Benefits of Migrating On-Premises Customers to Dynamics 365 in the Cloud

Migrating from on-premises hosting to the cloud is no longer disruptive in an era dominated by AI and big data. Today, migrating to the cloud is the first step for most businesses in any digital transformation journey – and since the pandemic remote and hybrid-work environments have only further solidified cloud’s place in the IT stack.

With remote and hybrid-work environments having only further solidified cloud’s place in the IT stack, Microsoft Partners need to be prepared to handle the influx of demand to move from on-premises applications in to the cloud. In fact, it’s one of the driving factors behind Microsoft’s changes to the Partner Network.

Not only will knowledge of Microsoft’s new, cloud-based versions of their business tools equip you as a Microsoft Partner to help existing customers migrate their on-premises applications to the cloud, you’ll also be diversifying your solution offerings and adding new revenue streams by establishing a cloud practice.

In these next few sections, we’ll explain the benefits you and your customers stand to gain in migrating their On-Premises Dynamics solution to the Cloud.

Key Benefits of a Microsoft Dynamics 365 On-Premises to Cloud Migration

Much of what your customer’s Dynamics 365 on-premises to cloud migration is about is remaining competitive and building a more “agile” business — and it’s the same for you as their partner. If you’re unable to help your customer make the transition to cloud, someone else will. But — if you’re looking to get more specific, here’s a look at some of the biggest benefits for moving your customers to the cloud.

One Centralized Location for Data

Migrating to Dynamics in the cloud provides complete visibility into your client’s business—no matter how many locations are in the mix or whether teams are working remotely.

You’ll enable faster, data-driven decision making for your customers with reporting tools that feature Power BI, predictive analytics, and artificial intelligence, organizations get an agility boost.

Your clients will gain a high-level view of the entire company, customers, and the competitive and economic forces influencing customer behavior, needs, and expectations.

You’ll help them unlock new business models and improve forecasting efforts. Or optimize project management and inventory planning for cost-savings. The list goes on.

Cost Savings

Implemented correctly, Dynamics 365 in the cloud stands to slash operating costs for your customers when it comes to labor, equipment, warehouse space, admin, deployment, and so on.

According to a Forrester Total Economic Impact report organizations that made the move to the cloud were able to:

• Reduce the TCO by an average of 10.25%
• Slash deployment costs by 30-50%, on average, compared to on-premises customers
• Save ~40% on administrative expenses like server backups, storage use, restorations, and software updates
• Additional savings on disaster recovery costs, hardware, and storage management

These cost-savings your customers have frees up money for additional projects or services as take the next step in their digital transformation initiatives. The value of Microsoft is the depth of solutions and applications available that integrate seamlessly to meet any business need – and with Microsoft’s Power Platform, if any functionality is missing, it’s easy to develop with low-code/no-code technology.

Better Security

Organizations need to reimagine their cybersecurity strategies and become more proactive and adaptive, rather than reacting to new regulatory requirements and threats. Unfortunately, this isn’t possible without the cloud.

Things have changed since the early days of the cloud. Microsoft Dynamics 365 offers more robust security than on-prem ERP solutions especially since legacy giants have built solutions for businesses operating in healthcare, financial services, and the public sector.

Cloud solutions like Microsoft Dynamics make it easier to control where data is stored, who has access, and what resources a business is using at any given moment.

Migration can reduce the risk of ransomware attacks and data breaches and provide greater data security for customers. Users also benefit from more control over who has access to the system and how sensitive information is processed and stored.

Optimize IT Resources

According to Gartner, CIOs should reevaluate their current use cases to better optimize tech investments and focus on identifying new opportunities to invest in the innovative solutions that will carry them into the future.

Another report from McKinsey provides suggestions—including identifying new business models unlocked by cloud technologies, looking for ways to improve the customer experience, and reinvesting cost savings into new revenue streams.

It’s important to help customers look beyond available resources and identify opportunities where Dynamics 365 can save time—time better spent understanding customers and developing innovative solutions that align with their needs – solutions which as their Microsoft partner, you need to be able to advise them on.

Anywhere Access

Arguably the most tangible benefit of migrating to the cloud is the ability to access data/business tools from any device or location/move seamlessly between laptops, tablets, smartphones, and desktops without losing critical data/hours of work.

The cloud is a must-have in the age of remote work, distributed teams, and global partnerships. Even if your customer’s business is strictly in-person operation, on-prem hosting still won’t cut it. If they have multiple locations, cloud-based business tools are essential. They enable collaboration and ensure that every person is working with the same information.

Partnering for Success

As a Microsoft Partner, going to the cloud can’t be put off forever. On-prem solutions open the door to security risks, create barriers to insights and collaboration, and waste time with manual, error-prone processes. At some point, your customers will need to move to the cloud and it’s only a matter of if you will be the partner they are making that move with.

Many Microsoft Partners have turned to Stratos Cloud Alliance for help in building a profitable Microsoft Cloud practice. We are a Microsoft Indirect who gives you unparalleled access to Microsoft Cloud technologies. We also understand how Microsoft Partners operate and the challenges they face growing their businesses.

We offer experienced third-party technical enablement, business process development, and management consulting services and shared resources to help you build, go-to-market, sell, and service solutions that integrate with Microsoft technologies. Become a Stratos Partner today – it’s as easy as filling out a form – or contact us today to learn more about the Stratos Partner Program.