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Making Changes to Dynamics GP while prepping for a future move: Updating or creating new financial reports
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Time to read: 4 min
As organizations evaluate the future of their financial reporting and ERP strategy, the contrast between Microsoft Dynamics GP and Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC) has never been more important. Microsoft has officially confirmed that mainstream support for Dynamics GP, including product enhancements, tax and regulatory updates, and technical support, will end on December 31, 2029, with only limited security patches available through April 2031. This milestone marks a critical turning point for businesses still operating on GP, many of whom rely on timely updates and ongoing support to maintain compliance, system stability, and everyday operations.
The shift in Microsoft’s strategy, moving on from legacy solutions like GP toward modern, cloud‑based platforms, makes Dynamics 365 Business Central the long‑term, strategic choice for organizations seeking innovation, scalability, and improved financial reporting. Dynamic GP’s out-of-the-box financial reporting options are limited, with limited formatting available, and the Management Reporter add-on often requires maintenance on the secondary database called the Data Mart. As your organization looks ahead, this addition to our ongoing blog series will explore what the end of GP means, the benefits of modernizing financial reporting, and why preparing for transitioning to Business Central positions your business for future success.
Image: Management Reporter system
Image: Report Writer system
What we cover:
Why adjust/change your Financial Reporting now
When organizations move from Dynamics GP to Business Central, researching how Excel‑based reporting tools like Jet Reports (available on GP and Business Central) and Cosmos (built specifically for Business Central) can dramatically streamline how financial data is accessed, analyzed, and shared while also preparing your business for a cloud-based solution. Because these Excel solutions integrate natively with Business Central, users can pull live financial data directly into Excel—no exporting, manual manipulation, or custom SQL queries required.
This means finance teams can continue working in a familiar Microsoft environment while benefiting from accurate, real‑time information sourced directly from their ERP system. Reports like trial balances, income statements, departmental budgets, and cash flow forecasts refresh instantly with a single click, giving teams faster insights with far less effort.
Standardize Financial Reporting before moving to the cloud
Moving to Excel‑based reporting solutions allows organizations to decouple reporting from the ERP system, ensuring reporting continuity before a migration even begins. In many GP environments, reporting is fragmented. Throughout the day, a GP user might call on Management Reporter for financials, SmartLists for operations, and SSRS for specialized needs. By standardizing reports in Excel, finance teams can consolidate core statements, budgets, and KPIs into a single, familiar reporting framework that will map cleanly to Business Central.
Prepare finance teams for self-service
Excel‑based solutions like Jet Reports and Cosmos help organizations modernize not just their technology, but also their reporting culture. Instead of relying heavily on IT or external consultants to modify reports, users familiarize themselves with self‑service capabilities such as filtering by accounts or dimensions, drilling into transactions, and building on-the-fly views directly in Excel. This mirrors how reporting works in Business Central and helps teams adopt cloud‑friendly habits well ahead of the migration.
Image: Cosmos reporting system
Image: Jet Reporting System
Reduce migration risk and ensure continuity
One of the highest risks in any ERP migration is losing confidence in financial reporting during and after the transition, but by moving to Excel-based reporting solutions while still on Dynamics GP, organizations significantly reduce this risk. Reports are validated and trusted before the migration begins, so finance leaders do not have to reconcile new data structures and reporting tools at the same time. This separation of reporting modernization from ERP migration creates stability during a period of change and allows teams to focus on data accuracy and business continuity.
Excel-based reporting also provides a safety net during phased or hybrid migration scenarios. Many organizations run GP and Business Central in parallel for a period of time, or complete historical data migrations while current operations continue. Tools like Jet and Cosmos can support this approach by maintaining consistent report outputs across systems, reducing the likelihood of errors, surprises, or delays in close cycles. As a result, stakeholders can compare and validate during the process, auditors experience fewer disruptions, and the business avoids the operational risk that often accompanies last-minute report rebuilds during an ERP go-live.
Leverage familiarity with Microsoft ecosystem
Working in Microsoft Excel is significantly easier and more intuitive for most finance teams than learning specialized reporting tools such as SSRS or Management Reporter. Excel is already embedded in daily financial workflows for budgeting, analysis, and forecasting. By familiarizing your company with Excel-based solutions like Jet Reports or Cosmos, organizations meet users where they already work, eliminating the steep learning curve that often slows adoption of new reporting platforms (which can include complex design interfaces and limited flexibility).
This ease of use becomes especially important as organizations prepare for Business Central. Instead of forcing teams to relearn reporting multiple times, once for GP tools and again for BC, Excel based reporting provides a consistent experience across systems. Finance users can focus on understanding the business and interpreting results rather than learning new report designers or technical concepts. As a result, reporting modernization feels like an enhancement rather than a disruption, making the eventual move to Business Central smoother, faster, and more positively received across the organization.
By shifting reporting into tools outside of the ERP system and reducing reliance on GP for reporting, organizations establish consistent report structures, empower finance teams with self-service capabilities aligned to cloud-based solutions, reduce migration risk by validating reports in advance, and ensure continuity during transition periods.
At the same time, leveraging Microsoft Excel, a platform users already know, minimizes training requirements and pushback to change compared to specialized tools like SSRS or Management Reporter. Together, these advantages make Excel-based reporting an advantageous step that not only improves reporting today but also accelerates adoption of your new ERP (when do you do transition) while maintaining excellent and accurate reporting.
