Reasons to Upgrade to Microsoft Dynamics GP 2016
When dealing with software and technology, there are advantages and disadvantages of being on the latest-and-greatest version. The disadvantages usually include the risk of bugs or glitches that coincide with being an early-adopter. The advantages can usually outweigh the risk by adding new features, increasing performance, and fixing previously identified issues. In some cases, such as if you’re using the payroll module, you are required to stay fairly current in order to keep receiving tax table updates, so you don’t have much of a choice when it comes time to upgrade. With Microsoft Dynamics GP, the releases are typically very stable and thoroughly tested. Even though some aspects of the software may not work at the time of the initial release, they usually have things resolved by the second release, and they clearly outline the issues so you know if it will affect you before you decide to upgrade. I’m going to discuss some of the reasons it would be beneficial to upgrade to GP 2016 if you are currently on a previous version.
In the new release, they have enhanced the Web Client aspects of the software. The user interface has been updated, as well as added support for additional browsers and mobile devices. Other system-wide improvements include the ability to scan multiple pages at once if using the Document Attachment feature, the addition of workflow condition management, and OData Service enhancements.
Significant improvements have been made to the business intelligence aspects of GP. You can now import and export SmartLists from SmartList Designer. Also, when exporting to Excel, numbers that are exported will actually be formatted as numbers instead of text inside Excel. If using Power BI, the Power BI reports can now be added to home pages as well.
On the financial side of things, you can now generate an exception report when importing a budget into GP. They’ve also added an option to enable payables check batches to be paid using a credit card. This option was previously only available in the Manual Payment window. If you’ve dealt with the hassle of depositing cash receipts after posting, an extra and seemingly unnecessary step in some cases, there is now an option to have the cash receipts deposited automatically upon posting a batch that includes cash receipts to save you the trouble.
One of the best new features, in my opinion, is the All-in-one document view for sales and inventory transactions. This feature was added for the Payables module in 2015, and it was well-received among users. This view allows you to view all related documents for a single transaction in the same window and is very helpful when investigating a transaction.
You can find a full list of features in the “What’s New in Microsoft Dynamics GP 2016” PDF by logging in with your customer source credentials, or simply reach out to one of the ERP consultants at Beyond IT Advisors for assistance. Even if most of the new features don’t directly benefit your business, every new release brings fixes for bugs that have been identified, as well as improving performance whenever possible, so it is always a good idea to consider upgrading to the most recent version.