Project Operations and Business Central together make a great ‘Better-Together’ pair for Services Automation which connects all the way from Sales to Billing.  However, from an implementation standpoint, doesn’t it look like a long-shot since there’s no out-of-the-box integration capability available?  Well, that’s where our PO-BC connector comes in and this Quick Start offer makes it a no-brainer for connecting getting up and running on Project Operations connected with Business Central end-to-end.  Let’s see how to do it and what gets configured.   What is the offer about?  First, you can familiarize yourself with the PO-BC Integration module by CloudFronts which connects Project Operations to Business Central for the business transactions between the two systems.  We have mentioned the pricing on the page, however, let me walk you through what’s get setup in this Quick Start –     PO Setup – No Customization  BC Setup – No Customization  PO-BC Integration Setup with Master Data Sync  Custom Reports – Project Profitability, Resource Allocation, AR Report & Invoice Schedule Report  To conclude, given that the above gets setup, you now have an end-to-end Project Operations to Business Central connected environment with our PO-BC connector setup. This helps you not miss another billing and ensures billing excellence.   We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfonts.com.

In the fast-evolving business landscape, sales leaders and business owners—whether new startups or established enterprises—face an unprecedented challenge: how to scale efficiently while maintaining a competitive edge. The digital revolution has created a vast ecosystem of tools, but many businesses are still unsure of how to leverage them effectively. For existing businesses, the challenge lies in moving away from manual data entry, disjointed workflows, and delayed decision-making that hinder productivity. Many companies still rely on outdated methods like Excel sheets, paperwork, and disconnected systems, leading to inefficiencies and lost revenue. For new or growing businesses, the challenge is different—they need to build a scalable foundation from day one, ensuring that the right digital tools are in place to support growth, automation, and decision-making. This is where Microsoft’s cloud ecosystem, particularly Dynamics 365 CE, Power Platform, and Power BI, plays a critical role in setting up businesses for long-term success. Automation is no longer just an operational advantage; it is a strategic imperative. Leveraging these tools, organizations can create a seamless, data-driven ecosystem that empowers sales teams to work smarter, not harder. But automation must be approached thoughtfully. It’s not about replacing human intuition; it’s about enhancing it. The Business Challenge: Automation is for Everyone, Not Just Tech Giants A common misconception is that automation is reserved for large enterprises with vast IT budgets. However, small and mid-sized businesses, as well as new startups, can also harness automation to streamline operations and scale efficiently. The key lies in understanding where automation can add value and how leaders can architect a strategy that integrates human judgment with system intelligence. Consider a mid-sized manufacturing firm that still manages leads and customer follow-ups manually. The sales team spends hours logging interactions, tracking deals, and following up via emails, leading to lost opportunities. By implementing Power Automate with Dynamics 365 CE, the company can: For a new business venturing into the cloud ecosystem, automation is a game-changer from day one. Instead of relying on traditional methods, they can: The result? More deals closed in less time, with greater accuracy and a human-first approach to relationship-building. The “ACTION” Framework for Sales Automation (Automate, Connect, Track, Improve, Optimize, Nurture) Sales Process Automation: From Lead to Close with Structured Chaos The “SMART” Approach to Sales Automation (Simplify, Monitor, Automate, Refine, Transform) Example 1: Automating Lead Qualification Imagine a sales rep manually filtering through hundreds of incoming leads to identify high-potential prospects. This process is not only time-consuming but also prone to bias. With AI-powered lead scoring in Dynamics 365 CE, the system automatically: Example 2: Automated Follow-Ups to Prevent Lost Deals A major challenge in sales is following up consistently. Research suggests that 80% of sales require five follow-ups, yet many reps give up after one or two. With Power Automate, businesses can: These micro-automations ensure no lead falls through the cracks, keeping the pipeline healthy and sales reps focused on closing deals. Power Virtual Agents (Copilot Agents): Revolutionizing Customer Engagement With the rise of AI, Power Virtual Agents, now called Copilot Agents, have transformed how businesses handle customer engagement and service. These AI-driven chatbots can: CRM Integration: The Power of a Unified System Many organizations use third-party tools for sales, marketing, and customer service. However, seamless CRM integration with Dynamics 365 CE provides unmatched insights and operational efficiency. By integrating with external platforms: Stakeholders & Business Owners: Making Data-Driven Decisions For business owners and key decision-makers, automation isn’t just about efficiency—it’s about strategic growth and profitability. By leveraging AI and automation tools, they can: Challenges in Sales Automation and How to Overcome Them 1. User Resistance to Automation 2. Integration Difficulties 3. Lack of Proper Communication 4. Data Quality Issues Conclusion: The Future of Business is Automated, But Still Human Automation is not a replacement for human expertise—it’s a force multiplier. Businesses that embrace automation with a strategic, human-first approach will thrive in the modern market. By leveraging Dynamics 365 CE, Power Platform, and Power BI, businesses can build a scalable, insight-driven ecosystem that not only improves sales productivity but future-proofs the organization for long-term success. I hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfonts.com.

For organizations, cashflow issues can be mitigated if billing happens on time. Having Project Operations and Business Central gets you covered from a Sales/Project standpoint and BC handles the accounting side, which is great. But when these systems are not connected end to end, it creates problems.  Let’s look at some of the issues and the need to have PO-BC integrated so that business transactions need not be left to manual dependency.  Disconnected Systems  Organizations like Professional Services or Project-based organizations in the SMB/SMC sector use Project Operations to handle Sales and Project Management and use Business Central as their backend Accounting.  Out-of-the-box, Project Operations and Business Central are not integrated from a transaction perspective. This leaves a gap for the organization to be filled manually and dependent on accounting/project management to ensure everything is accounted for in Business Central.  This adds human dependency to keep both the systems in sync and make sure everything gets billed on time.  But this is only the scenario, let’s talk about some problems with this scenario in the below section.  Why PO and BC Integration Matters  When we don’t have the systems connected all the way from Sales to Billing, the following issues start to add up resulting bigger cashflow issues –   These things add up causing loss in revenue and hence, causing cashflow issues. Profit and Loss statement might look great, but cash-in-hand makes organizations suffer and causes hindrance in growth.  Hence, the systems should be reliably integrated to eradicate the issues discussed above.  To give perspective of what all needs to be integrated to ensure that all transaction data between Project Operations and Business Central is taken care of, refer to the below architecture which we’ve incorporated in our PO-BC Integration Module –  To conclude that, when Organizations have their business systems connected to accounting and the financial transactions are taken care of, cashflow issues are eradicated so that organizations can bill on time and get paid on time.  Without this, cashflow chaos is difficult to overcome and fixing billing issues is of prime importance.  We hope you found this blog useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfonts.com.

At the turn of 2025, AI has been infused in everything we do, both in our personal lives and at work. As AI becomes more mainstream in business, from mastering prompt engineering to having a solid data catalog, it’s become crucial for organizations to ensure their applications are fully AI-ready. This article will focus on how you can drive AI and Insights from your Sales to Billing cycle at your organization to establish a dependable AI strategy.  PO and BC – Data Catalog: The word ‘Data Catalog’ gives an impression of all the data being available through connected systems through a single source – this source is AI Agents.  Organizations which run their projects with Project Operations have Sales cycle, Project & Resource Management, Invoicing in Business Central with all the transaction data from Project Operations – they for a data catalog when connected.  AI Agents need a data catalog to have consolidated form a system which it can leverage to give reliable insights and take correct actions which you define in your business. For example – AI will give incorrect responses or not act accordingly if the two systems are not connected, and AI Agents are not able to make sense of it. This will throw off the AI Strategy planned for your organization.  A well-organized Data Catalog increases AI Agents’ reliability and accuracy, enabling correct results and supporting AI use-cases in your organization.  PO-BC Integration Module: There is an absence of an integration solution between Project Operations and Business Central which caters to connect Customers/Projects from Project Operations to transaction data in Business Central.  Now, the AI Strategy will align only when the systems are seamlessly connected end-to-end. And due to this disconnect, the Project Management as well as the Business Central data doesn’t align and is human-dependent for its reliability which is counter-intuitive. AI won’t give errors, it’ll give incorrect answers! And hence, the integration needs to be in place for data integrity to drive AI Agents off of this reliable data.  To fill this gap of Project Operations and Business Central not being connected out-of-the-box, CloudFronts has released PO-BC Integration Module to bridge this gap and connect Project Operations to Business Central. This solution connects Project Operations data end-to-end to Business Central and back so that the AI agents can take reliable actions against this data – either automatically or when asked.  Conclusion : For a reliable AI strategy, integrate systems like Project Operations and Business Central. Achieve this using CloudFronts’ PO+BC Integration solution. This ensures AI agents can use the data to improve cash flow for growth.  This will help optimize operations efficiencies so that both, resources and cashflow can be freed up to focus on growth at the organization.  We hope you found this article useful, and if you would like to discuss anything, you can reach out to us at transform@cloudfronts.com