Microsoft launches Reskill to help Dynamics 365 Business Central partners add services capacity

Microsoft has taken the wraps off a new program designed to help Dynamics 365 Business Central partners recruit, train, and mentor new developers and consultants. The Reskill program recently emerged from a pilot phase and has already placed more than sixty people in new positions around the world, according to program leaders. And with more recruits in discussions to join participating firms, is could help employers to meaningfully grow the overall number of Business Central professionals.

Reskill aims to address the so-called talent gap in the Business Central channel that partners say has led to negative outcomes for their businesses like bottlenecks in project delivery and higher services costs. The inability of Microsoft partners to meet the market demand for Business Central services could be creating broader risks to the health of the channel, the analysts at Partner Economics have warned.

Reskill aims to place career-changing workers (as opposed to new hires out of school) in Dynamics 365 Business Central consulting and development roles with partner firms and to help the new hires both learn key skills and acclimate to their new jobs. The program began to take form in the autumn of 2022, says Microsoft’s Kurt Juvyns. After returning from the Directions EMEA 2022 event in Hamburg, Juvyns reflected on feedback that partner executives shared regarding their struggles to add staff.

“We heard loud and clear that the talent gap ...