If you work in the Business Central ecosystem, you can probably feel the ground shifting. The platform is evolving faster than ever, AI copilots are becoming part of everyday workflows, and customer expectations keep rising. It’s exciting, but it also puts real pressure on delivery teams.
Partners are telling us the same thing again and again. There’s more opportunity than ever as the Business Central customer base continues to grow, recently passing the 50,000 mark.
But teams are also more stretched than they’ve ever been and partners are finding it increasingly difficult to secure the talent they need. In fact, 36% of Dynamics 365 partners cite increased competition for talent as their biggest staffing challenge over the next 12 months.
Business Central isn’t the same platform it was even two years ago. The skills needed to deliver it well are broader, deeper, and far more data-driven. Without the right people in place, partners risk slower projects, rising costs, and outcomes that fall short of what customers now expect.
So how do you make sure your team has the Business Central capability to thrive? It starts with understanding what’s changing, where skills are falling behind, and why cross-trained talent with real industry experience is quickly becoming one of the strongest competitive advantages you can build.
AI copilots are rewriting workloads
Business Central has included automation for years, but the shift we’re seeing now is different. AI is no longer sitting on the edges of the platform. With Copilot, it’s becoming central to how finance and operations teams work day to day.
Customers are already asking for help with things like automated cash flow forecasting, real-time anomaly detection, intelligent inventory suggestions, faster close processes supported by AI, and prompt-based reporting and analysis. These aren’t small enhancements. They change how people work.
Instead of manually reconciling transactions or digging through spreadsheets, teams are increasingly relying on AI-generated insights to guide decisions. That changes what customers expect from their partners. It’s no longer enough to configure modules and move on. Consultants now need to understand where the data is coming from, how AI models behave, and what controls are needed to make those insights reliable.
Partners who can explain how to use Copilot responsibly, validate its output, and connect AI recommendations back to real business logic are becoming incredibly valuable. Customers want to trust the technology, and they’re relying on their partners to help them do that.
The challenge is that most Business Central teams weren’t built with AI literacy in mind. Many consultants are experts in finance processes or operational workflows, but not in data patterns, automation strategy, or AI readiness. That mismatch is where skill gaps begin to show.
Where Business Central skills are falling behind
The talent shortage across the Microsoft ecosystem isn’t new, but Business Central is feeling it particularly sharply. Partners consistently point to a few areas where capability just isn’t keeping pace with demand.
The first is data and analytics readiness. AI-assisted forecasting and reporting depend on clean, well-structured data. Yet many Business Central professionals haven’t spent much time on data modeling, quality assessment, or pipeline design. When AI is layered on top of weak data foundations, results quickly suffer.
The second is modern extension and integration skills. The days of C/AL customizations are long gone, but many teams are still adapting to building with AL, managing extensions, and keeping environments stable through continuous updates. Add integrations with Power BI, Power Automate, and Microsoft Teams, and the technical scope expands quickly.
The third is industry-specific solution design. Vertical expertise matters more than ever. Customers expect partners to understand not just Business Central, but the real workflows behind construction billing, manufacturing planning, nonprofit grant management, or professional services scheduling.
When partners fall short in these areas, the impact is felt everywhere. Implementations slow down. Requirements get missed. Senior consultants become overstretched. Backlogs of upgrades, migrations, and change requests start to build. As AI capabilities expand, that pressure won’t ease. It will only increase.
That brings us to the shift redefining competitive advantage for Business Central partners.
Cross-trained talent with industry experience is becoming the differentiator
Technology skills still matter, but they’re no longer enough on their own. Partners who want to thrive in 2026 and beyond need people who understand how real businesses operate, where processes break down, how data flows across systems, and what frontline teams actually need AI to do.
That’s why cross-trained professionals with prior industry experience are becoming so valuable. These consultants don’t start from scratch. They arrive with real-world context, sector knowledge, and transferable skills that make them effective contributors much sooner.
A supply chain specialist who cross-trains into Business Central can quickly connect warehousing workflows to the data structures behind them. A finance professional transitioning into Business Central consulting already understands reconciliation cycles, reporting pressures, and audit requirements. A retail operations expert stepping into a Business Central role can map customer journeys and inventory challenges with far greater clarity.
When you pair that kind of experience with structured Business Central training, you get consultants who understand both the platform and the problems it’s designed to solve. That’s exactly the thinking behind the #BCTalent initiative.
How #BCTalent helps partners build stronger Business Central teams
The #BCTalent initiative exists to help partners scale with confidence. It supports every part of your Business Central workforce strategy, whether you’re hiring net-new consultants, bringing in talent with prior experience, or upskilling your existing team.
Partners choose #BCTalent because it helps reduce onboarding pressure by developing professionals who contribute while they learn. It keeps senior consultants focused on high-value work, supports more diverse and future-ready teams, and creates a steady pipeline of skilled professionals who understand both Business Central and the expectations of an AI-driven delivery model.
Within the initiative, one path stands out for many partners.
Spotlight on ReSKILL
ReSKILL focuses on professionals with strong industry backgrounds and retrains them into fully capable Business Central consultants. It’s a way to bring in net-new talent that can contribute faster than entry-level hires. These aren’t career starters. They bring real operational experience from sectors that rely heavily on ERP systems, including manufacturing, finance, supply chain, and logistics.
That experience matters. These individuals already understand the workflows Business Central supports. They communicate more effectively with customers because they’ve faced similar challenges themselves. And they ramp up faster on projects because they recognize the language, logic, and pressure of operational teams.
Through ReSKILL, learners receive expert-led Business Central training, hands-on experience in real environments, professional skills development, exposure to the latest AI capabilities shaping Microsoft cloud roles, and preparation for Microsoft certifications. Within a few short weeks, they’re ready to support implementations, handle configuration work, and collaborate effectively with senior consultants from day one.
For partners dealing with long-term skills shortages, this approach is a real advantage. ReSKILL provides talent with the context needed to work where Business Central is heading, right at the intersection of data, AI, and operational workflows.
ReSKILL can also support partners looking to retrain existing employees. This is particularly valuable for team members with strong operational, finance, or sector expertise who are ready to transition into Business Central roles. It’s a structured, low-risk way to build new capability without losing valuable institutional knowledge.
Why preparing your workforce now matters
Business Central is moving fast, and partners who invest early in capability will be best positioned to lead the next wave of transformation. The question isn’t whether AI will change ERP. It already has. The real question is whether your team has the skills to keep up.
As AI copilots take on more responsibility, as migrations from legacy systems accelerate, and as customers demand more industry-specific solutions, the partners who deliver consistently will be the ones with strong, well-rounded teams.
This isn’t just about avoiding delivery risk. It’s about unlocking competitive advantage.
Partners who build the right workforce today are better placed to deliver cleaner, faster, more accurate Business Central projects, win more complex and higher-value work, scale without burning out senior staff, and offer customers deeper insight and better outcomes. That’s exactly what #BCTalent is designed to support.
Ready to strengthen your Business Central team?
If you’re looking to build a skilled, scalable, AI-ready Business Central workforce, now’s the time to start. Whether you need cross-trained professionals with industry experience, support for your new graduate hires, or structured ways to upskill your existing team, the #BCTalent initiative can help.