In October 2020, Microsoft introduced the Dynamics 365 Project Operations, which is a new application inside the Microsoft the Dynamics 365 suite of products. It is a development of the existing project management and accounting components within the Dynamics 365 Finance, and the prior Project Service Automation (PSA) solution from Microsoft, both of which were acquired by Microsoft.

The project functionality that was formerly included with the Dynamics 365 Finance as well as PSA has been consolidated into a single SKU called Project Operations, which can be purchased separately. Please note that the previous Dynamics 365 project management and accounting, and the Dynamics 365 project service automation, are no longer available. They have been renamed Project Operations.

Why Project Operations Doesn’t Work for the Majority of Businesses?

If you were hoping that Project Operations for the Dynamics 365 would serve as an integrated business system for the project-based organisation, you would be disappointed with the results. Microsoft says that Project Operations contains a slew of brand-new capabilities, but in reality, most of them are duplicates of the previous task management and accounting module for Dynamics 365 Finance and Project Service Automation, which is now available under a different SKU.

This type of approach, and more recently Project Operations, have never worked well for project-based organisations in the AEC industry, project/ETO manufacturing, energy and biotech industries, aerospace and defence industries, and many other professional services industries. There are numerous aspects that are crucial to the success of these types of businesses that are lacking. Briefly stated, Project Operations does not provide a solution to the key business concerns.

Project Management Capabilities and Characteristics

Project Operations comes with a slew of capabilities and features, which Microsoft touts. Here’s a quick rundown of everything that’s included.

  1. Management of Projects

Project Operations, which is based on Microsoft Project, features a streamlined project scheduling interface that is drag and drop in nature. Dashboards, interactive Gantt charts, scheduling, task management, and work-breakdown structures are all part of the package. It is intended to be used as a planning tool rather than as a project execution tool.

  1. Management of Possibilities

It contains a pricing and costing engine that can be used for deal management because it is connected with Microsoft Sales, CRM.

  1. Resource Management is the management of resources.

You can match resources up to project requirements based on their skill sets using a resource profile tool that is included into the software.

  1. Accounting for Projects

Project Operations, which is based on the previous version of the Dynamics 365 project management and accounting, provides some basic accounting capability to ensure that projects adhere to GAAP or IFRS standards. It, on the other hand, is absolutely devoid of a cost breakdown structure.

  1. Dashboards for Projects

A limited set of visualisation tools is included with Project Operations in order to assist with resource use, forecasting, and budgeting, among other things.

Final Verdict

Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 Project Operations is definitely a step forward in the direction of Project Business Automation, with the goal of creating an integrated business system for project-based businesses. According to the category’s premise, project businesses should abandon the silos of apps and data that they traditionally employ in favour of a single platform that combines core project business operations. Contact dynamics CRM consulting services provider CongruentX to learn more.

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