Understanding Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business and Dynamics 365 Enterprise Editions

Microsoft recently released additional information on the new Dynamics 365 Business and Enterprise editions.  Dynamics 365 was announced on October 11 and will be available on November 1, 2016.  The Dynamics 365 brand will be the umbrella for customer relationship management (CRM) products, CRM add-ins, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) products.

I wrote recent posts on Microsoft's vision for Dynamics 365, Dynamics 365 pricing and implications of Dynamics 365 for xRM scenarios. Today I'm expanding the discussion on editions of Dynamics 365.

Enterprise Edition

The Enterprise edition of Dynamics 365 is optimized for organizations with over 250 employees. It includes Dynamics AX called Dynamics 365 for Operations as its ERP component. There is a minimum user count of 20 users for Enterprise edition plan 2 and Dynamics CRM for Operations (included in plan 2).

The Enterprise edition subscriptions include dual use rights allowing use of the on-premises software where applicable.   These subscriptions also include and accrue (based on user count) larger amounts of storage capacity than Dynamics CRM Online.

Business Edition

The Business edition of Dynamics 365 is targeted for organizations with 10-250 employees and uses the new ERP product called Dynamics 365 for Financials with the codename of Project Madeira. Dynamics 365 for Financials is expected to ship in the final quarter of calendar 2016.   Dynamics 365 for Financials is based on Dynamics NAV (formerly Navision).

The Sales and Marketing apps for Business Edition are not currently available, but are coming soon.

The Business edition does not offer dual use rights for on premises (server) deployment.  There is no minimum number of users, but the maximum is 300 named users.

Team Members Subscriptions

Both Enterprise and Business editions offer a limited use subscription at a significant discount call Team Members.  Users are granted appropriate rights for their roles -- Enterprise and Business editions give different features to Team Members.

Customers can mix and match the editions as well as app, plan, and team member pricing.  This means that you must take a close look at your user community in order to buy the correct combination of subscriptions.  Some customers will receive cost savings, especially those with a larger user base and a high number of Team Member subscriptions.

How to Choose

The number of employees in your organization is not the best indicator of which edition is most appropriate, because some of the products in the Enterprise edition, such as Field Service and Project Service, are suitable for organizations of all sizes. You may also want to choose Enterprise plan 1 if you don't want to wait for the Business edition apps for Sales and Marketing.

Your best source of help choosing among Dynamic 365 options is your Microsoft Dynamics Partner or Microsoft account executive.

For more on Dynamics 365:

Dynamics 365 Shows Microsoft's Bold Vision

http://blogs.infostrat.com/2016/10/dynamics-365-shows-microsofts-bold.html

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Pricing: 6 Reasons Not to Panic

http://blogs.infostrat.com/2016/10/microsoft-dynamics-365-pricing-6.html

Dynamics 365 and xRM: What Comes Next?

http://blogs.infostrat.com/2016/10/dynamics-365-and-xrm-what-comes-next.html

Understanding Microsoft AppSource and Dynamics 365

http://blogs.infostrat.com/2016/07/understand-microsoft-appsource-and.html

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Team Members Subscriptions

http://blogs.infostrat.com/2016/11/microsoft-dynamics-365-team-members.html

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Webinar Questions
http://blogs.infostrat.com/2016/11/microsoft-dynamics-365-webinar-questions.html