Wednesday, September 1, 2021

Discover Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate

If you’re passionate about excellent small and medium business operations and have experience setting up and implementing core processes that can adapt as your business grows, the Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate certification might be a great fit for you. In this role, you could wear many hats, such as functional consultant, administrator, or quality assurance professional. This certification demonstrates that you know how to set up, configure, migrate, and perform operational tasks in Dynamics 365 Business Central.  

 

A Microsoft Certification validates to the world that you have these skills—whether you’re just starting out, looking to use your functional consultant knowledge and experience to advance your career, or wanting to take your career journey in a new direction. 

 

Companies of all sizes want automated solutions. There’s an ever-growing need for employees and consultants who can adapt innovations that bring better, more connected operational experiences. The Microsoft approach to certification focuses on building a strong learning culture and encouraging learners on their journey. This drives tech intensity. A Microsoft white paper on role-based tech training and certifications reports that 91 percent of IT professionals with certifications believe that the effort employees put into acquiring new skills strongly contributes to their success in digital transformation.

 

You can add your certifications to your résumé and your LinkedIn page to alert organizations to your expertise. In this post in our series on discovering your career path, we look at the benefits of earning the Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate certification. Plus, we suggest other certifications that can be useful for functional consultants who want to call attention to their broad variety of professional skills. 

 

The Business Central functional consultant role and certification

You fit the profile for this certification if you’re a functional consultant in a small or medium business who implements and configures core application setup and runs operations processes. You could be in a role such as administrator, quality assurance professional, DevOps specialist, developer, UX designer, or solution architect. You need to have experience configuring Dynamics 365 Business Central role centers, including adapting insights, cues, action tiles, reports, and charts, and extending Business Central by using Microsoft Power Platform components.

 

You should have applied knowledge of meeting user needs through Business Central, and you need to understand industry terminology, priorities, standards, methodologies, and best practices. If you have this knowledge, in addition to a basic understanding of financial management sales, purchasing, and inventory, this certification is designed for you.

 

To earn this certification, you need to pass Exam MB-800: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant.

 

Benefits of certification

Dynamics 365 certifications are popular. In fact, 80 percent of respondents in the 2020–2021 Microsoft Dynamics Salary Survey from Nigel Frank believe that Dynamics 365 certifications are important for increasing earning potential. Plus, 74 percent listed “understanding business models” and “having business acumen” as hard skills that would make them more attractive to employers.

 

For business success, it matters that people in the organization know how to support business requirements by implementing new and transformative technologies. An IDC white paper, Business Value of Digital Transformation and the Contribution of a Growth Mindset in IT[i] indicates that professionals with a growth mindset can develop the capacity to implement technology transformation. Those who have achieved a relevant technical certification are more likely to believe that competence can be developed through dedication and hard work and a willingness to take advantage of tools and learnings.

 

If you’re relatively new to the workforce, having a certification on your résumé can set you apart. You know that organizations need to keep pace with the digital transformation trend. A certification tells employers that you’ve studied for and passed an exam for specific skill sets and that you’re ready to keep learning, regardless of where you are on your career path. It’s a way to distinguish yourself from your colleagues. The Global Knowledge 2020 IT Skills and Salary Report found that IT professionals with certifications, on average, earn more than their peers without any.

 

In a Pearson VUE Value of IT Certification report, professionals list their top reasons for certification as improving professional standing, adding technical knowledge, and increasing their chances of a salary increase. Plus, 67 percent of the respondents indicate greater self-confidence in their abilities, and 55 percent note that the knowledge they gained was transferable to actual work situations.

 

Other certifications for you

Depending on the direction you want to take your career, you should investigate the different Microsoft Certifications available to you to help you take the next steps.

 

If you’re new to Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365, check out Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Fundamentals (pass Exam PL-900) and Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (CRM) (pass Exam MB-910).

 

If you want to deepen your skills and open up your career options in related business functionalities, consider exploring other Dynamics 365 associate certifications:

 

 

Depending on the depth of your experience and interest, later in your career, you might consider pursuing an advanced certification for solution architects, such as Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Solution Architect Expert (complete a prerequisite and pass Exam PL-600).

 

How do I get started?

Sensitivity to the needs of a small or medium business, a drive to facilitate project success, and technical skills characterize Business Central functional consultants. You’re driven by helping your business grow, and you have experience setting up and implementing solutions that help your organization scale and become more efficient by connecting people and processes.

 

However, if you don’t feel ready to take the required exam just yet, we have a few suggestions for you. Try working on a Dynamics 365 Business Central setup or implementation project. Or you might work with a functional consultant who regularly uses Dynamics 365 Business Central. Find a mentor or look for more support by exploring training opportunities or taking an instructor-led course. No matter where you are on your journey, we have training that can help you get underway.

 

To get started with this certification, check out our Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate certification journey map. You can also find the journey map in the resources section on the Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate certification and exam pages.

 

D365 Business Central FC Associate.png

 

 

To map out your journey, follow the sequence on the Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate journey map. Start at the beginning by deciding whether this certification is a good fit for you.

 

Next, choose the training you’ll need to be prepared. To understand what you’ll be measured on when you take the required exam, review the Exam MB-800 skills outline guide. Then sign up for the training that fits your learning style and experience:

 

After you pass the exam and earn your certification, you can continue to add to your technical expertise by taking one of the other certifications described in this blog post or by exploring other certification offerings. Consider our associate and expert certifications when you achieve the next milestones on your career journey. Use this diagram to map out the possibilities: Microsoft Power Platform and Dynamics 365 certification paths.

 

Where’s my community?

Join other Business Central functional consultants in a community. Share your career journey with colleagues who have similar interests in Dynamics 365 Business Central and related technologies. Here are some places where you can share and gather information and learn from your peers and others.

 

Celebrate with the world: Post your badge on LinkedIn

When you earn a certification or learn a new skill, celebrate your accomplishment with your network. It often takes less than a minute to update your LinkedIn profile and share your achievements, highlight your skills, and help boost your career potential. Here’s how:  

  • If you’ve earned a certification already, follow the instructions in the congratulations email you received. Or find your badge on your Certification Dashboard, and follow the instructions there to share it. (You’ll be transferred to the Credly website.)
  • For more information on badges, check out the Certification Badges FAQ.
  • To add specific skills to your LinkedIn profile, go to your profile page and update the Skills and endorsements section. Tip: We recommend that you choose skills listed in the skills outline guide for your certification.

 

It’s easy to renew your certification

When your Dynamics 365 Business Central Functional Consultant Associate certification expires, we’ve got good news. You can renew your current certifications by passing a free renewal assessment on Microsoft Learn—anytime within six months before your certification expires. For more details, read our blog post, Stay current with in-demand skills through free certification renewals.

 

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and other resources

 

Ready to discover your career path?

Are you ready to validate that you know how to help your small or medium business implement processes that can help it innovate and grow as the business environment evolves and changes? As a Business Central functional consultant, you have a passion for implementing operations solutions that help your company adapt and scale. A certification signals that you have what it takes to deliver operational excellence for your organization.

 

[i] IDC white paper, sponsored by Microsoft, Business Value of Digital Transformation and the Contribution of a Growth Mindset in IT, #US46245620, May 2020.

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