What if you could unlock the full potential of your financial data, gaining real-time insights that drive smarter, more strategic decisions? Imagine having the power to transform raw numbers into actionable intelligence, enabling you to stay ahead of the curve and steer your business toward sustained growth. In this blog, we’ll show CFOs and finance leaders how Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central can be your secret weapon for achieving exactly that. At Dogma, we believe in simplifying data-driven decision-making to help your business thrive. Learn how to harness the powerful Dynamics 365 Business Central analytics and reporting tools to make data-driven decisions that drive business success.
Why Being Data-Driven Is Crucial for CFOs
As the pressure mounts on CFOs to drive organisational growth, having a comprehensive understanding of business performance becomes essential. For finance leaders, adopting a data-driven approach not only ensures this holistic view is achievable within their teams, but also equips the entire organisation with the necessary insights and analytics to make informed decisions, seamlessly integrated into their workflow and secured at every level.
A recent white paper, 9 Emerging Trends for the Futurist CFO, reveals that more than half of the trends expected to impact CFOs and their businesses in the coming years are centred around data and reporting. This highlights the growing importance of adopting robust data systems to successfully navigate the complexities of an ever-evolving business landscape.
Key Challenges CFOs Face
Economic Uncertainty
With global economic volatility, CFOs must make swift, informed decisions. Internal financial reports can offer valuable insights into market trends, helping CFOs better forecast and plan for the future with greater accuracy.
Cost Management
In an environment where maintaining profitability is vital, understanding and controlling costs is crucial. Internal reports can pinpoint inefficiencies, offering actionable insights into where cost-saving initiatives can be implemented without compromising quality.
Performance Measurement
Evaluating the performance of various departments and initiatives is critical to effective strategic planning. Internal reports, enriched with key performance indicators (KPIs), enable CFOs to assess progress and make informed, data-driven decisions that steer the business towards its objectives.
As a CFO or financial leader, how can you transform this advice into practical steps, helping your team adopt a more data-driven approach in their everyday tasks? The Business Intelligence (BI) triangle model offers a structured way to break down complex analytics scenarios into actionable tasks. In the next section, we’ll explore how this model can help streamline decision-making and provide recommendations on which tools are most suited for each task.
The BI Triangle: Matching Analytics Tools to Your Needs
For CFOs and finance teams, accessing, analysing, and presenting data in a way that suits specific needs can be a challenge. Different roles and scenarios within the finance function demand different tools and formats to deliver the most meaningful insights. Recognising this, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central provides a flexible and comprehensive suite of analytics tools tailored to the diverse requirements of financial leaders.
At the heart of this approach is the BI triangle—a framework that categorises analytics tools into four key types:
Microsoft Power BI Finance Reports
Out-of-the-box Power BI reports offer a rich, interactive experience with advanced semantic models and visually compelling dashboards. These reports enable finance teams to track key performance indicators (KPIs), drill into detailed financial data, create customised dashboards, and share insights effortlessly.
Financial Reporting
Designed specifically for producing financial statements, this no-code reporting capability allows finance teams to generate reports that align perfectly with their presentation requirements. It ensures compliance while offering flexibility in formatting and layout.
Ad-Hoc Data Analysis
Business Central’s built-in data analysis tools enable users to filter, group, and pivot data without requiring specialised reports. This feature is particularly useful for exploring financial trends, identifying anomalies, and exporting relevant data to Excel for further analysis.
Excel Finance Reports
Excel remains a staple tool for financial professionals, offering powerful calculation, analysis, and formatting capabilities. Integrated Excel reports allow users to manipulate financial data, create charts and tables, apply formulas, and even leverage AI-driven insights through Copilot. This seamless integration ensures data consistency while enabling customised financial analysis.
With the BI triangle, finance leaders can select the most suitable tool for each scenario, ensuring efficient data analysis and decision-making. The seamless integration of these tools within Business Central guarantees that all insights derive from a single, reliable data source, allowing CFOs to switch between tools effortlessly while maintaining data accuracy.
Unlock Deeper Insights with New Power BI Reports
Power BI reports offer a powerful way to analyse business data, providing a suite of enhanced reports tailored for Dynamics 365 Business Central. Covering key areas such as finance, sales, purchasing, inventory, and projects, these reports come ready to use and can be accessed directly within Business Central or through Power BI.
With mobile compatibility, finance leaders can track performance anytime, anywhere—whether in the office, travelling, or working remotely. The Power BI app enables real-time access, alerts, and interactive reports. As your trusted advisor, Dogma makes sure you get the most out of your Power BI reports by helping you integrate and interpret these insights to enhance business growth.
Monitor Finance KPIs with Power BI and Stay Alert in Microsoft Teams
Power BI enables finance leaders to track key performance indicators (KPIs) effortlessly, offering real-time insights into business performance. Users can create custom metrics directly from Power BI finance reports, set targets and thresholds, and monitor progress over time via interactive dashboards.
Seamless integration with Microsoft Teams ensures that when a KPI crosses a critical threshold—such as expenses exceeding budget or revenue falling below forecasts—instant alerts are triggered. This proactive approach keeps finance teams informed, allowing them to respond swiftly and make data-driven decisions with confidence.
Track Finance KPIs in Power BI and Get Instant Alerts in Microsoft Teams
Power BI empowers finance leaders to monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) with ease, providing real-time insights into financial health. With the ability to create custom metrics directly from Power BI finance reports, users can set targets, define thresholds, and track performance over time through interactive dashboards.
Seamless integration with Microsoft Teams ensures that when a KPI exceeds critical thresholds—such as overspending or a revenue shortfall—instant notifications keep teams informed. This proactive system enables swift action, helping finance professionals make timely, data-driven decisions that safeguard business performance.
Generate Executive Summaries with Copilot in Power BI
Looking to unlock deeper insights from your financial data? Copilot in Power BI acts as your AI-powered assistant, allowing you to explore data effortlessly using natural language. Simply ask, “What is my net income for the last quarter?” or “How does my cash flow compare to last year?”, and Copilot will analyse your data, presenting answers in charts, tables, or text.
Need a quick executive summary? Just prompt, “Summarise my financial performance for the last month” or “Highlight the key drivers of revenue growth”, and Copilot will generate clear, concise reports—transforming raw data into actionable insights.
Beyond Power BI: How Business Central Empowers Data-Driven CFOs
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central offers a range of analytics tools beyond Power BI, helping CFOs access, analyse, and present financial data efficiently. Here’s how:
No-Code Financial Reporting
\Create and customise financial statements, including income statements and balance sheets, using an intuitive, template-based interface. Business Central offers several pre-built and custom templates, allowing users to format reports, drill into details, and export them to Excel or PDF for easy sharing.
AI-Powered Data Analysis with Copilot
Use natural language queries to explore financial data, uncover patterns, and receive AI-driven recommendations. Whether identifying trends or answering key business questions, Copilot transforms raw data into actionable insights.
Flexible Data Analysis in Business Central
With analysis mode, users can filter, group, and pivot data directly within Business Central. Once the analysis is complete, results can be saved or shared seamlessly with colleagues.
Pre-Built Excel Finance Reports
Business Central includes curated Excel reports for essential financial insights, such as Trial Balance by Period and Aged Receivables. These reports offer full Excel functionality, enabling users to create charts, apply formulas, and detect anomalies with Copilot in Excel.
With these capabilities, Business Central equips CFOs with the right tools to make data-driven decisions, ensuring financial transparency and efficiency.
Unlock the Full Potential of Business Central’s Analytics Tools
As the CFO role evolves, leveraging data for strategic decision-making is more critical than ever. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central provides a powerful suite of analytics tools, enabling finance leaders to explore, analyse, and present data with ease.
Whether you need quick insights, advanced visualisation, or the flexibility of Excel, Business Central delivers. Its AI-powered capabilities and cloud integration ensure secure, on-the-go access from any device. Seamless integration with Microsoft Teams also enhances collaboration, allowing finance teams to share insights and drive informed decision-making across the organisation.
Discover More About Business Central with Dogma Group
Want to learn more about how a data-driven CFO can leverage Business Central? Explore the financial analytics section of Business Central’s documentation for in-depth insights into analytics tools and scenarios.
For a simpler, more tailored approach, speak to Dogma Group’s Business Central experts. As your trusted advisor, we help you translate Business Central’s features into real-world business benefits—ensuring you maximise its potential with ease and confidence.
