The challenges of growing a Microsoft Dynamics practice

Growing a Microsoft Dynamics practice is considerably more challenging than it used to be. Finding the best talent, keeping up with technology change, and managing for the continuing evolution of sales and marketing are issues forcing partners to adapt or be left behind.

I believe these challenges are far from insurmountable, and this article explores why they represent significant opportunities for modern partners to grow and thrive.

An issue of supply and demand

You'll sometimes hear people say that there aren't enough jobs or opportunities in the UK, but that simply isn't the case - particularly when it comes to technology. Perhaps of greater concern is the fact that wages are rising faster than inflation as companies are forced to pay more to fill vacancies.

These challenges are particularly evident for Microsoft Dynamics Partners. Since the appointment of Satya Nadella as CEO, the tech giant has doubled down on developing business applications and their popularity has increased considerably as a result. 

More partners are coming into the market, too, but that's only widening the gap between supply and demand; those partners are looking for talent in both their CRM and ERP practices, and finding it difficult.

Encouragingly Microsoft themselves are now offering an apprenticeship scheme, with the 'standards' focused towards Microsoft Dynamics. Recruitment firms like Cognitive are running programmes that offer Dynamics training for consultants who have experience within other CRM and ERP products such as Salesforce, Hubspot and Oracle.

However, even with these ...