Business Central 2023 release wave 2 features are scheduled to be released between October 2023 and March 2024. From user experience enhancements that make data management a breeze to developments that empower developers and integrators, Business Central is poised to be the backbone of efficient and seamless operations. Let's explore how the latest developments in Business Central are set to revolutionize user experiences, development, integration, and more.
User Experience
Dynamics 365 Business Central takes pride in offering an extensive array of user interfaces, granting the customers unparalleled flexibility in accessing and managing their data. With options like the desktop app, web app, and mobile apps, you can interact with your business software seamlessly from virtually anywhere and on any device. Whether you require rapid data entry, casual updates, or in-depth data analysis, Business Central provides a user-friendly experience that adapts to your needs. Users’ efficiency was intensified by simplifying actions across selections in lists of records and by providing an easier way to view summarized data, aiding you in swiftly rectifying data entry errors. Furthermore, the updates empower you to optimize your pages by adding existing table fields, customize field editability from the user interface, and conduct data searches effortlessly across the entire Business Central ecosystem.
Development
Developers are in for a treat with a multitude of enhancements designed to streamline their workflow and supercharge their capabilities. AL developers will appreciate the introduction of namespace support, simplifying code organization and reducing naming conflicts. Moreover, the ability to transfer table ownership between extensions and secure sensitive variable data during debugging adds versatility to your development toolkit. Enhancements in data analysis and reporting empower developers with the capability to toggle off Analysis Mode on pages and seamlessly embed Power BI content. Troubleshooting and profiling in Visual Studio Code are now more streamlined, and AppSource publishers can collaborate effortlessly with improved runtime package handling. With these updates, Dynamics 365 Business Central is all set to make app development more efficient and developer-friendly.
Adapt faster with Microsoft Power Platform
The latest developments have zeroed in on two pivotal domains: a transformation of the user experience within Power Automate approval workflows and a refinement of the Power BI embed experience. These enhancements encompass a broader array of actions, seamless support for external business events, and an extensive library of templates for automated flows. Building upon valuable partner feedback, Dynamics 365 Business Central has bolstered its dynamic capabilities for Power Platform integration in the online environment. Noteworthy updates include an increase in modification limits for triggering flows, a streamlined flow creation process from templates, and the capability to create flows that dynamically span multiple companies. Additionally, specific virtual tables have been enabled to eliminate duplicate data entry, providing greater control over the viewing of Power BI embedded content, and comprehensive support for business events in the Business Central connector for Power Automate.
Application
This release introduces a slew of new supply chain features designed to elevate efficiency, agility, and precision in warehouse operations. It empowers users with detailed insights into inventory availability, encompassing factors like location and processing stages that impact quantities on hand. Moreover, it offers independent configuration options for warehouse handling across inbound, outbound, and internal workflows. Business Central takes the guesswork out of bin selection for items in basic warehouse setups, while enabling seamless data editing for item journals and warehouse worksheets in Excel. Furthermore, the system now provides valuable suggestions for order handling, mitigating the risk of partial shipments, ensuring smooth production or assembly order processing, and ultimately enhancing customer satisfaction. Additionally, there are notable improvements in intercompany transactions, financial data consolidation, approval workflows, and automatic general ledger allocations, further streamlining processes and bolstering control.
Country and Regional Updates
Business Central's global reach is expanding thanks to partner-driven localization efforts. Partners are at the forefront, developing relevant localization apps and making them accessible on AppSource. Coupled with the platform's built-in language options, Business Central now extends its services to over 140 countries and regions across the globe. Moreover, in regions where Microsoft oversees localization, they ensure the delivery of all regulatory feature updates. Notably, this expansion encompasses a variety of new features, such as an updated design for report language and region settings, advanced payment capabilities, and a tax document posting preview tailored for Czechia. Additionally, features like direct transfer and e-submission of VAT returns in Denmark, along with localization apps like Iceland's delocalization app and E-invoicing through NemHandel that supports more countries and regions, enrich the user experience.
Reporting and Data Analysis Tools
Continuing investments in report discoverability have resulted in swift access to critical business insights for users. The Power BI experience within Business Central now features improved Power BI reports and enhanced Analysis mode capabilities, allowing users to conduct embedded data analysis without switching to external applications. This enhancement empowers end users and data analysts to analyze, group, and pivot data directly on list pages and queries, eliminating the need to open separate tools like Excel. With the ability to create and manage multiple analysis tabs for various data views and seamlessly share them with colleagues, collaboration and productivity are significantly enhanced. Furthermore, the persistence of user preferences for analysis mode ensures a smoother workflow.
Governance and Administration
Business Central administrators are in for an array of new tools designed to boost their self-sufficiency and efficiency. These enhancements are aimed at equipping administrators with the means to effortlessly manage environments, applications, and data migrations across diverse scenarios. Key improvements include the introduction of more granular administrator roles, streamlining minor update releases, enabling seamless integration between Business Central and Power Platform environments, and providing the capability to cancel Cloud Migration replication runs. Furthermore, administrators can now easily delete data linked to uninstalled extensions, gain deeper insights into user permissions through the Effective Permissions page, and exercise precise control over access rights with the Dynamics 365 Business Central Administrator role.
Copilot and AI innovation
In a recent survey on emerging business trends, it was revealed that nearly 90% of professionals aspire to leverage AI for streamlining repetitive tasks in their daily work routines. However, until now, AI has remained somewhat out of reach for many small and medium-sized businesses. Enter Microsoft Dynamics 365 Copilot, a game-changing solution that empowers professionals across various roles to harness the power of cutting-edge AI in their everyday tasks. With Copilot seamlessly integrated into Business Central, our customers can equip their workforce with user-friendly AI tools, eliminating the need for extensive data science knowledge. This latest wave of enhancements builds upon the initial Copilot capability, marketing text suggestions, by extending its productivity-boosting features to a broader spectrum of SMB roles. Now, users can complete bank account reconciliations faster with AI-driven transaction matching, reducing manual effort and improving efficiency. Additionally, the Marketing Text Suggestions feature, designed to save time and effort in product launches, has received quality improvements, multi-language support, enhanced discoverability, and content moderation enhancements, making it a valuable asset for businesses.
Service and platform
Users of Business Central can look forward to a more seamless and efficient experience, with a series of performance enhancements and optimizations in the 2023 release wave 2. Microsoft's commitment to the fundamentals of service, including performance, stability, resource governance, security, and compliance, is evident. Sign-ins are more stable, reducing interruptions in user sessions, while the language (AL) runtime has been optimized to minimize database locking and enhance overall performance. Specific application scenarios have been fine-tuned for better responsiveness and speed, ranging from data loading optimizations for multiple extensions to faster tab opening, navigation, and rendering. Notably, a significant performance boost has been achieved by reducing database locks, benefiting all users, especially those dealing with large datasets. Additionally, the introduction of scheduling tasks for service-to-service apps and device license users, multicompany synchronization with Dataverse, and increased operational limits on scheduled tasks and web requests all contribute to a more robust and efficient Business Central experience.
Legislation
Microsoft introduces a comprehensive set of legislative updates aimed at simplifying compliance with diverse government regulations. With a commitment to standardizing functionality across relevant countries and regions, these improvements offer businesses a robust foundation for managing e-invoicing and digital document requirements. The E-documents core module is positioned as a global solution, enabling electronic invoicing across various models and requirements, with support for both sales and purchase processes. Large companies now have a dedicated feature for reporting payment times, catering to the needs of specific regions where such reporting is mandatory. Additionally, the release includes refreshed setup data for select countries, facilitating quicker adoption of Business Central features. To enhance accuracy, businesses engaged in triangular Intrastat trade can now exclude relevant transactions from Intrastat reports. The VAT posting setup gains flexibility with independent VAT date configurations. Furthermore, the introduction of digital vouchers streamlines transaction proof and audit trail capabilities while ensuring compliance with local regulations.
Onboarding
Partners utilizing Dynamics 365 Business Central now have enhanced tools to streamline user onboarding and offer a more personalized welcome experience. By customizing the welcome banner messages, partners can greet new users with tailored greetings, making the platform more customer-centric. This feature, combined with sign-up context and customer profiling, creates a warm and inviting environment. Additionally, partners can set initial user roles before the first sign-in, offering a more tailored and efficient onboarding experience based on prospect profiles. Furthermore, the Contoso Coffee app provides a valuable demo tool and data for showcasing advanced service scenarios within Business Central, simplifying demonstrations and enabling partners to highlight the platform's service management capabilities effectively.
Dynamics 365 Business Central is the ultimate business solution, empowering users with versatile interfaces for seamless data management across devices, rapid data entry, updates, and in-depth analysis, with streamlined actions and simplified error correction. With global reach and compliance with legislative requirements, combined with a commitment to AI-driven productivity, Business Central is a great choice for businesses.
To note – not all features are enabled automatically. And some of the functionality described may not be released. Updates as of September 21st from Microsoft. You can see the release plan for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central here.
Admin : Dec 14, 2023 3:30:03 AM