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Pillar 3 — Transactional foundation

Your accounting, your operations,
your dashboards — in one single system

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is the cloud ERP that replaces Sage, SAARI and your Excel files with a unified platform — SYSCOHADA compliant, natively connected to Power BI, with built-in AI that works for you 24/7. From field purchase order to CEO dashboard: one single flow, zero re-entry.

0
monthly closing
after deployment
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per user/month
Essentials license
0
companies worldwide
trust Business Central
Still running your accounting on Sage or Excel?

Our free 5-day diagnostic evaluates your current system, measures the gap with Business Central (Data Readiness Index™), identifies accounting quick wins and delivers a costed migration plan — with or without BI and DMS.

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Context

Why now?

The ERP market in Africa and the Middle East is growing at 8.7% per year to reach $10 billion by 2032. This is no coincidence — it's the convergence of three forces making the status quo untenable.

Three converging forces

Regulation

Compliance is accelerating

Electronic Normalized Invoicing (FNE) has been mandatory in Côte d'Ivoire since June 2025. Systems that don't interface with the DGI platform become a compliance risk. Business Central natively integrates electronic invoicing.

🇨🇮 Decree n°0337, May 9, 2025 · Progressive rollout by tax regime
Obsolescence

Sage and SAARI are aging

SAARI was acquired by Sage in 1994 — 30 years ago. Sage 100 remains deployed in West Africa, but it's on-premise software with no AI, no modern API, no native cloud connection. Every year widens the technology gap with next-generation ERPs.

Sage 100 · SAARI · Ciel · Legacy software without BI connectors
Artificial Intelligence

AI is a game changer

In 2026, Business Central integrates autonomous AI agents: automated bank reconciliation, invoice reading and processing, entry suggestions. The ERP no longer just records — it participates in decisions. Companies that don't ride this wave will fall 5 years behind.

Copilot included in every license · Autonomous agents · MCP Server

"85% of companies say their current ERP limits their ability to grow."
— Gartner, Top Tech Trends 2025

What is Business Central, exactly?

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is Microsoft's cloud ERP, designed for SMEs and mid-market companies. It covers all business processes: accounting, finance, purchasing, sales, inventory, production, services. Over 40,000 companies worldwide use it, across 50 countries and 30 languages. Since 2024, every license includes Microsoft Copilot — an AI assistant that automates repetitive tasks, analyzes data in natural language, and suggests contextual actions. It's the successor to Dynamics NAV (formerly Navision), with 30 years of functional maturity and the power of Azure cloud.

For a company in West Africa, Business Central represents a unique opportunity: access to a world-class ERP, cloud-native, with built-in AI, at an entry cost of $80 per user — no server investment, no software maintenance, with automatic updates twice a year. Fully configurable to comply with SYSCOHADA standards, local tax requirements, and African market realities.

Tangible transformation

A day with Business Central

This is not a marketing promise. This is what your teams experience every day after deployment.

8h00
Abidjan

The morning dashboard

Mrs. Koné, CFO of a distribution group operating in 5 countries, opens her browser. Business Central displays a personalized dashboard: consolidated multi-subsidiary revenue, real-time cash position, invoices awaiting approval. No Excel file received by email on Friday evening. No crashing macros.

9h30
Accounting

Copilot reconciles 47 bank lines

The Copilot agent has already matched 47 bank statement lines with accounting entries. It displays 3 lines it couldn't match automatically. Mrs. Koné reviews and validates with one click. What used to take an accountant 2 days now takes 15 minutes.

Measured gain Bank reconciliation: from 2 days/month to 15 minutes. Error rate divided by 10.
11h
Management

The CEO needs a consolidated report

The board meeting is in 2 hours. The CEO needs a consolidated statement across all subsidiaries. Mrs. Koné opens Power BI — data flows in real-time from Business Central. The report is ready. No manual consolidation, no re-entry, no 'I'll send it tomorrow.'

Measured gain Revenue reporting → board of directors: from 3 weeks to real-time.
14h
Procurement

The payables agent processes invoices

3 supplier invoices arrive by email. The Copilot agent reads them, automatically identifies the suppliers, matches them to purchase orders, pre-fills the accounting entries and submits them for approval. The accountant only reviews and approves — zero manual entry.

17h
Dakar

The subsidiary posts in SYSCOHADA, local currency

The Dakar subsidiary closes its daily entries in Business Central. SYSCOHADA chart of accounts identical to Abidjan's, currencies automatically converted from XOF to EUR at the day's rate. Monthly closing that used to take 12 days now takes 3.

Measured gain Multi-subsidiary monthly closing: from 12 days to 3 days.

This scenario is not fictional. It's the daily reality of companies that migrated their operations to Business Central. The difference between 'before' and 'after' is not measured only in days saved — it's measured in decisions made on time, errors avoided, and energy reinvested in growth rather than data entry.

Before / After

What each role concretely gains

The same deployment, seen by 8 stakeholders

The same deployment, as experienced by those who live it — from CEO to field accountant.

CEO / General Manager
Monthly PDF reports, 3 weeks late
Real-time Power BI dashboard, opened every morning
CFO / Finance Director
12-day closing, manual inter-subsidiary consolidation
3-day closing, automatic multi-currency consolidation
Accountant
Manual bank reconciliation, 2 days/month, errors
Copilot reconciliation in 15 min, exception validation
Procurement Manager
Manually entered invoices, frequent double entries
AI agent reads, matches and pre-enters supplier invoices
CIO / IT Director
On-premise server, risky updates, zero API
Microsoft Cloud, updates 2×/year, open REST APIs
Operations Director
Inventory tracked on Excel, 48h lag from reality
Real-time inventory, automatic reorder alerts
Country Subsidiary
Custom chart of accounts, reporting sent by email
Unified SYSCOHADA, local entry, instant HQ consolidation
External Auditor
Document requests by email, 2-week turnaround
Complete audit trail, end-to-end traceability, controlled access
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Honest comparison

Sage Ligne 100 vs Business Central: the real comparison

9 objective criteria, no bias

Not a marketing table — a factual comparison to help you make an informed decision.

Criterion Sage Ligne 100 Business Central
Hosting On-premise (local server required) Cloud Microsoft Azure — no server to maintain
Artificial Intelligence None Copilot + agents autonomes included at no extra cost
BI Connection CSV/Excel export, third-party connector Connexion native Power BI — real-time data
Multi-currency Limited, manual conversion Natif — FCFA/EUR/USD, automatic rates
Multi-company Separate databases, manual consolidation Multi-environnement natif — automatic consolidation
Updates Manual, consultant required, production stop Automatiques 2×/an — Wave 1 (avril) + Wave 2 (octobre)
API & integrations Limited, proprietary connectors API REST/OData v4 — AppSource ecosystem (3,000+ extensions)
Mobile access None (Windows thick client) Navigateur web + apps iOS/Android
Electronic invoicing Third-party module, not guaranteed E-documents natifs — FNE compliant Côte d'Ivoire

This comparison covers Sage Ligne 100 in its typical West African configuration. Sage offers other products (Sage X3, Sage Intacct) with more advanced features but at a higher price point.

Compare with your current situation →
Regulatory compliance

The SYSCOHADA factor

The content your competitors don't document

Many international ERPs adapt 'approximately' to the OHADA chart of accounts. Business Central, properly configured, complies natively. This is our specialty.

SYSCOHADA 2018 — Balance sheet accounts — — Income statement accounts — — Special — 1 Equity
Capital · Reserves · Retained earnings · Net income · Grants
2 Fixed assets
Intangible · Tangible · Financial · Depreciation
3 Inventory & WIP
Goods · Raw materials · Finished products · Work in progress
4 Third parties
Vendors · Customers · Personnel · Government · Partners
5 Third accounts
Banks · Cash · Securities · Internal transfers · Currencies
6 Operating expenses
Purchases · Transport · Services · Taxes · Personnel · Depr.
7 Operating expenses
Sales · Services · Financial income · Grants
8 Other charges/rev.
Non-recurring · Disposals · Exceptional provisions · CIT
9 Off-balance sheet
Bonds · Guarantees · Pledges · Commitments received
↓ Automatic generation of financial statements ↓ Bilan Assets & Liabilities Compte de résultat Expenses & Revenue TAFIRE Resources & Uses DSF Statistical & Tax Declaration → Power BI in real time

Hover over each class to see the main accounts. The complete chart of accounts is configured from A to Z during deployment.

Detailed configuration by domain

Chart of accounts

SYSCOHADA revised 2018

Chart of accounts structured according to the 9 standardized classes: equity (1), fixed assets (2), inventory (3), third parties (4), financial (5), expenses (6), revenue (7), other charges/income (8), off-balance sheet commitments (9). Complete nomenclature with sub-accounts adapted to local realities of each OHADA country.

17 member countries · Unified chart of accounts · Country-configurable sub-accounts
Financial statements

Balance sheet, income statement, TAFIRE, DSF

Automatic generation of all standardized financial statements: balance sheet (assets/liabilities), income statement, Financial Table of Resources and Uses (TAFIRE), cash flow statement, notes to financial statements. Statistical and Tax Declaration (DSF) exportable. Fully compatible with OHADA auditor requirements.

Balance sheet · Income statement · TAFIRE · DSF · Notes · Exportable PDF & Power BI
Multi-currency

FCFA, EUR, USD — automatic conversion

Each transaction is entered in local currency (FCFA XOF or FCFA XAF), consolidated in group currency (EUR, USD). Exchange rates updated automatically or fixed by period. Translation differences handled per SYSCOHADA standards. Essential for multi-country groups and internationally funded organizations (donors, NGOs, institutions).

XOF · XAF · EUR · USD · ECB rates · SYSCOHADA-compliant exchange differences
Tax compliance

FNE, VAT, withholding taxes

API integration with Côte d'Ivoire's Electronic Normalized Invoicing (FNE). VAT management by regime (standard, simplified), withholding taxes, business licenses, corporate income tax. Configuration adaptable to tax regulations of each OHADA country — Senegal, Cameroon, Gabon, DRC, etc.

FNE 🇨🇮 · Multi-regime VAT · Withholding · License · CIT · Adaptable to 17 countries

What this changes: Most ERP integrators in West Africa install a European accounting template and add a few accounts manually. The result? Financial statements that 'more or less' pass audit — until the day they don't. We configure the SYSCOHADA chart of accounts from A to Z, with standardized financial statements, notes, DSF, and direct Power BI connection. That's the difference between 'it works' and 'it's compliant, auditable, and manageable in real time.'

Request a free ERP assessment →

5 days · Free · No commitment

Innovation 2025–2026

Copilot & AI agents: a virtual accountant included in every license

6 concrete capabilities, zero extra cost

Copilot est included at no extra cost dans chaque licence Business Central. Ce n'est pas un gadget — c'est une rupture dans la manière dont vos équipes travaillent chaque jour.

Accounting

Automated bank reconciliation

Copilot analyzes your bank statements, matches them with accounting entries, and proposes correspondences. You validate exceptions. From 2 days/month to 15 minutes.

Intelligent matching · Continuous learning · Human validation
Payables

Accounts payable agent

The autonomous agent reads invoices, identifies the supplier and accounts, prepares the entry and submits it for approval. End-to-end, no manual entry — just final approval.

Built-in OCR · PO matching · Approval workflow · Audit trail
Analytics

Natural language analysis

Ask your questions directly: 'What is my revenue by subsidiary this quarter?', 'Which suppliers have unpaid invoices over 60 days?' Copilot queries your ERP data and responds in real time.

20+ languages · Built-in chat · No SQL query needed · Contextualized response
Data entry

Predictive entry — 80% less typing

Copilot learns your habits and suggests contextual completions. Accounts, amounts, descriptions — entry becomes semi-automatic. Less typing, fewer errors, more speed.

Pattern learning · Auto-completion · Contextual values
Sales

Sales line suggestions

When creating an order, Copilot suggests items based on customer history, seasonal trends and available stock. Alternative items proposed if out of stock.

Customer history · Seasonality · Real-time stock · Auto substitutes
Documents

Automated e-documents

Upload invoices and contracts: Copilot recognizes them via pre-trained models, automatically links them to purchase orders. No more manual entry of accounting documents.

Pre-trained templates · Auto matching · Structured archiving

« L'IA dans l'ERP n'est plus une question d'automatisation seule. C'est une question de timing, de confiance et de clarité décisionnelle. »
— Microsoft Dynamics 365, Release Plan 2026

Request a free ERP assessment →

5 days · Free · No commitment

Budget transparency

The real cost: transparent, no surprises

Three license types, one costed scenario

No server to buy, no perpetual license, no hidden maintenance costs. Here's what it actually looks like — in dollars and FCFA.

Essentials
Finance · Sales · Purchasing · Inventory · Projects
80 $ /utilisateur/mois

All core ERP functions for an SME. Copilot AI included. 80 GB storage + 3 GB/license. Sufficient for 80% of companies.

≈ 52 400 FCFA /mois
Team Members
Read · Approval · Light entry
8 $ /utilisateur/mois

Read access, workflow approvals, light entry via Power Apps. For CEOs, field directors and approvers. No access to financial transactions.

≈ 5 240 FCFA /mois
Scenario — 20-person SME

8 accountants & managers × Essentials ($80) = 640 $
2 production managers × Premium ($110) = 220 $
10 consultants & approvers × Team Members ($8) = 80 $

940 $ / mois
≈ 616,000 FCFA / month · 7,400,000 FCFA / year
What it replaces

Sage 100 licenses + annual maintenance
Dedicated server + backups + UPS
Excel/macro consultant for reporting
2 days/month of manual reconciliation
Time lost on inter-subsidiary consolidation

The real cost of the status quo is almost always higher — it's just invisible in your accounting.

Microsoft pricing since November 2025. FCFA conversion indicative at 655 FCFA/USD. Essentials and Premium cannot be mixed in the same environment. Annual commitment required.

Objections addressed

5 legitimate concerns — and our answers

Every objection deserves a precise answer

Every CIO, every CFO considering an ERP migration goes through this. You're right to ask these questions.

"Data migration is going to be a nightmare"

This is fear #1, and it's justified — if migration is poorly prepared. Our method includes an exhaustive audit of your existing data (Sage, SAARI, Excel) before any migration. We clean, structure and validate with your teams. Migration is done on a sandbox environment, tested for 2 weeks, before switching to production. No data lost, no entries altered. And if testing reveals anomalies, we fix before switching — not after.

"We can't afford downtime during closing"

We never switch to production during a closing period. Planning is aligned with your accounting calendar — always. The old system and Business Central run in parallel during the transition phase. Your teams continue working normally on Sage while Business Central is tested with real data. Final switchover only happens after complete validation and sign-off by your key users.

"My teams will resist change"

Resistance is normal — and it's handled through support, not coercion. We train 'champion pairs' in each department: 2 people who master the system before everyone else and become internal relay points. Business Central's interface is Microsoft 365 — Outlook, Excel, Teams — which your teams already use. The learning curve is much shorter than with a proprietary ERP. And the first visible results (Copilot, dashboards) convert skeptics faster than any training.

"I'll depend on the service provider forever"

This is exactly what we refuse. Our contractual commitment includes an autonomy test: your key users must demonstrate they can administer, configure and generate reports independently. If this test isn't passed, we extend training at no extra cost. Business Central is a Microsoft product — you don't depend on NJIADATA to use it. You depend on us only to deploy it well. The day you no longer need us is the day we've succeeded.

"Connectivity is limited in our operating areas"

Business Central is cloud-first but not cloud-only. It works via web browser with modest bandwidth (2 Mbps is sufficient for smooth use). For areas with intermittent connectivity, we deploy Power Apps with offline mode that sync automatically when the network returns. For sites with very unstable connectivity, we recommend 4G/satellite redundancy. Our team has 20 years of network deployment experience in sub-Saharan Africa — we don't promise the cloud without knowing the terrain.

Request a free ERP assessment →

5 days · Free · No commitment

Unified platform

Business Central doesn't stand alone — it's the foundation of the entire ecosystem

5 Microsoft building blocks, one end-to-end vision

Every accounting entry, every purchase order, every invoice becomes actionable data across the entire Microsoft ecosystem. This is exactly what NJIADATA masters end-to-end.

Dynamics 365 Business Central

Accounting · Sales · Purchasing · Inventory · Manufacturing · Multi-currency · SYSCOHADA

Power BI
Real-time decision dashboards. Native BC connection.
Our core pillar →
SharePoint
DMS, document workflows, compliant archiving.
Our DMS pillar
Power Apps
Field entry, offline collection, business forms.
Field applications
Power Automate
Flow automation. Alerts, approvals, chains.
Orchestration
Teams & Outlook
Collaboration, ERP alerts, in-flow approvals.
Collaboration
⟁ Red thread · From field to dashboard

A sales rep in Bouaké enters a purchase order on Power Apps from their phone. Within 3 seconds, inventory updates in Business Central in Abidjan. Consolidated revenue refreshes in the CEO's Power BI dashboard in Paris. A reorder alert fires automatically via Power Automate to the procurement manager. From field entry to strategic steering — in one single flow, no re-entry, no email, no Excel.

The NJIADATA advantage: A typical ERP integrator deploys Business Central and stops there. We connect the transactional foundation to Power BI dashboards, SharePoint document management, and Power Apps field applications. It's this end-to-end vision — from source to insight — that makes the difference between an installed ERP and an operational decision system.

Data security & compliance

Business Central inherits Microsoft Azure's security infrastructure, certified ISO 27001, SOC 1/2/3, and GDPR compliant. Data is encrypted at rest (AES-256) and in transit (TLS 1.2 minimum). Every user action is traced in a permanent, immutable audit log — essential for auditors and regulators. Roles and permissions are managed at a granular level: each user sees exactly what they need to see, nothing more. Authentication is via Azure Active Directory with MFA support, SSO (Single Sign-On), and conditional access by geographic location or device.

For organizations subject to strict regulatory requirements (banks, insurance, public institutions), Business Central offers data retention features, field-level sensitivity classification, and audit log export in the format required by regulatory authorities. Data localization (Azure Europe region) ensures your financial information doesn't leave the geographic perimeter of your choice.

Extensions & customization

Business Central is extensible by design. Customizations are made via AL extensions (BC's native development language), deployed independently of standard source code. This means your customizations survive Microsoft updates — unlike direct code modifications in legacy ERPs. AppSource offers 3,000+ certified extensions: tax localization, bank integration, project management, property management, etc. For specific needs not covered, we develop custom extensions, tested on sandbox and deployed via Microsoft's standard pipeline.

Technical architecture

Under the hood: how Business Central works

For CIOs and architects who want to understand the mechanics before signing.

Infrastructure

Microsoft Azure — Native SaaS

Business Central runs on Microsoft's Azure infrastructure. No server to manage, no backup to configure. Microsoft guarantees a 99.9% availability SLA. Data is hosted in the nearest Azure region (Europe for West Africa). Automatic replication, encryption at rest (AES-256) and in transit (TLS 1.2+).

Azure · 99.9% SLA · AES-256 encryption · TLS 1.2+ · Geo-replication
Environments

Production + Sandbox — separated by design

Each tenant has a production environment and at least one test sandbox. Customizations, extensions and updates are always tested on sandbox before production deployment. Ability to copy production to sandbox for real-data testing. Additional sandboxes available.

1 production + N sandbox · Production → sandbox copy · AL extensions
API & integrations

REST API / OData v4 — fully open

Business Central natively exposes 130+ API pages: customers, vendors, items, orders, general ledger entries, fixed assets. All accessible for read and write via REST/OData v4. OAuth 2.0 authentication via Azure AD. Webhooks for real-time notifications. AppSource offers 3,000+ certified extensions.

130+ endpoints · OAuth 2.0 · Webhooks · 3,000+ AppSource extensions
Updates

Semi-annual waves — zero disruption

Microsoft releases two major updates per year: Wave 1 (April) and Wave 2 (October). Each wave is first deployed to sandbox (1 month ahead), then to production. Custom extensions are automatically validated. In case of incompatibility, Microsoft postpones the update and notifies the publisher. Security patches are applied automatically without intervention.

Wave 1 (April) + Wave 2 (Oct.) · Sandbox preview · Automatic hotfixes

Data flow: from field to dashboard

Field entry
Power Apps / BC mobile
Business Central
Accounting · Operations
API OData v4
Real-time · Secure
Power BI
Semantic model
Decision-maker
Real-time dashboard

Business Central modules — functional scope

Finances

General ledger · Sub-ledgers · Fixed assets · Bank reconciliation · Budgets · Multi-company consolidation · Analytical dimensions

Ventes

Quotes · Orders · Invoicing · Shipments · Returns · Price management · Discounts · Reminders · Revenue analysis by customer/item

Procurement

Purchase requisitions · Orders · Receipts · 3-way matching · Vendor invoices · Credit memos · Vendor evaluation

Stocks & Logistique

Items · Locations · Transfers · Physical inventory · Valuation (FIFO, LIFO, weighted average) · Reorder points · Forecasting

Production (Premium)

BOMs · Routings · Production orders · MRP · Capacity planning · Subcontracting · Cost accounting

Services (Premium)

Service contracts · Service orders · Dispatching · Service items · Warranties · Recurring billing · SLAs

Deployment method

In 12 weeks, not 12 months

4 phases, deliverables at each step

An ERP project doesn't need to last 18 months. Business Central is designed for rapid deployment. Our method makes it possible in 12 weeks for a standard SME.

Phase 1
Wk 1–2

Assessment & scoping

Audit of your current systems (Sage, SAARI, Excel). Mapping of accounting, commercial and operational processes. Definition of exact scope, timeline, and budget. Deliverable: assessment report + validated project plan.

Client side You designate your 2 champion pairs and grant access to your existing systems.
Phase 2
Wk 3–6

Configuration & setup

Business Central installation. Configuration of SYSCOHADA chart of accounts, currencies (FCFA/EUR/USD), tax regimes. Module setup: accounting, purchasing, sales, inventory, fixed assets. Power BI connection. Sandbox environment ready for testing.

Client side Your champions validate each business configuration. 2 workshops of 2h per week.
Phase 3
Wk 7–10

Migration, testing & parallel run

Historical data cleansing and migration. End-to-end testing on sandbox with real data. Parallel operation of old system / Business Central. Anomaly correction. Formal validation by each department.

Client side Your teams test each process (entry, closing, reporting) and sign the validation report.
Phase 2b
Ongoing

Power BI connection & first dashboards

In parallel with BC configuration, we connect Power BI via native OData v4 APIs. The semantic model is built with your business key dimensions: subsidiaries, product lines, customers, accounting periods. The first dashboards — consolidated revenue, cash position, receivables — are operational by the end of phase 2. Your CEO won't just see an ERP — they'll see their decisions taking shape in real time.

Client side Your CEO and CFO participate in a 1-hour 'key decisions' workshop to define priority KPIs.
Phase 4
Wk 11–12

Training, autonomy & Go-Live

Intensive training for champion pairs. Personalized user guide. Switch to production. 30-day post-deployment support included. Autonomy test: if your champions aren't ready, we stay — at no extra cost.

Client side Your champions pass the autonomy test. They must be able to enter, close and generate reports independently.

12 weeks for a standard SME. Multi-subsidiary or manufacturing scopes: 16 to 20 weeks. The phase 1 assessment defines the exact timeline — no empty promises.

Your partner

Why NJIADATA for your Business Central

4 differentiators, 90+ years of expertise

Many integrators know how to install an ERP. Very few know how to connect it to a complete decision system.

Dual ERP + BI expertise

We're not an ERP integrator that also does BI — we're BI specialists who added ERP because it's the source. Every BC entry natively feeds Power BI. Your data becomes decisions. This is our unique positioning — not an add-on service.

Native SYSCOHADA expertise

OHADA revised 2018 chart of accounts from A to Z. Standardized financial statements, notes, DSF, FNE compliance. Not a disguised European template — a configuration designed for the African market.

Local presence, French law

French-law SAS (Paris) + Abidjan operations. Euro-denominated contracts, standard procurement procedures, senior consultants on the ground. Not offshore consulting behind a screen.

Guaranteed autonomy

Our success criterion: the day you no longer need us. Champion training, personalized guide, autonomy test. If the test fails, we extend at no extra cost. What we transfer, your teams master.

What we deliver — and what we don't

We deliver a configured, tested, documented ERP transferred to your teams. We don't deliver an ERP 'in project mode' with phases that stretch indefinitely. Every deployment includes: assessment report, documented SYSCOHADA chart of accounts, validated configuration, migrated and verified data, connected Power BI dashboards, personalized user guide, and trained and tested champion pairs. We don't sell mandatory annual support — because if knowledge transfer is done right, annual support shouldn't be necessary for daily operations. We offer a quarterly check-up in the first year, and an optional support contract for future enhancements. But in year one, our commitment is that your teams fly on their own.

0
years of experience
combined in the team
0
senior experts
dedicated to each project
2
offices
Paris + Abidjan
100%
Microsoft stack
BC · Power BI · Fabric · SharePoint
Prerequisites

What you need to get started

The technical checklist your CIO wants to see

Network

Bandwidth & connectivity

Recommended minimum: 2 Mbps symmetric per site. BC runs via web browser — no thick client, no VPN required. For sites with 20+ simultaneous users: 5-10 Mbps. Acceptable latency: < 200ms to Azure Europe datacenters (Amsterdam/Paris). For intermittent connectivity: offline Power Apps + deferred sync.

Browsers

Workstations & mobile

Supported browsers: Microsoft Edge (recommended), Chrome, Safari, Firefox — current versions. No software installation required. Works on Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS. iOS and Android mobile apps for field entry. Minimum resolution: 1280×720. No specific hardware prerequisites — if your workstation opens Outlook, it opens BC.

Identity

Azure Active Directory (Entra ID)

Each BC user needs a Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) account. If you already have Microsoft 365 (Outlook, Teams), your accounts already exist. If not, we create them during phase 2. MFA strongly recommended. SSO available for unified access to BC, Power BI, SharePoint and Teams without re-entering passwords.

In summary: if your organization already uses Microsoft 365, you already have 80% of the prerequisites. The phase 1 assessment identifies any gaps (bandwidth, Azure AD licenses, browsers) and resolves them before deployment.

Frequently asked questions

The questions our prospects ask most often — and our honest answers.

Can you mix Essentials and Premium licenses in the same environment?

No, this is a Microsoft constraint: in the same Business Central environment, all full users must be either Essentials or Premium. However, you can add as many Team Members licenses as needed regardless of the type chosen. If some users need Manufacturing or Service functions (Premium-exclusive), the entire environment must be Premium. This is a point we clarify during the assessment.

Our data is in Sage Ligne 100. Is migration really possible?

Yes. We've mapped Sage 100 tables and developed a structured migration process: extraction (balances, entries, third parties, items, fixed assets), cleansing, mapping to Business Central entities, and loading with consistency checks. Historical data is migrated based on useful age — typically the last 3 fiscal years, with the rest archived. The complete process is tested on sandbox before production.

How does the connection between Business Central and Power BI work?

Business Central exposes its data via API pages and the OData v4 protocol. Power BI connects natively — no third-party connector or CSV export needed. We configure an optimized Power BI semantic model with relevant business dimensions (subsidiaries, products, customers, periods) and standard DAX measures (revenue, margin, receivables, cash). The result: dashboards that refresh automatically, with BC data in near-real-time. This is our specialty — and why the dual ERP + BI competency changes everything.

How long to train an accountant who has never used BC?

For an accountant familiar with Sage or SAARI, expect 3 to 5 days of intensive training. Business Central uses the Microsoft 365 interface that most users already know (web navigation, buttons similar to Excel and Outlook). Most of the learning involves page navigation logic and journal entry — not a proprietary interface. Our champion pairs are trained in 2 weeks and then become internal trainers.

What happens if our internet connection drops for 2 hours?

Business Central is cloud-based — without connection, access is interrupted. But your data is safe on Microsoft Azure servers (automatic replication, 99.9% SLA). For critical field processes, we deploy Power Apps with offline mode that sync automatically when the network returns. For sites with very unstable connectivity, we recommend 4G/satellite redundancy. Our network team has 20 years of experience in sub-Saharan African infrastructure.

Is Business Central's SYSCOHADA chart of accounts validated by auditors?

It's not the software that's 'validated' — it's the configuration. Business Central is a configurable tool: what matters is that the chart of accounts is correctly structured per SYSCOHADA revised classes 1 through 9, that standardized financial statements are generated per OHADA uniform act provisions, and that the audit trail is complete. This is precisely what we configure, document and submit for validation with your auditors before Go-Live.

What is the total cost in year one (licenses + deployment)?

Total cost comprises two components: Microsoft licenses (see Cost section above, e.g. ~$940/month for 20 users) and NJIADATA deployment fees. The latter depend on scope: number of subsidiaries, activated modules, data volume to migrate, process complexity. The phase 1 assessment (free) produces a precise, validated estimate. No rough quotes — a line-by-line reasoned budget.

Does Business Central work with our African banking systems?

Yes. Business Central's bank reconciliation works with standard bank statement formats (CAMT, MT940, CSV). Most banks in West Africa (Société Générale, BICICI, Ecobank, NSIA, BIAO, BOA) offer statement exports in these formats. For banks with proprietary formats, we configure a custom import template. The goal: Copilot can automatically reconcile your statements, regardless of your bank. For non-standard formats, configuration time is included in our phase 2.

What is the difference between Business Central and SAP Business One?

Both target SMEs, but with different philosophies. SAP Business One is historically on-premise (a cloud version exists via partners), often requires a dedicated server, and doesn't natively integrate AI. Business Central is cloud-first, includes Copilot in every license, natively connects to the entire Microsoft ecosystem (Power BI, SharePoint, Teams, Outlook), and benefits from automatic updates. BC's entry cost ($80/user) is generally lower than SAP B1 for equivalent functional scope. The deciding factor is often the ecosystem: if your data strategy relies on Microsoft (Power BI, Fabric), Business Central is the natural choice.

Can we start with accounting and add sales/inventory later?

Absolutely, and it's often what we recommend. A progressive deployment reduces risk and lets your teams absorb the change. Phase 1: accounting + finance (SYSCOHADA core). Phase 2: sales and purchasing. Phase 3: inventory and/or manufacturing. Each phase builds on the previous one. The Power BI connection is deployed from phase 1 so decision dashboards are operational immediately — this is our 'Decision-First' approach.

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SYSCOHADA
Compliant from A to Z
Copilot AI
Included at no extra cost
Power BI natif
Our core business

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