In this video and blog, we’re going to explore how an accountant would use Dynamics 365 Business Central. We’ll learn how to quickly access financial data, add a new account to the general ledger, enter a journal expense, and analyze an account.
Quick Access to Financials
When you log into the homepage of Dynamics 365 Business Central, you’ll find a wide variety of financial information at the tips of your fingers. You should be able to see a headline including the largest posted sales invoices, as well as color-coded key metrics which will alert you to any red flags in the data. Take note of the cash accounts balance and incoming documents that are available for you to review.
Scrolling down, you’ll be able to see key vendors and financial reports, like cash flow, as well as key accounts. Scrolling down further on the page, you’ll be able to see the Cash Flow Forecast and the Business Assistance graph which shows you Aged Accounts Receivable.
From the home page, you can access the Chart of Accounts, which displays the key accounts you manage. Note that all blue areas are clickable for further detail. Other key tasks that an accountant may perform are also easily accessible from the home page, including trial balance reports. Financial statements are also accessible via the Reports button. Income statements and Cash Flow are also available via the Reports button, underneath Excel sheets.
Adding a New Account to the General Ledger
Let’s use the example of travel expenses. How would you add a Travel Expense Account to the General Ledger?
To start with, navigate back to the home page and click on Chart of Accounts. Before adding a Travel Expense account, use the search bar to ensure that the account doesn’t already exist. Once confirmed, select the +New button to add in the account. Fill out all fields under the General category and close the window in order to add Travel Expense to the account.
So you’ve added Travel Expenses to your Chart of Accounts. How do you track an expense in that account?
How to Enter a New Journal Entry
In order to manually enter the data, open up the default batch by clicking on Journals in the headline. With the default batch selected, use the drop down to enter the account number or name of the account, Travel Expenses. Then enter the debt amount and use Dimensions to sort the expense by department or other sub-categories. Hit Post and then Okay to complete the entry.
Entering a journal entry through excel import is also easy to do. To start with, open up Journals and Default Batch. But instead of entering in the account number, click the Edit in Excel button. An excel spreadsheet will open up. You can utilize the different options in the Excel headline to organize your data. Copy and paste the journal entries you’d like to include into the spreadsheet. After all entries are in the sheet, click the Publish button on the lower right hand corner. Return to Dynamics 365 Business Central and you’ll be able to see your journal entries have been populated.
How to Analyze an Account
Return to the home page and scroll down to the bottom. Select the account you’d like to analyze. Here you can see all originating entries, descriptions, posting dates, and amounts for each entry. To see more detailed information, you can click on Balance and then G/L Account Balance to view the information by Period. All blue links are clickable to see more detail.
What Benefits Does an Accountant Get from Business Central?
Our accountant benefited in three different ways from using Dynamics 365 Business Central. First, the streamlined data processes allowed the accountant to reduce the number of clicks it took to access information. They had improved control of the data within the program, and errors were limited. Dynamics 365 Business Central helps Accountant by ensuring correct data entry. Watch the video for more details!
