Microsoft commissioned a Forrester Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study, based on interviews with four Business Central customers aggregated into a composite organization ($50M annual revenue, 300 employees), to quantify the financial impact of modernizing on Dynamics 365 Business Central.

Projected results over three years

  • More than 200% return on investment (ROI)
  • ~$460K net present value (NPV)
  • Payback in as little as six months
  • More than $680K in three-year, risk-adjusted present value benefits in total

Where the value comes from

flowchart TD
    A[Business Central adoption] --> B[Finance productivity: up to 30% faster close, 50% AP/AR/billing time savings]
    A --> C[ERP consolidation: 10%+ lower TCO, $170K+ savings]
    A --> D[Improved profitability: up to 3% net margin improvement]
    A --> E[Reporting & audit: up to 30% less audit prep time]

The study notes that AI benefits were not independently quantified, but interviewees reported that unified data and processes in Business Central accelerate the adoption of Copilot-supported approvals, variance analysis, and exception handling — positioning Business Central as an AI-ready ERP foundation for Microsoft 365 Copilot and intelligent agents.