Modernising business systems is rarely a matter of choosing between the old and the new. For many UK SMEs, the established IBM i platform continues to run dependable, business-critical processes, while Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central offers a more flexible route for finance, operations, reporting and growth.
The challenge is not deciding which platform is fashionable. It is designing a practical transition that improves capability without interrupting trading, weakening controls or allowing technology costs to run ahead of business value.
That is where a consultancy-first approach matters. A Dynamics 365 Jump Start should begin with strategic assessment, not software configuration. Likewise, IBM i Management should be treated as a specialist technical discipline, not as a legacy inconvenience to be removed on a deadline.
Modernisation should begin with business continuity
An SME’s most important systems are not always its newest systems. An established IBM i environment may support order processing, stock, pricing, finance, manufacturing or logistics with a reliability that is difficult to replicate quickly.
Replacing it without understanding the business logic embedded within it creates unnecessary risk. The safer approach is to establish a target operating model and then decide which functions should:
- Remain on the existing platform
- Integrate with Dynamics 365 Business Central
- Move to a modern cloud service
- Be retired because they no longer create value
This creates a controlled coexistence model. Business Central can provide modern finance, workflow and reporting capabilities while the IBM i environment continues to support processes where it remains technically and commercially appropriate.
The first deliverable should therefore be a roadmap covering applications, data, integrations, users, security, recovery objectives, costs and dependencies. It should also define measurable outcomes, such as faster month-end reporting, fewer manual reconciliations, improved order visibility or reduced support effort.
A practitioner-led Fractal IT Director brings the senior perspective needed to connect those technical decisions to commercial priorities. David Evestaff’s background in Google-certified IT project management, multinational onboarding and IBM i system administration provides practical context for planning change without treating operational continuity as an afterthought.
What a Dynamics 365 Jump Start should cover
A successful Dynamics 365 Jump Start is not simply a demonstration of Business Central features. It is a structured discovery phase that tests whether the proposed solution fits the organisation.
For a UK SME, the work should include:
Process and data discovery
Document how finance, purchasing, sales, stock, fulfilment and reporting work today. This often reveals duplicate data entry, spreadsheets that have become unofficial systems and manual controls that depend on one or two experienced employees.
The next step is to map those processes against standard Business Central functionality. The objective is not to customise every historic habit. It is to distinguish genuine business requirements from processes that can be simplified.
Integration planning
Where IBM i remains operational, the integration design must be explicit. This may include customer and supplier records, item data, pricing, orders, inventory, invoices and payment information.
APIs, scheduled data exchanges or an integration platform may all be appropriate, depending on transaction volumes and operational requirements. The important point is to define ownership and accountability for every data flow. If information is duplicated across platforms, someone must know which system is authoritative.
Data quality and migration
Poor data quality can undermine an otherwise sound implementation. Customer records, supplier details, item codes, chart of accounts structures and historic transactions should be assessed before migration.
A phased model is often preferable. Master data can be cleansed first, followed by selected transactional history and then carefully tested cut-over processes. This limits the risk of carrying years of inconsistent information into a new platform.
User adoption and operating design
A new system only creates value when people use it correctly. Training, role design, approval workflows and reporting responsibilities should form part of the implementation plan from the beginning.
This is also where Helpdesk Support becomes a useful execution layer. It should not replace strategic ownership, but it can provide structured assistance during rollout and help identify recurring issues that require process or configuration changes.
IBM i Management is a high-value consultancy discipline
IBM i and Power Systems environments often contain decades of operational knowledge. The platform may be stable, but stability does not remove the need for active management.
A specialist review should consider:
- Application dependencies and business-critical jobs
- Db2 data structures and interfaces
- User access and privileged accounts
- Backup quality and restoration procedures
- Capacity, performance and storage
- Patch and maintenance processes
- Third-party software and support arrangements
- Integration requirements for Business Central and cloud services
Modernisation does not always mean replacing the core application. It may involve exposing selected functions through APIs, improving access to data, modernising user interfaces or moving supporting services into a more flexible architecture.
The correct answer depends on the business case. A stable platform that supports critical operations may be cheaper and safer to retain than a rushed replacement. Conversely, an application that prevents growth or creates unacceptable dependency on scarce skills may justify phased replatforming.
That judgement requires technical experience and commercial independence. The consultancy role is to advise on the right path, not to push a predetermined product outcome.
Disaster Recovery must span the whole operating model
Business continuity is more complicated when an organisation operates both established infrastructure and cloud platforms. A backup of one system does not automatically restore the business.
A credible Disaster Recovery strategy should define:
- Which processes are critical
- The maximum acceptable data loss
- The maximum acceptable recovery time
- Dependencies between IBM i, Business Central, identity and integrations
- Who is responsible for declaring and managing an incident
- How users will operate during degraded service
- How recovery will be tested and evidenced
For IBM i, this may involve high availability, replicated environments, off-site backups or a managed recovery arrangement. For cloud services, it also means understanding retention, export, identity recovery and the practical limits of supplier-level resilience.
A plan that has never been tested is an assumption, not a control. Tabletop exercises, technical restoration tests and role-based rehearsals should be scheduled as part of normal governance.
ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials as practical consultancy domains
ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials are often discussed as certification objectives, but they are also useful frameworks for improving decision-making.
ISO 27001 provides a structured approach to information security management, including risk assessment, policies, responsibilities, control selection and continual improvement. For a business modernising its systems, this helps ensure that security is considered during design rather than added after implementation. The International Organization for Standardization provides the relevant standard information.
Cyber Essentials offers a practical baseline for common cyber threats. The National Cyber Security Centre identifies five core technical areas: firewalls, secure configuration, security update management, user access control and malware protection.
For an SME, these domains can be applied to the modernisation roadmap by:
- Reviewing privileged access across IBM i and cloud platforms
- Strengthening authentication and account lifecycle controls
- Establishing secure configuration standards
- Recording patch responsibilities and exceptions
- Testing backup and recovery arrangements
- Separating administrative and everyday user access
- Documenting suppliers, systems and information risks
Certification may be appropriate for some organisations, particularly those serving regulated sectors or public-sector customers. However, the underlying controls should provide value even where certification is not the immediate objective.
Technology Expense Management protects the business case
A modernisation programme can easily become a collection of disconnected subscriptions, implementation fees, integrations and support contracts. This is why Technology Expense Management should be built into the programme from the start.
The cost model should include:
- Existing IBM i hardware, hosting and support
- Business Central licences and implementation services
- Integration tools and data migration
- Backup, recovery and security services
- Training and internal project time
- Connectivity, telephony and mobile contracts
- Support arrangements after go-live
- Future data growth and user expansion
The purpose is not simply to reduce spend. It is to understand the cost of each capability and remove waste where it does not contribute to the target operating model.
This is particularly important when reviewing Cloud Solutions and software subscriptions. Cloud can improve flexibility, but unmanaged consumption and overlapping tools can undermine the expected return. A clear owner, renewal calendar and usage review should exist for every significant service.
MSP services should support the strategy
Once the roadmap is clear, execution services can be added where they create practical value. These may include Managed IT Services, Network Solutions, hardware, software licensing, Voice and Connectivity and day-to-day support.
These services are important, but they are bolt-ons to the strategy rather than substitutes for it. A network should support the applications and security model. Connectivity should reflect recovery and user requirements. Helpdesk Support should provide operational visibility. Managed services should be measured against agreed outcomes, not simply activity levels.
A trusted network of specialist channel partners can provide scale and technical depth where required, while the IT Consultant retains oversight of architecture, priorities, risk and commercial alignment.
For a real-estate SME, the same governance model may need to connect finance, property operations and inventory workflows. Where wider group services are relevant, the Evestaff gateway is available at evestaff.co.uk, while technology strategy remains led through the consultancy function.
A sensible first 90 days
A practical starting sequence is:
- Assess the current environment: document IBM i workloads, integrations, risks, costs and business dependencies.
- Define the target state: agree what Business Central, IBM i and cloud services should each do.
- Establish security and continuity baselines: review Cyber Essentials controls, ISO 27001-aligned governance and Disaster Recovery requirements.
- Create the financial model: apply Technology Expense Management to licences, suppliers, infrastructure and support.
- Run a controlled pilot, select a process where benefits can be measured without placing core operations at unnecessary risk.
- Review and sequence the next phase, use evidence from the pilot to refine the roadmap.
Modernisation does not require a dramatic break with the past. With strategic consultation, specialist IBM i Management and a carefully governed Dynamics 365 Jump Start, UK SMEs can improve capability while protecting the systems that keep the business moving.
The objective is not to own more technology. It is to create a simpler, safer and more accountable operating model that supports growth without sacrificing continuity.
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