If you are considering an ERP for your SME business, 2 of the premium offerings on the market are NetSuite and Microsoft Dynamics BC. Deciding on the best system for your business can be a difficult decision as ERP systems are complicated. It is only over time once you start running the business process in the system that you will truly find out which system works best for your business. Unfortunately, intensive use and testing is not an option prior to selecting an ERP .

 

Another difficulty during the selection process is that the vendor contracts are complicated and include different functions, discounts and offers depending on your requirements making a comparison between both systems difficult.

 

We recommend speaking to a consultant who will better understand your business requirements and be able to understand which systems will better meet your needs. This post does not look at <implementing NetSuite and Microsoft BC.

 

This post aims to help businesses selecting between Microsoft Dynamics Business Central and NetSuite ERP . It provides a high-level comparison of both systems looking initially at some of their key attributes and how they compare. The following tables then go into a bit more detail comparing functionality across some of the key requirements we would expect to see from financial modules.

 

High-Level Comparison

 

Some of the key attributes to bear in mind when selecting an ERP are hosting, partner ecosystem, customisation, integrations and usability. The following table provides a simple comparison of both NetSuite and MSBC across each of these attributes.

 

	MSBC	NetSuite
Deployment	On premise and in cloud	Cloud-only ERP
Hosting	Separate hosting required	SaaS includes hosting
Ecosystem	Extensive Microsoft partner network and ecosystem	Strong ecosystem with a broad range of industry-specific solutions and integrations available through the SuiteApp marketplace.
Customisation	Highly customizable with the use of extensions and custom development using AL language and the low code power platform development environment.	Customizable through SuiteScript (JavaScript-based API) and SuiteFlow for workflow management.
Integrations	Deep integration with other Microsoft products such as Office 365, Power BI, Power Apps, and other Dynamics 365 applications.	Integrates well with Oracle products and third-party applications but may require additional middleware for certain integrations.
Usability	Modern and intuitive interface that aligns with other Microsoft products	Modern but can be complex and may have a steeper learning curve for new users

 

Comparing Financials Modules

 

This section looks at some of the basic tasks you would expect your ERP to perform. This will hopefully give you a better understanding of your requirements and how each system will perform against each task. Our analysis is broken out across RTR, PTP and OTC.

 

General Ledger

Requirement	MSBC	NetSuite
Set up multiple entities in a single platform	Yes	Yes
Set up different local and group COAs	Yes	Yes
Set up a parent/child hierarchy structure in COA	Yes	Yes
Define and set up several reporting dimensions	Yes	Yes
API exchange rates for multiple currencies	Yes	Yes
Consolidate all entities within GL module	Yes	Yes
Run intercompany eliminations	Yes	Yes
Independently close AR, AP and GL at month end	Yes	Yes
Close each subsidiary’s books independently of each other	Yes	Yes
Generate financial statements at entity and consolidated level in ERP (e.g. P&L, TB, BS and CF)	Yes	Yes
Connect ERP in Excel to create and refresh reports directly in Excel either with native or third party add ins.	Yes	Yes*
Journal import ability via CSV or other formats	Yes*	Yes
Integrated Fixed Assets module in ERP	Yes	Yes

 

Purchase to Pay

 

Requirement	MSBC	NetSuite
API vendor master records and purchase invoice transactions bilaterally with non-ERP applications e.g. PO systems	Yes*	Yes*
Ability to automate invoice posting with OCR functionality	Yes	Yes*
Ability to process employee expenses directly in the ERP	Yes*	Yes*
Ability to generate proposed payment runs using a variety of parameters e.g. due date, vendor type, payment type and user defined fields	Yes*	Yes
Ability to auto match invoices to payment run once posted	No	Yes*
Ability to interface or export payment file instructions in formats accepted by domestic and international banks	Yes	Yes

 

Order to Cash

 

Requirement	MSBC	NetSuite
API customer master record with third party applications e.g. Salesforce	Yes*	Yes*
API with non-ERP applications e.g. Salesforce to import billing and opportunity data. Invoice line item to include the Salesforce Product details	Yes*	Yes*
API to non-ERP applications to import invoices; must have control to prevent duplicate invoice numbers	Yes*	Yes*
Interface bilaterally to non-ERP applications to update fields from/to ERP e.g. updating invoice payment status and paid date fields in Salesforce	Yes*	Yes*
Define and automatically send the correct invoice template depending on entity and other rules e.g. UK invoices to display relevant bank details depending on currency of the invoice.	Yes	Yes
Functionality to view Customer account transaction list history, including invoices, credit notes, payments, partial payment, unapplied cash (viewable on a single screen and available in report format)	Yes*	Yes
Deferred Revenue Module available to make revenue recognition easier	Yes	Yes

 

As you can see from the above both systems are able to fulfil most finance requirements. Where you see Yes * this means that some customisation will be required or else there is a partner software application that will help the ERP fulfil this requirement. This will need additional planning as there will be either additional implementation or ongoing license costs to satisfy these requirements.

 

Hopefully you find this useful. If you would like further information on any of the above points then get in touch for a free conversation with one of our directors.