Directions North America 2021 – the Conference for Microsoft Dynamics SMB Partners – is a Wrap!

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    Last week the Directions North America conference, the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central event driven by Partners – for Partners, was held “virtually”. The three-day event included keynote speakers, exciting announcements and more. Were you unable to attend?  Read on as our team at Stratos Cloud Alliance shares what they took away from the event.

    One of the big themes this year was all about momentum, specifically the momentum surrounding Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. Previously, we’ve heard criticism from competitors saying that Dynamics 365 Business Central was not a mature enough product for partners to bother adopting. After Directions, one thing is clear: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is a mature, ready-to-go, ERP solution that can compete, and win, against NetSuite, Acumatica, and Sage Intaact, to name a few consistent compete solutions. Microsoft saw 19% earnings increase over last year, largely due to a rapid uptake of cloud-computing services like Business Central. In addition to the speedy adoption rates from partners, now over 15,000 clients on the SaaS platform, Dynamics 365 Business Central is becoming the perfect ERP for an array of new customers that were cautious before.

    The past year has been difficult for companies everywhere, but those that were equipped with cloud-based Business Central were ready to tackle the challenges experienced with the shift to a remote workforce. As cloud-based solutions become our new normal, partners are energized to make the move. If you haven’t made the move from on-premises solutions, or have yet to add Dynamics 365 to your offer portfolio, you’re falling behind! With low risk, low financial output, pre-packaged rates, and expansive sales and marketing resources, partners that choose Stratos Cloud Alliance can quickly and easily offer the entire Dynamics 365 suite to their customers.

    Another strong focus of the conference was the ISV add-on and vertical expansion that partners are taking advantage of to offer Business Central to their customers who require industry solutions. For example, our Stratos Cloud partners are leveraging HelloSign eSignature for Dynamics 365 CRM which has cross-industry application and Progressus Advanced Projects for Professional Services, both exclusively distributed by Stratos Cloud Alliance, to extend their value-add to their customers.

    One of the biggest announcements that came from Directions NA 2021 was when Microsoft unveiled their new pricing and entitlements for Dynamics 365 Business Central cloud storage starting in July.  The new model is based on the number of full users to accommodate clients with databases larger than 80 gigs, and adds 2GB per user for Essential licenses, and 3GB per user for Premium licenses. This also cuts additional storage pricing by more than half of current pricing. As of now, users are paying $40 per GB above 80 GB, which will be reduced to $10 per GB with even more cost savings if purchased in increments of 100GB. This news can bring thousands of dollars in cost savings for partners and their customers who are ready to move to the cloud but had previously been deterred by this addition cost.

    If you did miss the event or a session you wanted to attend, the Directions NA 2021 production team is preparing the sessions and plan to make them available on-demand to registered Directions 2021 attendees.  If you did not register for the event but are ready to learn more about what you are missing, Stratos Cloud Alliance offers unmatched services to support you in building a profitable cloud business.

    Your growth is tied to the Indirect Provider that you choose – and as we listened in on other sessions at Directions, not all Indirect Providers are equal. Whether you are new to the Microsoft CSP program, are an Indirect Reseller already engaged in the program, or are a Direct CSP evaluating a shift to the indirect model, Stratos Cloud does provide comprehensive end-to-end cloud services and support, across Azure, Microsoft 365, and Dynamics 365, but we thoroughly understand Dynamics 365 and provide superior end-to-end enablement programs and a robust partner services catalog to power your Cloud success.

    You can offer more to your customers, minimize your risk, and grow your business. The shortest distance to a successful cloud strategy is a straight line with Stratos Cloud as your co-pilot, built on 33 years of business applications experience.

     

     

     

     

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