Welcome back, recruiters! Now that you’ve got an overview of Dynamics 365 modules (in Part 1), it’s time to dive into an often-overlooked piece of the D365 world: the difference in experience between Partner-side and End User-side roles. This distinction can make a huge difference in the kind of expertise a candidate brings to the table.
Let’s break down what it means to work as a Partner versus an End User, why their experiences often feel like night and day, and how this shapes the candidate profiles you’ll encounter.
Understanding the Difference
At a high level, Partners are consulting firms that specialize in implementing D365 for clients (the End Users aka Customers). End Users are the actual businesses using D365 to run their operations. Here’s a closer look at how their roles and experiences differ.
Project Frequency and Depth of Experience
Partners: Implementation is their bread and butter. Partners work on a continuous cycle of implementations, rolling from one project to the next. They’re well-versed in setup, customization, and best practices, as they’re constantly starting fresh with new clients.
In a way, experience on the Partner side is like being in “dog years”... one year here can feel like seven years of end user experience.
End Users: An End User typically implements an ERP once (maybe twice) and then shifts to maintenance and optimization. Their experience deepens over time, but it’s more focused on day-to-day usage and incremental improvements rather than the start-to-finish implementation process.
Example: A Partner consultant might implement D365 Supply Chain Management for three clients in a single year, while an End User in supply chain may spend years fine-tuning the module for just one organization’s unique needs.
Complexity and Specialization
Partners: Partners are hired to solve the complicated stuff. They’re the “go-to” team for complex configurations, integrations, and customizations. If there’s an issue or a unique requirement, Partners are there to ensure it’s handled. This makes Partner experience very specialized and focused on technical, “under-the-hood” aspects of D365.
End Users: End Users lean on Partners for the tricky configurations but become experts in business-specific processes within the system. They’re power users of D365 rather than builders, knowing the system deeply in the context of their specific industry and processes.
“End users aren’t meant to get good at implementing ERPs because they only do it once or twice.”
For a Partner, it’s just the opposite; they’re experts at setting things up because they’re always onto the next implementation.
Lifecycle Focus: Implementation vs. Optimization
Partners: The Partner’s role is centered on getting D365 live... from design and development to deployment and initial support. Once the system is live, the Partner team rolls off, often leaving ongoing improvements to the End User.
End Users: End Users, on the other hand, take over after the system goes live. They’re all about optimizing, maintaining, and enhancing the system over the long haul. They know what their organization needs, so they fine-tune D365 to meet evolving requirements.
Analogy: Think of Partners as the architects and builders of a house and End Users as the homeowners. The architect has deep knowledge of building the house, while the homeowner knows every nook and cranny because they live in it.
Skill Sets and Learning Curves
Partners: Their roles require an evolving toolkit for handling different client needs, customizations, and implementations across industries. Partners need to stay on top of new D365 features and updates, as they’re always asked to build and configure.
End Users: They become experts in a subset of D365’s capabilities, usually those most relevant to their industry or job function. Rather than building from scratch, they focus on usage, troubleshooting, and incremental improvements.
Dog Years Analogy: One year of Partner experience can feel like seven in End User time, simply because of the volume and variety of projects they handle. However, this isn’t a hard rule... some End Users develop incredibly deep expertise in specific areas.
So, What Does This Mean for Recruiters?
When recruiting, understanding the difference between Partner and End User experience can help you source the right candidates for each type of role. A candidate with Partner experience is ideal for roles requiring deep technical knowledge or those focused on rapid implementations.
In contrast, a candidate from an End User background will bring a depth of expertise in specific processes and a strong understanding of daily D365 operations.
Both Partner and End User experience have their strengths, it’s all about matching the candidate’s background to the role’s requirements.
Dad Joke of the Day
Which state gives you the smallest beverages? Minnesota.
Stay tuned for Part 3, where we’ll return to to talk about the basics of what does it mean when hiring managers ask for integration experience.
Until then, happy sourcing!
DynamicsDad
Comments