Microsoft writes new chapter in Middle East cloud story, with release of enterprise-class SaaS ERP

Microsoft took another step forward in helping Middle East businesses achieve more, as the company launched its next-generation cloud ERP solutions, Microsoft Dynamics AX and CRM Online, on Tuesday 22 March at the Dynamics Summit 2016, held at the Waldorf Astoria, The Palm, Dubai. 

Now available in 137 markets with support for 40 languages, the enterprise-grade suite is built on and for Microsoft’s cloud platform Azure and harnesses all the power and advantages of the cloud, for businesses everywhere. 

Dynamics AX forms yet another milestone in Microsoft’s cloud journey, and offers businesses access to the kind of intelligence that will allow them to transform their operations. Built with all business departments in mind – from the shop floor to the back office – Dynamics AX and CRM deliver slick interoperability with Microsoft Office 365 and Power BI, for the best possible productivity and collaboration experiences available.

The Dynamics Summit reinforced Microsoft’s commitment to the future of technology solutions in the region, exposing customers and partners to the true power behind Dynamics and the cloud, and highlighting the sweeping changes to technology solutions architecture taking place across the Gulf and wider Middle East. 

“As governments across the GCC embark on more and more ambitious e- and m-government programmes, it will fall upon businesses to keep up with citizens’ expectations,” said Karim Talhouk, Microsoft Business Solutions Director-Gulf. “By placing the power of Dynamics in the cloud, Microsoft is bringing a core operations component to these businesses and allowing them to achieve more. Collaboration and business analytics have never been easier, now that we’ve introduced the most seamless integration yet with Office and Power BI.”

The Dynamics Summit featured keynote sessions by Talhouk, Christian Pederson, Microsoft General Manager-Enterprise ERP, and Jujhar Singh Microsoft General Manager, Dynamics CRM-Worldwide, highlighting the capabilities of Dynamics AX and CRM Online, and how they can be leveraged to advance productivity as well as create intelligent customer engagements in Middle East businesses. 

Microsoft customers, partners and suppliers working within the business and technology sectors were present at the summit, and made good use of networking opportunities, as well as presentations on Microsoft Dynamics solutions tailored to the growth and innovation of regional organizations. A panel of key Dynamics customers and breakout sessions hosted by Microsoft partners and business groups, proved particularly beneficial to attendees.

Customers across the Gulf region are already using Dynamics AX to run their business processes in the cloud. The new Dynamics AX moves beyond traditional business solutions and brings ERP, business intelligence, infrastructure and database services together in a single offering, enabling organisations to run industry-specific deployments of the suite that are extendable through bespoke partner solutions.

“Our Middle East customers consistently report tangible gains from using the Microsoft Dynamics suite,” said Talhouk, “and we launch the latest version at a pivotal moment for cloud computing in the region. Figures released earlier this month by Gartner show the MENA cloud-services market growing 18.1% in 2016, to more than $860m, and software-as-a-service [SaaS] is expected to show a 26.4% surge. This is a forceful indicator that regional organisations are embracing the cloud and we believe the next generation of Dynamics is the perfect travelling companion for this migration.”

Customers can sign up for the new Dynamics suite today via a monthly subscription with a choice of three simple versions: a Self-Serve user, a Task user and an Enterprise user. Subscribers can get up and running in no time and add business processes and users as their organisation grows.

More information can be found by visiting the Dynamics AX website. Those who want to see the product in action, and the true benefits it is bringing to businesses, can view the Dynamics AX virtual launch event.