predefined rules without learning or adapting. How It Works: RPA bots interact with software interfaces to execute repetitive, rule-based tasks. Where It’s Used: Data entry and invoice processing Extracting data from emails and logging into systems Automating HR onboarding tasks Laying the Foundation Before Broad AI Adoption While AI has the potential to drive significant business impact, most organizations need to lay the groundwork before it can be applied at scale. Establishing a strong, scalable technical foundation – Clean, well-structured data and modern analytics platforms must be in place before attempting more advanced AI projects. Building workforce skills – Teams must develop expertise in data literacy, modern analytics, and process automation, which provide immediate value and prepare organizations for more complex AI-driven initiatives. Taking a strategic approach – AI adoption should focus on well-defined, high-impact use cases rather than broad, unfocused initiatives. Crawl, Walk, Run—The Key to Success with AI AI is powerful, but it is not a magic wand. Most organizations need to slow down and focus on the fundamentals—building a strong foundation of integrated processes and data while enabling teams to apply modern analytics that shift the business from reactive to proactive decision-making.   Whether you are just starting your modernization journey or have reached a plateau, Ascent Innovations can help you develop and implement a strategic plan that unlocks immediate value and drives game-changing business impact—building executive confidence and support for continued investment. About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy.   Author: John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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Power Platform: Not an Afterthought for D365 Planning

Power Platform: Not an Afterthought for D365 Planning Table of Contents Power Platform: Not an Afterthought for D365 Planning A successful Microsoft Dynamics 365 implementation isn’t just about configuring the ERP—it’s about laying the foundation for future innovation. Many organizations and vendors focus solely on getting D365 live, only to run into post go-live roadblocks with analytics or portals due to process and data gaps that weren’t considered during planning.   This is why the Power Platform must be factored into the planning of your future-state D365 environment from the start. It’s not an add-on or an afterthought—it’s an integral part of how your organization will extend, optimize, and evolve D365 to maximize long-term impact, both in the near and long term. Future-Proofing Your D365 Environment A proper D365 implementation is designed around business processes, data architecture, reporting, and integration. As Wayne Getsky famously stated, he plays to where the puck will be, not where it is. This means that Power Platform should be included in your roadmap to ensure that the system you go live with can support future-state needs: Planning for enterprise-wide analytics ensures Power BI reporting will be built on a solid data architecture designed to support the demands of AI. Define how your organization wants to communicate and collaborate via portals with customers, vendors, and partners. By designing D365 with Power Platform in mind, you ensure that the D365 ecosystem will meet the needs of the organization day one but also support the demands of future business growth, innovation, and transformation. We Plan for the Future, Even When It’s Hard to See If Power Platform isn’t considered early in the process, companies often run into roadblocks after go-live, realizing that their analytics and automation aspirations require rework, costly customizations, or process redesigns.   We don’t need to define detailed requirements upfront, but during our planning process, we ask the right questions to account for future-state needs—even those that may be hard for your team to envision today. By helping leadership think beyond the constraints of their current processes, we guide them in imagining how the company could operate without barriers, leveraging automation, analytics, and seamless system interactions.   By integrating Power Platform into your future-state D365 strategy, we eliminate obstacles before they arise—allowing your business to focus on growth and continuous improvement instead of running into walls after go-live. D365 + Power Platform = A System That Evolves With Your Business D365 is more than just an ERP or CRM system—it’s a foundation for business transformation. But without Power Platform embedded into your strategy from the start, you risk creating a system that needs workarounds instead of one that enables continuous improvement.   At Ascent Innovations, we don’t just implement D365—we design future-ready solutions that ensure your analytics, automation, and process optimization efforts are fully supported from day one.   Want to ensure your D365 investment delivers long-term impact? Let’s talk about how Power Platform can help you build a system that scales with your business. About the Author John Bruhnke has 20 years of leadership in management consulting, specializing in ERP and analytics modernization with experience leading 15 modern analytics enterprise roadmaps in manufacturing and CPG. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy. John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Latest Posts You might also like:

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Unlock Business Impact Now: How Power Platform Accelerates Agile ROI for AX Users

Unlock Business Impact Now: How Power Platform Accelerates Agile ROI for AX Users Table of Contents Share Unlock Business Impact Now: How Power Platform Accelerates Agile ROI for AX Users Many organizations running Microsoft Dynamics AX know they need to modernize, but large-scale ERP upgrades require executive and equity owner buy-in—which often depends on demonstrating clear, measurable business impact first.   The good news? You don’t have to wait for a full migration to D365 to start improving performance. By leveraging Microsoft Power Platform, companies can enhance AX, streamline processes, and unlock immediate business impact—creating an Agile ROI cycle that builds momentum for future modernization. Why Power Platform? Immediate Value, Minimal Disruption A full ERP upgrade takes time, planning, and investment. Meanwhile, day-to-day operations continue to struggle with inefficiencies, manual workarounds, and siloed data—slowing decision-making, profitability, and growth.   This is where Power Platform acts as a high-impact bridge to modernization. By integrating Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power Pages, organizations can extend AX’s capabilities and improve performance—without waiting for a complete ERP migration.   Instead of an all-or-nothing approach, Power Platform delivers rapid, high-value improvements that drive efficiency, visibility, and executive confidence in long-term modernization. Agile ROI: Small, High-Impact Improvements That Fund Further Modernization Our Agile ROI methodology focuses on delivering measurable business results quickly, creating a self-funding cycle for broader transformation. Phase 1: Identify Bottlenecks That Impact Performance Now Where are manual workarounds slowing execution? What critical reports are unreliable, incomplete, or time-consuming to produce? Which business processes would benefit most from automation? Phase 2: Implement Targeted Power Platform Enhancements to Deliver Immediate ROI Power BI replaces disconnected spreadsheets with real-time dashboards and trusted analytics. Power Automate eliminates manual workflows, ensuring seamless data flow across teams. Power Apps empowers teams to build custom tools that improve execution without IT bottlenecks. Power Pages & Portals enhance external collaboration, enabling self-service for customers and suppliers. Phase 3: Train and Develop Your People While Measuring Business Impact Power Platform not only delivers business value—it develops your team’s ability to work and collaborate in new ways. Employees gain a fundamental understanding of how modern processes and data integration solve business challenges, fostering cross-functional collaboration. Through hands-on participation, teams develop an informed perspective on further process improvements, preparing them for a full D365 upgrade with confidence. Phase 4: Build the Case for Broader Modernization Increased operational efficiency, reduced errors, and faster decision-making. Higher employee productivity and reduced IT burden. Real-world proof points that captivate executive and equity owner support for further investment—turning small wins into momentum for long-term transformation. By using Agile ROI, organizations demonstrate value early and often, ensuring leadership support and financial backing for larger ERP modernization initiatives. Start Generating Business Impact Now Waiting for a full D365 migration means delaying improvements that can drive results today. Power Platform allows you to enhance AX, improve performance, and prove ROI—without disrupting operations.   At Ascent Innovations, we help organizations unlock immediate business value with Power Platform while strategically preparing for ERP modernization. Want to turn small improvements into momentum for transformation? Let’s talk about how Power Platform can deliver real impact—right now. About the Author John Bruhnke is Managing Director at Ascent. He has 25 years of management consulting experience focused on system implementation and, for the last 7 years, modern analytics in the manufacturing industry. He collaborates with executive and management teams to drive alignment on strategic goals and develop a collective vision for modernization that balances both immediate business needs and long-term strategy.   John Bruhnke Managing Director Icon-linkedin Share Latest Posts You might also like: