ERP-Embedded AP Automation for Microsoft Dynamics: A Streamlined Approach for IT Teams
Why Embedded AP Automation Lowers Risk, Overhead, and Long-Term Complexity
If you support customers running Microsoft Dynamics GP or Business Central, you’ve likely been pulled into Accounts Payable (AP) automation conversations—even though AP doesn’t sit squarely under IT.
That’s because automation decisions rarely stay confined to finance. They impact system architecture, security posture, compliance requirements, and long-term support models. And once a solution goes live, IT is often responsible for keeping it running, secure, and compliant for years to come.
Many AP automation tools deliver quick wins for finance teams but introduce additional platforms, integrations, and security frameworks that IT must own over time. What begins as an efficiency upgrade can quietly become another system to monitor, secure, and troubleshoot.
There’s an alternative worth closer consideration: ERP-embedded AP automation. By running natively inside Microsoft Dynamics, embedded solutions help reduce system sprawl, leverage existing ERP security, and simplify ongoing support.
For partners and IT leaders focused on balancing innovation with risk management, this model offers a more stable and sustainable path forward.
Why AP Automation Decisions Ultimately Sit with IT
When finance evaluates AP automation, the downstream impact quickly becomes an architectural discussion:
- Where does AP data reside?
- How is access controlled?
- What happens during ERP upgrades—or when integrations fail?
Many IT teams find themselves supporting AP tools that operate outside of Microsoft Dynamics. These standalone or integrated platforms come with separate databases, authentication methods, and release cycles. Even when integrations perform well initially, they often introduce recurring responsibilities for IT, such as:
- Monitoring APIs and synchronization jobs
- Managing access reviews and security approvals
- Supporting audits involving third-party systems
Over time, some external AP solutions—particularly those built around integrations—can become sources of operational friction. Common challenges include brittle integrations, rigid workflows, and frequent exception handling. Instead of simplifying AP, automation becomes another layer of complexity.
Selecting the right architectural approach early helps ensure both finance and IT are positioned for long-term success.
The Practical Limits of “Integrated” AP Automation
Integration is often marketed as best practice—but in many cases, it’s a compromise.
Integrated AP solutions connect to Dynamics via APIs or connectors, yet they remain separate systems. From an IT standpoint, that separation matters. It introduces additional failure points, expands the security surface area, and adds platforms that IT teams must understand, document, and maintain.
For CTOs and IT administrators prioritizing reliability, predictability, and supportability, integrated AP tools can still create architectural friction and ongoing workload.
ERP-Embedded AP Automation: A Native Architectural Approach
ERP-embedded AP automation operates directly within Microsoft Dynamics—rather than alongside it.
From an IT and partner perspective, this fundamentally changes the architecture:
- Dynamics remains the system of record
- User access follows existing role-based permissions
- Security, compliance, and backups stay centralized
- Updates align with the ERP lifecycle
Instead of governing yet another platform, embedded automation works inside the environment you already trust. The result is fewer moving parts and fewer long-term support demands.
To explore the architectural differences in more detail, see our blog:
Embedded vs. Non-Embedded (Integrated) AP Solutions: What’s Right for Your Team?
Security, Compliance, and Audit Considerations
Every additional system expands your audit footprint.
Standalone or integrated AP platforms often require IT to explain how sensitive financial data moves between systems and how access is managed outside the ERP. This adds complexity and risk—even when the solution itself is well built.
While non-embedded platforms may make sense for organizations running multiple ERPs or highly specialized environments, the advantages of embedded automation are clear from an IT perspective.
With ERP-embedded AP automation, security remains consistent with the Dynamics framework you already manage. Permissions, approvals, and data access are governed by the same controls in place today.
For IT teams, this means:
- Clearer ownership of risk
- Fewer audit exceptions
- Less effort maintaining parallel security models
Automation becomes easier to approve when it doesn’t complicate compliance.
Reducing Day-to-Day IT Overhead
One of the most overlooked costs of external AP platforms is ongoing support.
IT teams are frequently pulled into issues related to approvals, payment workflows, printers, or failed syncs—especially when AP tools operate outside the ERP.
Embedded AP automation helps reestablish clean boundaries. Finance teams work entirely within Dynamics, managing their own workflows, while IT maintains governance without becoming the default escalation point.
The payoff is fewer interruptions and more time for higher-value initiatives like security planning, system optimization, and modernization.
Supporting Both Business Central and GP Environments
Whether your customers are fully on Business Central, migrating from GP, or running both systems in parallel, change is a constant in the Dynamics ecosystem.
During transitions, IT teams are expected to modernize systems without disrupting critical AP operations that demand accuracy and continuity. Minimizing platforms and dependencies becomes essential.
ERP-embedded AP automation supports continuity by working natively across both GP and Business Central. By staying within Dynamics, embedded solutions help preserve workflows and controls even as environments evolve—without forcing a redesign mid-migration.
Key Questions IT Teams Should Ask When Evaluating AP Automation
When assessing AP automation options, IT leaders and partners should ask architectural questions early:
- Does the solution run inside the ERP or alongside it?
- Will it inherit existing Dynamics security roles?
- How many systems will IT support post-implementation?
- What changes during upgrades or migrations?
These questions help ensure automation decisions align with long-term stability—not just short-term efficiency.
Closing Thoughts: Aligning AP Automation with IT Priorities
For organizations seeking sustainable AP automation, architecture matters.
The best solutions don’t demand constant attention. They quietly support business goals by reducing friction, improving control, and simplifying operations.
By minimizing system sprawl, centralizing security, and lowering ongoing support requirements, ERP-embedded AP automation offers a more measured approach for IT teams supporting Microsoft Dynamics. Finance gains efficiency without increasing risk—and IT regains time without sacrificing control.
To learn more about ERP-embedded AP automation in Microsoft Dynamics, explore Mekorma Payment Hub or contact [email protected].
FAQs
What does ERP-embedded AP automation mean for IT?
It means AP automation runs directly inside Microsoft Dynamics, using the same security, permissions, and controls IT already manages.
Will this reduce the number of systems IT supports?
Yes. Embedded solutions eliminate the need for separate AP platforms, databases, and login systems.
Is embedded AP automation more secure than integrated tools?
Because it inherits Dynamics security and governance, embedded AP automation typically introduces less risk and simplifies audits.