I often speak with entrepreneurs who are doing extraordinary things. These are the people building our economies, creating jobs and pushing boundaries despite impossible odds. The deeper I dive into this market and explore how to support SMB growth with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, the more I am struck with a shocking reality: most business owners have never heard of a tool that could fundamentally transform how they operate and make them dramatically more agile in an environment that’s only becoming more demanding and uncertain.
Because I have been on that side of the fence before as a small business owner, I feel it’s important to address this unrealized potential. Some might say I have too much passion for this, but I genuinely care about SMBs and their contribution to their communities and our economies. Business Central is powerful and it’s designed precisely for growing companies, the ones that start small but with ambitions to grow. Yet it remains remarkably absent from conversations in three critical communities: Microsoft’s partner ecosystem, the accounting and finance industry, and most importantly, the SMB world that could benefit most from what it offers.
The Real Challenge: Operating on Instinct Rather Than Insight
I remember that feeling too well. Working seventy-hour weeks, managing customers, suppliers and cash flow with spreadsheets, making critical business decisions based on gut feeling rather than data. Why? Because many SMBs don’t have the systems to extract real-time insights from their operations.
Many entrepreneurs are using accounting software from the 2000s. Household names, but those were designed for a different era. These tools handle transactions, but they don’t give you intelligence. They don’t help you adjust course quickly when markets shift. They don’t free your teams from manual work and workarounds so they can focus on strategic work. And even if we are seeing those legacy solutions evolve to cloud options with some AI functionalities, Business Central is already doing it. It’s been there for years, but no one knows about this secret that’s too well kept.
AI and analytics are more accessible than ever before. Yet a significant portion of the SMB market continues operating in analog fashion, even when the facts are clear—companies using AI will survive and thrive while others still struggling with manual workarounds are already at risk.
The Perception Problem
As I moved from running my own business into technology sales and now GTM at a global technology Marketplace, I began to realize something very important. Microsoft’s ecosystem is largely made up of MSPs. They are the trusted advisors SMBs rely on for almost every piece of their technology needs and they’re great at what they do. But the way Business Central has been positioned makes it difficult for MSPs to bring it to their clients.
Building a Dynamics 365 practice requires different expertise, different sales motions and deeper business conversations that go far beyond the traditional technical engagement. Layered with the perception that Dynamics is “complex” or “built for enterprises,” it’s easy to see why most MSPs have set it aside as simply not relevant to their business model.
But here’s what doesn’t get said enough: MSPs don’t need to build an entire Dynamics practice to help customers move from legacy systems to one that delivers real measurable outcomes. Ready‑to‑use, accessible resources already exist to bridge that gap, and that’s exactly where Pax8 comes in.
My job now is to help this incredible partner ecosystem understand what Business Central can do. Not just for their customers, but for their own business. After all, why should a Microsoft partner pay for any other accounting software or ERP when Business Central is available to them through their Partner Benefits under Internal Use Rights?
Why Business Central Matters and Why Now?
Consider what SMBs are up against today. The economy is unpredictable, margins are tighter and customer expectations keep rising. They want faster responses, better accuracy and seamless experiences across every touchpoint. There is no room for any mistakes.
And while all of this is happening, employees are buried in manual work. Accounts Payables clerks are entering invoices by hand. Sales reps are digging through emails just to confirm an order or a payment. Inventory decisions come down to gut instinct. None of this is their fault. Their systems were never built for the complexity of today’s reality. They lack automation, real‑time insight and the connected processes needed to keep up. Many SMBs are handling this pressure, and their people are drowning in manual work.
This is where Business Central is a game changer. It automates routine financial and operational tasks. It provides real-time visibility into business performance and integrates natively with Microsoft 365 tools that businesses already use. And critically, it’s built to work with AI and intelligent automation through Copilot and built-in agents, not to mention the endless possibilities to expand with custom agents in Copilot Studio.
When people are not spending eight hours a day on data entry or crunching numbers for better reporting, they can focus on customer relationships, strategic analysis and growth. This is tangible value that both SMBs and enterprises can benefit from, MSP businesses included.
The Artificial Intelligence Advantage No One’s Talking About
This is where my diversified background and different perspectives collide. Business Central is no longer just a financial management system. It’s the backbone of intelligent business automation.
Imagine an SMB that uses Business Central with the built-in Sales Agent. This agent, with access to a shared sales inbox, can receive a new request, review the customer’s order history, pricing information and inventory status in real-time. They can also answer customer questions instantly and even generate a quote based on the full context of the conversation.
Or imagine month‑end without the chaos. Bank reconciliation automated; the system doing the heavy lifting while humans step in only where they add value.
This isn’t the future. These capabilities exist today. But they’re invisible to the market because Business Central hasn’t been positioned as an AI-first platform until now. We talk about features when we should be talking about transformation.
It’s Time to Change the Conversation
The SMBs that keep our economies running should know that a proven, accessible solution exists — one built for their size, their challenges and their ambition. A solution that helps them stay competitive in a market that throws new challenges at them every year.
To Microsoft partners:
Be customer zero. You might be surprised by what Business Central can do for your business and teams.
To accountants and finance professionals:
Your clients are asking for clarity, automation and better insight. Business Central gives you the tools to elevate those conversations and truly support their growth strategy.
To entrepreneurs:
Manual processes and guesswork aren’t a growth strategy, they’re a ceiling. Ask around. Be Curious. Your business deserves a foundation that matches its ambition.
Business Central isn’t just another accounting system. It’s the platform that lets growing businesses operate like enterprises, without the complexity or cost.
The tragedy isn’t that the tool doesn’t exist. It’s that the secret is too well kept.
Ready to change that? Connect with your Pax8 account team or join one of our monthly Dynamics Decoded sessions to learn how to get started with Business Central for your MSP business and your clients.
