Dynamics 365 implementation
Most CRM projects do not fail on technology. They fail on scope, data quality and adoption. We deliver Dynamics 365 CE with the decisions taken in the right order, and stay as the partner who operates what we built.
Start a mapping conversationWhat goes wrong, and what we do about it
The scope grows until the budget breaks
Everything looks equally important in a workshop. Without explicit priorities, configuration turns into development and the first release keeps moving.
We separate what is configured, what is built and what is deliberately deferred, in writing, before anyone writes code.
Data migration is discovered too late
Duplicates, missing history and fields nobody owns surface in the test phase, when the go-live date is already promised.
Data quality is assessed in the diagnosis, not in testing. Test migration on a real subset early, with validation the business signs off.
The system goes live, but nobody uses it
Research puts CRM failure rates high, and the cause is rarely the platform. It is that people were never given a reason to change how they work.
Users are involved from design, training is role-based, and we measure adoption after go-live instead of assuming it.
The platform grows wild after launch
Apps, flows and environments multiply without ownership. Two years on, nobody dares touch anything.
Governance, environment strategy and ALM are decided during the project, not retrofitted when it hurts.
Who this fits
Organisations implementing or replacing Dynamics 365 CE where the standard setup is not enough: sales with configuration and quoting, service processes with real complexity, or several systems that must play together. Typically from around 20 users and upwards. Honestly: if your needs are covered by out-of-the-box Sales with light configuration, you should not be paying for a project like this, and we will say so.
How we deliver
1. Diagnosis
Processes before system: where work stops up, what it costs, which decisions the solution must improve, and the real state of the data. Ends in a recommendation and an estimate you can budget with.
2. Solution design
Data model, security model, integrations and environment strategy. Explicit priorities, and a first release small enough to actually reach production.
3. Delivery
Weekly sprints with user involvement, migration in controlled steps with validation, thorough testing and transparent reporting on scope and budget.
4. Adoption and operations
Role-based training, adoption measurement, and ongoing operations. The people who built the solution are the same people who support it.
Technology and building blocks
Dynamics 365 CE
Sales, Customer Service and marketing automation on Dataverse, configured to your processes rather than the other way around.
Power Platform
Power Apps, Power Automate and Power BI where they genuinely add value, with governance decided up front so the platform does not sprawl.
Cartagena Link
Ready-made integration to ERP and finance systems (Visma.net, Tripletex, Xledger and more), so the same numbers exist in one place only.
Cartagena CPQ
When quoting is the complex part: product rules, price governance and approval flows inside the D365 sales process.
Experience behind the method
Cartagena has been a Microsoft partner since 2006 and delivers Dynamics 365 CE across industry, logistics, professional services and membership organisations, among others Wallenius Wilhelmsen, UECC, Polaris Media, Glommen Mjøsen Skog, Motor-Gruppen, Parat and Econa. The method on this page is written from those deliveries, including the ones where the first plan turned out to be too optimistic.
What drives the cost
Licences rarely decide the total. The number is driven by data quality in the systems you are leaving, the number of integrations, how much of the process you standardise versus rebuild, how many reports must be recreated, and how seriously you take training. A pattern we see in the Nordic mid-market: service cost typically lands at several times the licence cost in year one. Owning a platform also means owning its stewardship, so budget for ongoing management from day one. We put the drivers on the table during the mapping, before you commit.
Read more before you decide
What does a Dynamics 365 implementation actually cost?
Every cost that ends up on the budget, from discovery to operations.
Change management for CRM: why technology alone is not enough
Adoption is where CRM projects are won or lost.
Power Platform governance without losing control
How to set governance from the start instead of retrofitting it.
Start with a mapping, not a contract
A few weeks of mapping replaces assumptions with a scope and a number you can take to the board.
Start a mapping conversation