What Causes Manufacturing Bottlenecks? Manufacturers have always operated in uncertainty. The sources might change—tariffs, raw-material prices, supplier disruptions, labor constraints, shifting customer demand—but the operational challenge remains consistent: How quickly can the business adjust when conditions change? Right now, that question is especially pressing. In the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) 2026 Second Quarter Manufacturers’… Continue reading 5 Manufacturing Bottlenecks Holding Your Operations Back—and How to Remove Them
AI for the Over 40 – Week 33: Why AI Won’t Replace ERP (And What It Actually Threatens)
One of our salespeople asked me to join an upcoming prospect meeting. The prospect had a question they wanted answered before moving forward with an ERP evaluation: Why should we invest in an ERP system if AI is going to replace it? My first reaction was to laugh. Not at the prospect, at the question. After 32 weeks of working intensively… Continue reading AI for the Over 40 – Week 33: Why AI Won’t Replace ERP (And What It Actually Threatens)
Choosing the Right ERP Implementation Partner: 8 Questions Executives Should Ask
Choosing an ERP implementation partner has always been a high-stakes decision. The fundamentals haven’t changed when it comes to selecting an ERP implementation partner: You want a partner that listens, understands your business and industry, knows your technology environment, and has a proven track record. However, the role of the ERP implementation partner has expanded… Continue reading Choosing the Right ERP Implementation Partner: 8 Questions Executives Should Ask
The Hidden Costs of Stockouts and How Business Central Can Help
A stockout seems simple: a customer wants something, and you don’t have it. The obvious cost is the lost sale. But for manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, the real cost rarely stops there. A single stockout can ripple into expedited freight charges, disrupted production schedules, inefficient purchasing, extra customer-service work, and excess inventory sitting in the… Continue reading The Hidden Costs of Stockouts and How Business Central Can Help
Dynamics Business Central / NAV Developer Digest – Vol. 559
ArcherPoint by Cherry Bekaert’s Developer Digest focuses on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and Dynamics NAV development. This week’s volume includes PTE management moving to the BC Admin Center, how Analysis Mode helps eliminate excessive Excel exports, practical MB-800 guidance, and a tutorial on AI-assisted development using GitHub Copilot in VS Code. The Dynamics 365 Business Central community, consisting of… Continue reading Dynamics Business Central / NAV Developer Digest – Vol. 559
Dynamics NAV 2018’s Critical CVE: Patch It, But Let’s Talk About What It Actually Means
Microsoft published an advisory for Dynamics NAV 2018 regarding CVE-2026-55944 on July 14, 2026. It has a CVSS score of 9.8 out of 10. It does not require a login. Nobody needs to click anything. An attacker can send a specially crafted authentication request to a NAV 2018 service tier and potentially get the server… Continue reading Dynamics NAV 2018’s Critical CVE: Patch It, But Let’s Talk About What It Actually Means
What Makes the Best ERP Software for Complex Supply Chains?
Supply chain complexity does not always correlate with company size. A midsized manufacturer sourcing materials globally, operating multiple warehouses, managing hundreds of SKUs, and serving customers with demanding delivery requirements may face more supply chain complexity than a much larger organization with a relatively straightforward business model. That is why choosing ERP software based primarily… Continue reading What Makes the Best ERP Software for Complex Supply Chains?
AI for the Over 40 – Week 32: The Below-the-Line Work AI Finally Makes Possible
A few weeks ago, an employee asked me a reasonable question: how could they know how many times they had submitted late time over the past year? We had been publishing weekly late and missing time reports for years. The data existed, dozens of spreadsheets sitting in my inbox as email attachments. I did not… Continue reading AI for the Over 40 – Week 32: The Below-the-Line Work AI Finally Makes Possible
The Hidden Costs Eating Away at Food and Beverage Manufacturing Margins
Food and beverage manufacturers have never had more pressure on their margins. Rising ingredient costs, labor shortages, transportation expenses, energy prices, changing consumer demand, and increased regulatory requirements have made profitability more difficult to achieve. At the same time, retailers and consumers continue to expect competitive pricing, consistent quality, and dependable delivery. In this environment,… Continue reading The Hidden Costs Eating Away at Food and Beverage Manufacturing Margins
How Nonprofits Can Plan When Funding Is Anything but Predictable
Nonprofit leaders are expected to plan for the future. The challenge is that they often have to do it without knowing exactly what the future will bring. A grant that supports a major program might end next year. Government funding priorities can change. Donor contributions can fluctuate. A corporate sponsor might shift its giving strategy.… Continue reading How Nonprofits Can Plan When Funding Is Anything but Predictable