The University of Queensland Union (UQU) is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to enriching the lives of the students at the University of Queensland. Based in St Lucia, the organisation offers a comprehensive suite of services including legal advice, visa assistance, academic support, help with financial hardship, and social events. These services are offered free of charge, ensuring every student can thrive academically and personally.

UQU have been using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central since 2020 when they upgraded from their previous enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution of Microsoft Navision.

“Moving to Business Central was an upgrade to our systems and a move to the cloud for our organisation.”
Jason Cheung, Finance Manager, University of Queensland Union.

When Jason Cheung joined UQU as Finance Manager in 2021 he was already an experienced user of Business Central. However, he was not familiar with UQU’s Business Central partner, and so relied upon feedback from the team.

“I immediately discovered that the team were very unhappy with the support they were receiving from the partner.”

This feedback prompted Jason to try to build a relationship with their partner and ultimately develop a better understanding of the system, but it was not met with equal enthusiasm or commitment. UQU requested Business Central training material but were told there wasn’t any; they enquired about customisations but did not receive any information or assistance.

“This was not support. As a not-for-profit, we need to be financially responsible, and this support was a waste of money. I knew there was something better out there.”

UQU were subsequently building their own knowledge of Business Central, becoming self-sufficient and solving problems themselves as they became progressively less willing to engage with their partner. This lack of support came to a head in 2023 with Microsoft’s automatic twice-yearly update. Due to UQU’s extensions, their update failed, and the only support they received from their partner was priced at a premium. Therefore, they began to investigate alternative partners, and discovered Professional Advantage (PA) through recommendations from previous colleagues of Jason.

“PA immediately demonstrated the level of support that I expected from a partner, and beyond. They truly give us value for money.”

When partnering with PA, our clients benefit from a suite of services and value-add resources, including:

• Informative expert-led webinars.
• User communities, like the Professional Advantage Community for Business Central Users.
• Newsletters, such as BC Vision for our Business Central clients.
• Topical blogs.
• Solution specific support, such as Client Care Program and Business Central Release Management.
• Announcements and news, including Microsoft updates.

Since transferring their Business Central support to PA, a firm relationship has developed between UQU and PA.

“We feel very comfortable and incredibly supported with PA. With them, we feel part of a team.”

You can learn more about the relationship between PA and UQU in their Client Story.

Key areas of the support that PA offer their Business Central clients are the Client Care Program and Release Management Service.

The Client Care Program is a carefully designed modern and comprehensive care program covering important elements in the successful ongoing lifecycle of your Business Central solution. The Release Management Service—just one of the aspects of the Client Care Program—is a structured approach to managing the two major releases from Microsoft each year.

“The Release Management Service and the team behind it is amazing.”

Due to issues UQU had previously experienced in upgrading, PA wanted to ensure their next upgrade was seamless, dedicating time and resources to their ultimately successful upgrade.

“The Release Management team really care. They ensure the client has all the information required for a successful update. It is a very transparent and trusted service.”

This feedback is highly valued by our Release Management team.

“The core ethos of the Release Management Service is to ensure best practice is applied to each release so that 100% of our client’s Business Central solution is maintained. Hearing the positive experience that UQU has had is a wonderful and appreciated compliment to the work that we do.”
Release Manager, Professional Advantage.

At PA, we have thoroughly enjoyed getting to work with UQU and their Business Central solution. We are very happy that they made the decision to transfer their support to us, and that we have exceeded their expectations in the support they were expecting.

Our relationship with UQU has grown to include Solver, and you can read their Solver Case Study here.

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