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Microsoft Fabric: A New Era for ERP Financial Reporting

Revolutionize financial reporting with Microsoft Fabric. Benefit from real-time updates, seamless data integration, and enhanced visual analytics for precise decision-making.

Picture of Dan McAllister

Dan McAllister

Introduction

Effective financial reporting is essential for any ERP implementation, providing valuable insights to key stakeholders, including finance teams and decision-makers, both within and outside the organization. Real-time financial statements are crucial for analyzing data and maintaining an accurate picture of financial health across the business. Financial reports should be tailored to your unique business needs, with breakdowns by department, product line, or business unit.

In the past, creating these detailed financial reports within a Business Intelligence (BI) platform posed structural challenges. However, Microsoft Fabric has introduced features that remove these barriers, making financial reporting in BI more accessible and versatile than ever. With Microsoft Fabric, controllers and CFOs can enjoy ease of use, advanced control over access and permissions, and timely data insights. Microsoft Fabric is redefining financial reporting, making it the go-to solution for businesses ready to embrace the future.

In this blog post, we will cover the following:

  • Key terms and concepts essential for understanding financial reporting and data management with Microsoft Fabric
  • Standard D365 Finance & Supply Chain Management and Microsoft functions for financial information reporting
  • Common roadblocks in data integrations and how Fabric overcomes these issues
  • The benefits of real-time data and analytics tools within Fabric
  • A recap of long-term improvements in financial reporting using Fabric

Definition of Key Terms

Microsoft Fabric is a unified data analytics platform by Microsoft that consolidates various data tools and services in one place. It simplifies data integration, governance, and analysis, empowering businesses to make effective, data-driven decisions. While Fabric integrates seamlessly with Dynamics 365, it can also connect to a wide range of other tools and databases for reporting purposes.

Financial reports are GAAP-compliant reports for both single and consolidated entities. They include drill-down capabilities, allowing users to explore details through standard financial dimensions and tags.

Standard D365 Financial Reporting Functions

Without Microsoft Fabric, users rely on the native Financial Reporting tool (formerly Management Reporter) within D365 Finance. This tool is functional and user-friendly but has limitations, including difficulty in scheduling extracts and requiring direct access to D365 Finance. One critical limitation of the standard D365 financial reporting tool is:

Lack of support for financial tags

  • Challenges in supporting expanding dimension lists, such as projects or activities
  • Limited linking to sub-ledger information, such as invoice data
  • Restricted interactivity within reports
  • Limited access for executive users

Microsoft Fabric Vs. Standard D365 Financial Reporting Functions

Microsoft Fabric addresses several limitations in D365 Finance’s standard reporting tools, allowing businesses to save time, ensure data quality, and deliver actionable financial insights. Here’s how they compare:

Microsoft Fabric Vs. Standard D365 Financial Reporting Functions

Explanation of Each Comparison Point:

  • Real-Time Data Updates: Fabric, through OneLake, offers near real-time updates, ensuring that data is current and actionable immediately. In contrast, D365’s reporting often relies on scheduled extracts, which can introduce delays.
  • Data Integration: Microsoft Fabric integrates with a wide variety of data sources, allowing reports to include data from multiple tools beyond D365. This is ideal for businesses that pull financial data from various platforms. D365’s native tool is primarily limited to internal data, restricting the depth of multi-source analysis.
  • Visualization Options: Fabric’s integration with Power BI and other BI tools offers rich, interactive, and customizable visuals. In comparison, the native tool has fixed templates and limited customization, which can be a barrier for users needing more tailored visual reports.
  • Subledger Linking: Fabric’s ability to connect directly to subledgers allows users to drill down into data to identify specific trends, outliers, or transaction details. The native tool’s limited linking to subledgers can make such in-depth analysis cumbersome.
  • Adaptability to New Dimensions: Fabric automatically picks up and integrates new dimensions into reports, whereas D365 requires manual adjustments, which can slow down reporting when new elements are introduced.
  • User Access and Security Controls: Fabric provides granular control over who can see what data, which is essential for organizations needing strict data governance. D365’s access control is more basic, potentially limiting control over sensitive data.
  • Ease of Scheduling and Automation: Fabric’s integration with BI tools allows for straightforward scheduling and automation, enabling regular updates without manual intervention. D365’s tool, however, has more rigid scheduling, requiring users to access D365 directly for report updates.
  • Executive Access and Usability: Fabric’s intuitive, executive-friendly dashboards make it accessible to users at all levels, even those less familiar with financial software. D365’s native tool, while functional, requires more navigation within the ERP, which can be cumbersome for non-technical users.

Benefits of Microsoft Fabric for Financial Reporting

Using Microsoft Fabric, you can create beautiful, interactive financial reports. Key features include:

  • Flexible Reporting Options: Reports can be created and viewed in Power BI or any industry-standard BI tool, ensuring flexibility and compatibility across platforms.
  • Deeper Insights with Linked Data: Subledger data can be linked directly to financial reports, allowing in-depth analysis to identify key trends and outliers.
  • Dynamic Data Model: Existing reports automatically pick up new dimensions and integrate them seamlessly into the data model, supporting evolving business needs without extra effort.
  • Real-Time Updates with OneLake: Data is refreshed in near real-time using OneLake’s Direct Lake link, which accesses data directly without importing or duplication. This keeps your financial reports current and accurate, providing timely insights for decision-making.
  • Integrated Visuals for Enhanced Analysis: Financial reports can coexist with other visuals within your BI tool, enabling richer trend analysis and comprehensive insights.
  • Granular Security Controls: Customizable security settings allow you to define data access at a granular level, ensuring that sensitive information is accessible only to authorized users.

Struggling with financial reporting challenges?

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Conclusion

Microsoft Fabric redefines financial reporting by ensuring financial teams, controllers, and business leaders can access up-to-date financial data for informed decision-making. With Fabric, financial reports meet GAAP compliance and offer dynamic, customizable insights that support long-term business strategies. Contact us for a demo to see how Microsoft Fabric can transform your organization’s financial reporting and business performance.

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