As the calendar turns its page to a new year, the roles of chief financial officers (CFOs) and finance teams take center stage as they review business performance and tackle updating strategic plans. The fresh new year of 2024 will bring with it a multitude of opportunities, challenges, and transformative possibilities for financial leaders navigating the ever-evolving landscape of the global economy. In this dynamic arena, where precision meets strategy, the CFO becomes the architect of fiscal success, and finance teams are the craftspersons shaping the financial future of their organizations. And yet, many leaders struggle with the complexity involved in navigating uncertainties, taking advantage of emerging trends, and driving business performance. We’re introducing the latest advancements in our enterprise resource planning (ERP) portfolio that address these challenges to simplify how you activate business insights at every level of your organization.

Let’s break this down based on the following top business performance management challenges we’ve heard from our customers as they turn to their planning, analytics, and insights tools, then we’ll cover our new year’s resolutions for each.

• Data accuracy, consistency, and integration: Poor data quality, reconciliation processes, and the integration of disparate data sources hinder accurate analysis and planning. Resolve to create a connected enterprise in 2024; our new business process-centric data models in the business performance analytics capabilities of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance will pave the way.
• Complexity for users: Financial planning and analytics (FP&A) and corporate performance management solutions often have a steep learning curve, lack a user-friendly design, and are difficult for users to navigate. Resolve to empower your teams with easy-to-use tools; our business performance planning capabilities in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance, generally available on December 31, 2023, will help.
• Total cost of ownership: Most financial management and ERP solutions do not include business performance management capabilities as part of their core solution, and these tools need to be purchased separately, which minimizes who can use them. Resolve to lower your total cost of ownership, while maximizing business performance management; our new Dynamics 365 Finance Premium offering will provide an easy way to acquire and deploy advanced business management capabilities.

Resolution 1: Create a single source of truth for planning, analytics, and insights, making it easy to get started.

Unlocking the true potential of your finance department requires addressing the common data-related challenges and tool limitations that hinder productivity, and getting actionable business performance insights in a timely manner.

We introduced business performance analytics in February 2023 to help you analyze and improve business performance by unifying data from Microsoft Dynamics 365, Microsoft Dataverse, and other sources into an easy-to-use, business process-centric data model. You can use business performance analytics to create reports, dashboards, and insights that help you make informed decisions and optimize your operational workflow.

Business performance analytics aims to revolutionize how finance departments handle complex data by streamlining data ingestion, cleansing, and enrichment. By automating data hygiene, teams can reduce manual work, minimize reliance on IT, and lay the foundation for advanced capabilities like copilot and AI. 

Business performance analytics capabilities are currently available in preview and your administrator can request installation;  your current Dynamics 365 Finance licenses allow you to try it out today.

Resolution 2: Empower people with planning and analytics tools that are easy to use.

Finance teams often face challenges with outdated data and complex tools, resulting in slow, manual processes when extracting integral information. The complexity of analytical tools often demands advanced data science skills or falls short with outdated features, hindering the discovery of valuable insights crucial for enhancing business performance. In the pursuit of agile decision-making, finance leaders must overcome these hurdles and ensure access to robust, timely insights that drive action.

We introduced our vision for extended planning and analysis (xP&A) back on May 31, 2023. On December 31, 2023, we’ll deliver on this vision with the general availability (GA) of business performance planning capabilities that equip our Dynamics 365 Finance customers with a comprehensive view of financial and operational performance. These capabilities simplify and automate planning, budgeting, forecasting, reporting, and analytics by integrating with familiar Microsoft Power BI and Excel environments.

Your administrator will be able to access these capabilities for installation after the GA date from the Power Platform admin center.

Resolution 3: Optimize costs while ensuring people have the tools they need and that they’re easy to buy.

The total cost of ownership for many business performance management solutions can be notably high due to various factors such as initial software licensing fees, implementation costs, and customization expenses. Integration challenges with existing systems may necessitate additional resources, and the need for skilled personnel to manage and optimize the solution can incur ongoing labor costs.

Our approach is to include planning, analytics, and insights as capabilities within Dynamics 365 Finance, while providing interoperability with familiar tools like Excel and Microsoft Power BI. This strategy allows our customers to minimize the high costs associated with many FP&A and xP&A solutions. This ensures that individual users have access to the capabilities they need to successfully complete their work, while not having to pay for unnecessary functionalities. We’re introducing a new offering to help realize this goal. Dynamics 365 Finance Premium will equip users with the tools needed to build advanced financial plans, budgets, analytics, and insights. This license will only be needed for roles within the organization that are responsible for creating strategic plans, budgets, reports, and insights. Welcome to a new era of financial empowerment, where success is not just measured but strategically crafted.

Modernize business performance management

In navigating the complexities of today’s economic landscape, CFOs recognize the indispensable need for advanced planning and analytical tools to effectively steer their organizations through uncertainties, foster innovation, and ensure both short-term resilience and long-term prosperity. With these new capabilities in Dynamics 365 Finance, CFOs can empower finance and business leaders with the essential tools to not only anticipate risks but also drive strategic innovation. In the face of modern economic challenges, more advanced corporate performance management becomes essential for financial leaders, offering a robust foundation to fortify their organizations, ensuring they not only weather the current storms but emerge stronger and more resilient for the challenges of tomorrow.

We’ve made planning and analytics easy for customers to get started, in familiar tools that are easy for finance users to use, and we’ve made the buying process simple with the Dynamics 365 Finance Premium offering. Ensure your organization is ready to adopt the new business performance planning capabilities and start 2024 with a better view of your strategic plans.

Learn more about Dynamics 365 Finance

Begin your AI-guided business performance management journey today. Learn more about Dynamics 365 Finance and our finance solutions to get a better understanding of how this new offering will add additional business performance management capabilities for our customers.

The post Enhance business performance agility with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance Premium appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

In the rapidly evolving AI landscape, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is taking the lead with innovations that have equipped more than 30,000 small and medium-sized businesses to achieve success. Powered by next-generation AI, Microsoft Copilot offers new ways to enhance workplace efficiency, automate mundane tasks, and unlock creativity. At a time when nearly two in three people say they struggle with having the time and energy to do their job, Copilot helps to free up capacity and enables employees to focus on their most meaningful work.¹ 

Dynamics 365 Business Central brings the power of AI to small and medium-sized businesses to help companies work smarter, adapt faster, and perform better. AI in Dynamics 365 Business Central improves the way work gets done, enabling you to:

• Get answers quickly and easily using natural language.
• Save time by automating tedious, repetitive tasks.
• Spark creativity with creative content ideas.
• Anticipate and overcome business challenges.

Reclaim time for important work

In a small or medium-sized business, there is often a lot to do and not many people to help get it all done, so it’s important to make the most of your limited resources to accomplish your goals. Everyday activities like tracking down documents and bringing new employees up to speed can drain your valuable time. What if you had an AI-powered assistant ready to help you find exactly what you need without the hassle?

Available in early 2024, conversational chat using Copilot in Dynamics 365 Business Central helps you answer questions quickly and easily, locate records faster, and even learn new skills—all using natural language. Save time and effort by navigating to documents without having to use traditional menus, and rapidly onboard new users with answers to questions on how, when, or why to do things. Copilot is your everyday AI companion, helping you to speed through tasks, build momentum, and free time for your most impactful work. 

Streamline month-end tasks with enhanced bank reconciliation

Reconciling bank statement transactions with your financial system has often been a tedious monthly chore. Meticulously matching every line item to new or existing accounting entries takes time (and isn’t the most exciting way to spend an afternoon.) In the past, Business Central helped by auto-matching many of the simple one-to-one transactions, but the logic wasn’t able to decipher more complex scenarios such as when multiple charges were paid in a single transaction.

Now, Copilot in Business Central makes bank reconciliation even easier by analyzing bank statements that you import into Business Central, matching more transactions, and proposing entries for transactions that weren’t auto-matched. By comparing and interpreting transaction descriptions, amounts, dates, and patterns across fields, Copilot can help you improve the accuracy of your bank reconciliation while reducing manual effort.

Unlock creativity with marketing text suggestions

Copilot in Business Central helps product managers save time and drive sales with compelling AI-generated marketing text suggestions. Using key attributes like color and material, Copilot can create product descriptions in seconds tailored to your preferred tone, format, and length. Once you’ve made any adjustments, you can easily publish to Shopify or other ecommerce platforms with just a few clicks. Discover how Copilot can help you banish writer’s block and launch new products with ease.

Boost customer service with inventory forecasting

Effective inventory management is crucial in a competitive business environment as it can significantly influence a company’s success and customer retention. This process involves balancing customer service with cost control. Maintaining low inventory reduces working capital, but risks missing sales due to stock shortages. Using AI, the Sales and Inventory Forecast extension uses past sales data to forecast future demand, helping to prevent stockouts. Once a shortfall is identified, Business Central streamlines the replenishment process by generating vendor requests, helping you keep your customers happy by fulfilling their orders on time, every time.  

Reduce risk with late payment prediction

Managing receivables effectively is vital for a business’s financial wellbeing. With the Late Payment Prediction extension, you can reduce outstanding receivables and refine your collections approach by forecasting if outstanding sales invoices are likely to be paid on time. For instance, if a payment is anticipated to be delayed, you could modify the payment terms or method for that customer. By proactively addressing potential late payments and adapting accordingly, you can minimize overdue receivables, reduce risk of non-payment, and ultimately improve your financial performance.

Improve financial stability with Cash Flow Analysis

Powered by AI, Business Central can create a comprehensive Cash Flow Analysis to help you monitor your company’s cash position. Cash flow is a critical indicator of a company’s solvency, and cash flow analysis is an important future-focused planning tool that helps you maintain control over your financial health and make proactive adjustments to meet all your financial commitments. With insights from Business Central, you can pivot quickly to safeguard your company’s fiscal wellbeing, such as obtaining loans to cover cash shortfalls or cutting back on credit when you have surplus cash.

Work smarter with Copilot in Business Central

Copilot in Business Central gives your company an edge with AI-powered innovations that are a catalyst for unleashing human potential, fostering creativity, and driving efficiency in ways previously unimaginable. The integration of AI into everyday business processes is not just about staying ahead in a competitive market, it’s about redefining what’s possible in the workplace. With Business Central, your company is empowered to navigate today’s complex business environment with agility, precision, and a renewed focus on what truly matters.

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Sources

¹ Microsoft Work Trend Index Annual Report, May 2023

The post Transform the way work gets done with Microsoft Copilot in Dynamics 365 Business Central appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

This post is co-authored by John Ryan, Manager Functional Architect Dynamics 365 Field Service, Avanade.

One of the most exciting things about the introduction of AI into tools people use every day to do their jobs is the way AI can help revolutionize the way people work. Especially at the frontlines of business, AI provides organizations with innovative and personalized ways to serve customers. According to IDC, 28% of organizations are investing significantly in generative AI.¹ This is what’s exciting about the introduction of Copilot in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service.

No doubt about it: modern solutions like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service have already come a long way in helping frontline workers be more productive and efficient in helping customers. But Copilot takes things to the next level by bringing the power of next-generation AI to the frontlines, enabling faster resolution and better service.

Enabling next-level support with Copilot for Field Service in Outlook and Microsoft Teams

Email has long been a critical communications tool for frontline managers and technicians. New data from Microsoft’s 2023 Work Trend Index Annual Report reveals that over 60% of frontline workers struggle with having to do repetitive or menial tasks that take time away from more meaningful work.² Now, the Copilot in Dynamics 365 Field Service Outlook add-in can streamline work order creation with relevant details pre-populated from emails.

So, what does that mean, exactly? Copilot can also optimize technician scheduling with data-driven recommendations based on factors such as travel time, availability, and skillset. Frontline managers can see relevant work orders and review them before creating new work orders, and they can easily reschedule or update those work orders as customers’ needs change. In addition, organizations can customize work orders for their frontline needs by adding, renaming, or rearranging fields. Even better, Copilot can assist frontline managers with work order scheduling in Microsoft Teams, saving time and effort to find the right worker for the job.

Frontline managers can also easily open the Field Service desktop app directly from the Copilot add-in via Outlook or Teams to view work orders. There, they can see booking suggestions in the work order and book a field technician without opening the schedule board. The booking is created in Microsoft Dataverse and also gets recorded on the Field Service schedule board automatically. All this saves frontline managers valuable time because they can stay in the flow of work, reduce clicks and context-switching between apps, and create work orders quickly without copy/paste errors. In the Field Service app, they can also review work order list views and edit a work order right in the list without having to reopen it.

Getting answers faster with natural language search with Copilot in Teams

Searching work orders to find specific details about customer jobs or looking for information about parts inventory used to mean switching between apps and searching across different sources for information. Now, to search for work orders or other customer data, agents can ask Copilot through a Teams search. They simply ask what they’re looking for using natural language, and Copilot will return specific information related to their work orders in Dynamics 365 Field Service including status updates, parts needed, or instructions to help them complete the job. The more agents use Copilot, the more the AI assistant learns and can assist agents at their jobs. The future is now.

Empowering field technicians with modern user experience

Frontline managers aren’t the only team members getting a productivity boost from more modern tools. The new Dynamics 365 Field Service mobile experience, currently in preview for Windows 10 and higher, iOS, and Android devices, empowers field technicians by giving them all the relevant, most up-to-date information they need to manage work orders, tasks, services, and products and get their jobs done thoroughly and efficiently. This modern user experience supports familiar mobile navigation, gestures, and controls to streamline managing work order Tasks, Services, and Products. Technicians can save valuable time by quickly updating the status of a booking, getting driving directions to a customer site, and changing or completing work order details. They can even get detailed information about tasks with embedded Microsoft Dynamics 365 Guides, which provide step-by-step instructions, pictures, and videos.

Changing the game for frontline technicians with Copilot in mobile

For field service technicians, having Copilot generate work order summaries that include concise, detailed descriptions of services as well as pricing and costs is a game changer. Work order summaries are generated by Copilot on the fly, synthesizing information from various tabs and fields to break down tasks, parts, services, and problem descriptions into a simple narrative, making it easy for technicians to understand job requirements. And because field technicians often need to work with their hands, they can use the voice-to-text feature to update work orders by describing details including exactly what they did on a job, when they started and finished, and what parts they used. When the work is completed, they can use the app to collect a digital signature from the customer or use voice-to-text to capture customer feedback.

Copilot in Dynamics 365 Field Service is a leap forward in the field service space. Can’t wait to see what’s next!

Learn more about the AI-powered experiences in Dynamics 365 Field Service, Teams, and Microsoft’s mixed reality applications for your frontline workforce announced at Microsoft Ignite 2023:

• Transforming service organizations with generative AI 
• Reimagine the frontline with next-generation AI and fast deployment 

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[1] IDC Analyst Brief sponsored by Microsoft, Generative AI and Mixed Reality Power the Future of Field Service Resolution (Doc #US51300223), October 2023

[2] The Work Trend Index survey was conducted by an independent research firm, Edelman Data x Intelligence, among 31,000 full-time employed or self-employed workers across 31 markets, 6,019 of which are frontline workers, between February 1, 2023, and March 14, 2023. This survey was 20 minutes in length and conducted online, in either the English language or translated into a local language across markets. One thousand full-time workers were surveyed in each market, and global results have been aggregated across all responses to provide an average. Each market is evenly weighted within the global average. Each market was sampled to be representative of the full-time workforce across age, gender, and region; each sample included a mix of work environments (in-person, remote vs. non-remote, office settings vs. non-office settings, etc.), industries, company sizes, tenures, and job levels. Markets surveyed include: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam.

The post Copilot in Dynamics 365 Field Service helps take field support to the next level appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

Editor:
Denis Conway

Introduction:

The Microsoft Ignite 2023 conference has been a showcase of ground breaking AI advancements, offering a wealth of opportunities for the enhancement of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solutions. These technological strides are more than just innovations; they are pathways to augment the functionality, efficiency, and user experience of ERP systems.

Top 10 Insights and Opportunities for ERP Applications:

This blog explores how the top 10 key insights from Ignite 2023 can be leveraged to enhance ERP products, benefit their users, assist ISVs (Independent Software Vendors) in developing custom solutions, and support the core business users of these ERP systems.

1. Revolutionizing Productivity with Copilot in Microsoft 365:

Microsoft 365 Copilot:

This innovation is a testament to Microsoft’s commitment to enhancing workplace efficiency and creativity. Its integration across applications like Outlook, Excel, and Teams exemplifies Microsoft’s vision for a seamlessly interconnected work environment.

Opportunity for ERP: 

Incorporating ERP-focused Copilot plugins into M365 applications can revolutionize ERP workflows through the automation of routine tasks and the provision of intelligent insights from the ERP system for decision-making within the productivity suite. Such integration is poised to significantly boost time efficiency and improve accuracy for ERP system users.

2. Extending Copilot’s Reach:

Diverse Integration:

Expanding Copilot to aid in the completion of tasks across diverse roles and functions, such as business processes and IT administration represents a strategic initiative to integrate AI thoroughly into all facets of work.

Opportunity:

Expanding Copilot into ERP systems can provide tailored assistance in various ERP areas like financial planning, supply chain management, operations, human resources, commerce etc. offering a more intuitive and guided user experience.

3. Strategic Enhancements:

Bing Chat Enterprise Transition:

The transformation of Bing Chat into Copilot (copilot.microsoft.com) offers an opportunity for ERP systems to utilize enhanced external signals for improved demand planning, supply chain risk management, and support functions.

Copilot Studio:

This tool can be utilized by ISVs and ERP developers, enabling them to craft tailored AI solutions that integrate flawlessly with core ERP systems, thereby improving functionality and user experience. It also offers administrative capabilities to refine core ERP Copilot skills with additional grounding, topics, and more.

4. Data and AI Synergy with Microsoft Fabric:

Unified Data Handling:

Integrating Microsoft Fabric with AI tools and making this GA (Generally Available) is a significant step towards enhancing data-driven decision-making.

Opportunity:

Microsoft Fabric’s integration can enhance data-driven decision-making in ERP systems. It can unify data from various sources, providing a more comprehensive view for analytics and reporting within ERP systems.

5. Advancements in Azure AI platform:

Model-as-a-Service:

Simplifies the integration and customization of AI models, marking a significant advancement in AI application development.

New AI Models:

Introduction of GPT-3.5 Turbo, GPT-4 Turbo, and DALL·E 3 revolutionizes AI application development.

Opportunity:

The integration of advanced AI models like GPT-3.5 Turbo and GPT-4 Turbo into ERP systems can enable more sophisticated data analysis using tools like advance data analytics, code interpreter and predictive modeling, aiding in strategic business planning and forecasting.

6. Enhanced Cloud Infrastructure and NVIDIA Collaboration:

Azure Maia and Cobalt Chips & Azure Boost: 

These advancements supercharge AI workloads and improve storage and networking, enhancing ERP system efficiency and scalability.

NVIDIA AI Foundry Service: 

This partnership boosts AI model development, leveraging NVIDIA’s tools with Azure’s infrastructure.

Opportunity: 

These innovations enable faster processing and robust AI capabilities in ERP solutions, facilitating advanced analytics and decision-making.

7. Ethical AI Deployment:

Responsible AI Initiatives:

Emphasizing ethical use with initiatives like the Copilot Copyright Commitment and Azure AI Content Safety.

Opportunity:

The focus on responsible AI use ensures that ERP solutions remain compliant with legal standards and ethical guidelines, building trust among users and stakeholders.

8. AI Integration in Windows Experiences:

Windows 11 AI Tools:

Aiming to make AI more accessible and position Windows as the prime platform for AI development.

Opportunity:

Enhanced AI tools in Windows can improve the accessibility and usability of ERP solutions, offering a more seamless and integrated experience across devices and platforms.

9. Enhanced AI-Driven Security Solutions:

Microsoft Sentinel and Microsoft Defender XDR Integration:

Creates a unified security operations platform, enhancing threat protection.

Opportunity:

The integration of advanced security solutions can bolster the security of ERP systems, protecting sensitive business data and ensuring compliance with industry standards.

10. AI Skill Development and Credentials:

Microsoft Applied Skills Credentials:

Covering various aspects of AI, these credentials are crucial for validating expertise in this rapidly evolving field.

Opportunity:

Providing training and credentials in AI can empower ERP professionals to leverage AI capabilities effectively within Dynamics 365, enhancing the overall value and utility of ERP solutions.

Explore Further:

For a deeper dive into how these technologies are being applied, check out my other blog on the practical use of Copilot in Dynamics 365 AI ERP applications. Microsoft Copilot brings generative help and guidance into Dynamics 365

Conclusion:

Microsoft Ignite 2023 has opened a new chapter in the evolution of ERP applications, with AI at its core. By embracing these AI advancements, ERP solutions can be significantly enhanced, redefining how businesses leverage these systems for strategic and operational excellence.

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Learn More

Interested in learning more about Copilot’s in-app help guidance? Here are your next steps:

Read the Copilot Product Documentation:

For comprehensive and detailed information about Copilot’s capabilities and functionalities, be sure to check out our product documentation. You’ll find in-depth insights into how Copilot can enhance your experience with Dynamics365 Supply Chain Management –

Read the Responsible AI FAQ for Copilot and its capability of generative help and guidance.

Experience Copilot in action (For Existing Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management Customers):

 If you’re already using Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, you can enable and experience Copilot’s capabilities to streamline your operations. Here’s how:

• Step 1: Enable Copilot Feature: Follow our documentation for existing customers to learn how to enable this feature. Once enabled, you’ll have access to Copilot’s powerful in-app help guidance within Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management.
• Step 2: Access Copilot – Locate the Copilot icon at the top of your screen within Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, then click on it to open the conversational sidecar experience. Copilot will introduce itself and encourage you to ask questions.
• Step 3: Pose Your Question – In any uncommon or challenging task within the application, simply ask Copilot for guidance. For better results, especially when seeking documentation-related in-app help, consider starting your questions with ‘How.’
• Step 4: Instant Guidance – Copilot will provide you with step-by-step guidance; all responses are grounded by our public documentation.

Please note that Copilot’s capabilities are exclusively available to existing Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management customers. If you’re one of them, don’t miss out on the opportunity to enhance your user experience and streamline your operations with Copilot.

Join Copilot for finance and operations apps – Yammer

Stay informed about the most recent Copilot by becoming a member of our Copilot for finance and operations Yammer Group  . Share your Feedback and be the first to know about the latest enhancements.

The post Microsoft Ignite 2023 Insights & Opportunities for ERP applications. appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

Introduction:

In the ever-changing landscape of contemporary business, effective supply chain management is paramount. Central to this complex system is the critical process of demand planning and forecasting, which profoundly impacts a company’s capacity to fulfil customer requirements, optimize inventory, and maintain a competitive edge. This article explores the significance of demand forecasting and how Microsoft seamlessly incorporates it into its new demand planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management.

The Crucial Role of Demand Planning and Forecasting:

Precise demand planning and forecasting play a pivotal role in diverse facets of business operations, yielding advantages throughout the entire supply chain:

1. Accurate Inventory Management: Precise demand forecasting optimizes inventory levels, finding the balance between excess stock and stockouts.
2. Customer Satisfaction: Accurate forecasting ensures products are available in the right place at the right time, enhancing customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
3. Cost Reduction: Effective demand forecasting minimizes holding costs for excess inventory and reduces costs associated with stockouts.
4. Resource Allocation: Anticipating demand aids in efficiently allocating resources, including labor, production capacity, and raw materials.
5. Improved Collaboration: Accurate forecasting fosters collaboration across the supply chain, enhancing coordination between suppliers, manufacturers, and retailers.
6. Long-term Planning: Strategic planning benefits from accurate forecasting, aiding businesses in adapting to changing market conditions and trends.
7. Competitive Advantage: Organizations responding effectively to market changes gain a competitive edge.

Exploring a Range of Demand Forecasting Models:

Below is a concise examination of diverse forecasting models employed in general Supply Chain demand planning, accompanied by insights into their potential applications within a business context.

1. Qualitative Forecasting:
   • Delphi Method: In the tech industry, when forecasting the demand for a new product, experts from different fields like engineering, marketing, and finance may anonymously provide input through multiple rounds of questionnaires.
   • Market Research: A smartphone company might conduct extensive market research, including customer surveys and competitor analysis, to forecast demand for its next flagship device.
2. Time Series Analysis:
   • Prophet: In the retail sector, employ Prophet time series analysis for precise demand forecasting, enabling efficient inventory management, minimizing stockouts, and maximizing profitability.
   • Exponential Smoothing: A fashion retailer might use exponential smoothing to predict future sales based on the recent trend in sales for specific clothing items.
   • ARIMA: A beverage company could apply ARIMA models to forecast demand for a seasonal drinks during holidays.
   • Best Fit: In healthcare, ‘Best Fit’ involves selecting the optimum statistical model to capture dataset patterns. Applying best-fit time series analysis anticipates patient needs, optimizes resource management, and enhances operational effectiveness for improved outcomes and satisfaction.”
   • ETS (Error-Trend-Seasonality): Hospitality and Tourism, utilize ETS models to forecast hotel bookings and tourism trends, enabling businesses to optimize pricing strategies and allocate resources efficiently based on seasonal fluctuations.
3. Causal Models:
   • Regression Analysis: An automobile manufacturer might use regression analysis to predict the impact of advertising spending on the demand for a particular car model.
   • Econometric Models: In the energy sector, econometric models could be employed to forecast electricity demand based on economic indicators such as GDP and population growth.
4. Machine Learning Models:
   • Neural Networks: An e-commerce platform might use neural networks to predict customer demand for various products by considering factors like browsing history, purchase patterns, and customer demographics.
   • Random Forest: A retail chain could employ a random forest model to forecast the demand for different product categories based on historical sales data and external factors like economic trends.
5. Judgmental Forecasting:
   • Expert Input: In the pharmaceutical industry, stakeholders may provide expert opinions to forecast the demand for a new medication, considering factors like regulatory approval, market acceptance, and healthcare trends.

These forecasting models offer diverse approaches, catering to various industries and scenarios.

Demand forecasting in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

In the context of demand planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, the efficiency of demand forecasting is bolstered by a robust suite of features. The system taps into the potential of built-in out-of-the-box AI-powered algorithms, integrates existing models, utilizes the capabilities of Custom Azure Machine Learning (AML), advanced forecasting models, forecasting profiles, and streamlined data hierarchy management to enhance the precision of demand planning. Through the seamless integration of these elements, the platform guarantees the accuracy of demand forecasts, facilitates the smooth identification and handling of outliers, and adeptly oversees various facets of the supply chain.

Built-in AI Algorithms:

Access to pre-configured and out-of-the-box AI-based models like Arima Prophet, ETS, and outlier removal without the need for additional configuration provides users with a powerful and user-friendly forecasting solution. This feature enables businesses to quickly leverage advanced forecasting techniques, enhancing the accuracy of predictions.

Advanced Forecasting Models:

The platform supports advanced forecasting methods such as ARIMA, ETS (Error-Trend-Seasonality), Prophet, and Best fit, ensuring a high degree of accuracy in demand forecasts. Leveraging the capabilities of custom Azure Machine Learning (AML), this flexibility empowers businesses to customize their forecasting strategies based on the distinct characteristics of their products and the dynamics of their market.

Use your own Forecast Models

If you’ve created your own forecasting models or utilize Azure Machine Learning within Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, you can leverage the collaborative editing features within the app to directly invoke your custom models. This allows you to seamlessly integrate your pre-built models alongside the out-of-the-box models provided, tailoring your forecast for optimal accuracy.

Forecasting Profiles:

Users can craft and manage forecasting profiles, streamlining calculations and facilitating the application of outlier removal techniques. This feature adds a layer of customization to the forecasting process, allowing organizations to adapt to specific business requirements and scenarios.

Outlier Detection and Removal/Handiling:

Detecting outliers in demand planning is a vital component of forecasting and supply chain management. The identification of outliers plays a key role in enhancing the precision of demand forecasts and ensuring the appropriate handling of anomalies. This process is streamlined through the intuitive Outlier Detection capabilities embedded in demand planning within Dynamics Supply Chain Management.Detecting and eliminating outliers is a pivotal stage in data preprocessing, essential for enhancing the accuracy and dependability of statistical analyses and machine learning models. Employ advanced methods, particularly the Interquartile Range (IQR) and Seasonal-Trend Decomposition using LOESS (STL), to skillfully pinpoint and preemptively manage outliers. This strategic approach contributes to improved precision and effectiveness in data analysis.

Outlier Removal/Handling Techniques:

• Leverage sophisticated approaches, notably the Interquartile Range (IQR) and Seasonal-Trend Decomposition using LOESS (STL), to adeptly identify and proactively address outliers for enhanced precision and effectiveness in data analysis.

Data Hierarchy Management:

Efficient data hierarchy management is crucial for granular forecasting and optimizing supply chain operations. Demand planning in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management provides comprehensive hierarchy management across products, locations, and time:

• Product Hierarchy: A retail electronics company organizes its product catalog with a hierarchical structure, starting broadly with categories like smartphones and laptops and becoming more granular with specific brands and models. This detailed hierarchy enables the company to forecast demand patterns at a specific product level, enhancing inventory management.

• Location Hierarchy: The company optimizes distribution based on a location hierarchy that spans global, regional, and local levels. Understanding variations in demand by region helps in strategic decision-making for supply chain management, ensuring efficient allocation of inventory to meet the unique demands of each location.

• Time Hierarchy: Capturing seasonality and trends through time hierarchy management, the company analyzes daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly variations in demand. This temporal sensitivity enhances the accuracy of predictions, allowing the business to adjust inventory levels and marketing strategies to meet fluctuating consumer preferences throughout the year.

Enhanced Integration with data:

Demand planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management seamlessly integrates your data, further enhancing the capabilities of the demand forecasting solution:

Virtual Entities:

The platform supports the extension or creation of custom entities within Microsoft Finance and Operations, enabling integration with additional data sources. This flexibility ensures that businesses can incorporate diverse datasets into their demand forecasting models.

Finance and Operations Integration:

The smooth export of planned data back into Microsoft Finance and Operations marks the culmination of the supply chain planning cycle. This closed-loop integration guarantees that the generated demand forecasts are directly incorporated into the broader finance and operations context, promoting consistency and accuracy throughout the organization. Users have the flexibility to plan across various instances of Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations at a higher level and selectively export specific parts of the plan to designated locations.

Azure Data Explorer (ADX):

Efficient data storage, aggregation, and disaggregation in Azure Data Explorer optimize performance. This integration allows businesses to harness the power of Azure’s data capabilities for more robust forecasting and analytics.

Conclusion:

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management’s demand planning feature provides a comprehensive solution for demand forecasting. This solution incorporates outlier detection, advanced forecasting models, seasonality analysis, and robust scenario planning capabilities. The integrated approach enables businesses to make well-informed decisions, adapt to changing conditions, and maintain a competitive edge in a dynamic market environment. Demand planning and forecasting are crucial aspects of effective supply chain management, enhancing agility, responsiveness, and competitiveness in today’s dynamic marketplace.

The article explores various forecasting models and demonstrates their real-world applications. Dynamics 365’s features, such as built-in AI algorithms, advanced forecasting models, forecasting profiles, outlier detection, and data hierarchy management, are highlighted as key elements that improve accuracy.

Additionally, the platform’s integration capabilities with Azure Data Explorer and Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management are emphasized, creating a closed-loop system that optimizes forecasting accuracy and extends its impact across the organization.

To navigate the complexities of supply chain management, businesses can strategically leverage Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management. This proactive approach allows them to adapt to future challenges, gain a competitive edge, and foster sustained success in the ever-evolving landscape of modern business.

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Learn More

Access the demand planning solution, Documentation, and Workshop:

To access the demand planning Application and learn more about its features, follow the provided links. Additionally, don’t miss the upcoming demand planning workshop in Denmark to dive deeper into this transformative tool.

Access the demand planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management:

To install the latest version of the demand planning application, ensure that you are using Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, and then visit the Power Platform Admin Center. Search for the Dynamics 365 demand planning Application and follow the installation process.

Click here to access: Demand planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

https://aka.ms/DemandPlanningApp

Demand planning Documentation:

If you’re interested in learning more about our demand planning Application, we’ve prepared an extensive collection of highly informative documents for your review and easy access.

You can find them right here: Demand planning Documentation

Demand planning – Demonstration Videos:

We’ve taken extra steps to create a series of informative demo videos that will not only guide you through the application but also showcase a multitude of features available in the demand planning Application.

Demand Planning Insights Videos:

• Importing Data:
• Creating Forecasts:
• Planner viewing and working with Forecasts

Meet the Team: Onsite Workshop December 2023

The forthcoming demand planning Workshop, to be held at Microsoft’s facility in Lyngby, Denmark, is geared towards introducing the new demand planning application to both Customers and Partners. Furthermore, it will provide an in-depth exploration of the product’s features and capabilities.

The workshop will also cover various important topics, including:

• Exploring the contents of the Public Preview October 21st and December update.
• Engaging hands-on lab activities.
• Participating in a user experience (UX) study or exercise.
• Understanding how these developments align with the broader context of Supply Chain Planning.
• An overview of Copilot for demand planning.
• Customer insights and feedback.

Please note that a more detailed agenda will be provided to attendees as the workshop date approaches.

Date: 4th+ 5th December 2023

Duration: 2 days

Location: Lyngby, Denmark

Register here

Demand Planning Community – Yammer

Join our Yammer group to stay updated with monthly evaluations, scripts, and videos related to the demand Planning Application. Your journey to supply chain transformation begins here.

Preview Early Access – Demand Planning Application

The post Transforming Supply Chains: Exploring Advanced AI-Powered Demand Forecasting and Demand Planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.