D365 Contractor

The D365 Talent Shortage: Why Good Talent Is Harder to Find Than Ever

April 22, 2025
d365-ryan
By Ryan Carolan

✅ D365 Contractor Recruiter | Adoption Evangelist | Ironman Retiree

🚨 Spoiler alert: If you’re hiring for top-tier D365 contractors right now, you’re not the only one.🚨

The demand for Dynamics 365 expertise is off the charts- especially in manufacturing, supply chain, and finance. But the supply? Let’s just say you’ve got a better chance of finding a clean UAT environment than an available Senior Functional Consultant with real-life industry chops.

Let’s talk about what’s going on.

📈 The D365 Boom (and Why It’s Not Slowing Down) 📈

Since Microsoft went all-in on cloud ERP, D365 Finance & Operations and Business Central have become the gold standard for mid-market and enterprise businesses alike.

Companies are:

  • Replacing aging on-prem ERP systems
  • Integrating with AI, Power Platform, and Copilot
  • Expanding global operations and compliance needs

But here’s the kicker: everybody’s doing it at once.

That means more projects, more upgrades, more customizations- and a red-hot market for people who know what the hell they’re doing inside D365.

Note: Sadly, there are also many out there that simply look like they know what the hell they’re doing…

❌ The Talent Pool Isn’t Growing Fast Enough

Here’s the math:

  • D365 experts with real implementation experience take YEARS to grow
  • Many seasoned consultants are booked out months in advance
  • Some are going permanent (chasing job security or benefits)
  • Others are niching down (just Finance, just SCM, just public sector)

And let’s be honest: not all contractors are created equal. The number of people claiming to be “D365 Consultants” on LinkedIn? Massive. The number who can actually deliver on a 12-month global rollout? Tiny.

🧨 The #1 Hiring Mistake You’re Probably Making🧨

Most companies wait until the project’s already kicked off to start looking for talent.

By then it’s too late. The best D365 contractors are already snapped up: usually by the smart folks who planned ahead and booked early.

Or worse… you hire based on rate instead of capability.

Remember: a $90/hr consultant who breaks things is way more expensive than a $165/hr consultant who delivers.

🧲 How to Secure Top D365 Talent (Before Your Competitors Do) 🧲

If you want the A-players, here’s what works:

Start your search 3–6 months before project kickoff

Prioritize experience over rate- especially in manufacturing-heavy skillsets

Work with someone (hi 👋) who actually knows the D365 contractor market

Lock in availability fast- if you hesitate, someone else will pull the trigger

Final Thoughts: D365 Talent Isn’t Cheap—But Scarcity Is Pricier

You don’t want to be the business stuck with “whatever’s left” when it’s go-live time.

If you’re serious about delivery, adoption, and long-term ROI- you need the right people in the right seats.

And if that sounds overwhelming, good news: this is what we do.

We live and breathe D365. We know who’s good. We know who’s available. And we’ll save you months of guessing.

🔗 Ready to connect with elite D365 contractors?

Let’s talk before someone else grabs them.

👉 Get in touch with us