FRP Advisory replaced Salesforce CRM as it was too complex and costly, slowing changes and limiting flexibility across diverse business units.
The organization migrated to Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Insights – Journeys, integrated Power BI, and introduced Copilot for AI-driven insights, enabling automation and analytics.
FRP reduced licensing costs by 34%, boosted CRM adoption from 42% to 62%, and accelerated development cycles for faster innovation.
FRP Advisory is a leading national business advisory firm based in the United Kingdom, specializing in restructuring, forensics, corporate finance, debt, and financial advisory. The firm works with businesses of all sizes, from multinational organizations to small enterprises, developing effective strategies tailored to each client’s needs.
To boost efficiency and drive cost savings, FRP partnered with Microsoft implementation partner Telefónica Tech to migrate to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales and Dynamics 365 Customer Insights – Journeys, and implement Power BI. This solution has helped FRP standardize its sales and marketing management, reduce licensing costs, and gain deeper insights into its business.
“Dynamics 365 has removed bottlenecks around email and other marketing initiatives by automating and centralizing our marketing and event planning. With this solution, we have enhanced email marketing and real-time marketing and customer journey tracking.”
Sarah Winder, CRM & Client Data Senior Manager, FRP Advisory
FRP cut licensing costs by 34% after moving to Dynamics 365
As an umbrella organization for numerous smaller companies, FRP faced the challenge of standardizing processes and technology across diverse business units. Their commitment to clarity and confidence in times of change has always been central to their identity, but as the business grew, so did operational complexity.
FRP relied on Salesforce as its Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform for several years. However, the system became increasingly over-engineered and complex for the organization’s size and needs, hindering self-sufficiency and causing delays, even for minor changes. “After two years of usage, we recognized the need for a new solution with more flexibility, that was easier to use, and that better served the needs of our business,” says Sarah Winder, Client Data & CRM Senior Manager, FRP Advisory.
The technical debt accumulated over years of disparate systems and complex configurations was holding the business back. With a diverse user base and industry-specific complexities around sales and operations, FRP needed a technology partner that could grasp their ways of working and offer a unified solution. The goal was to simplify processes, improve engagement, and maximize long-term value.
After a thorough review of leading technology solutions, FRP chose Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft implementation partner Telefónica Tech. As a Microsoft-led organization, FRP knew the benefits of integrating with other Microsoft systems used daily, such as Outlook, Office, and Azure, which would result in a smoother user experience and easier adoption. Dynamics 365 also offers a flexible licensing model, accommodating both heavy and light-touch users to maximize value for money.
A funded in-person envisioning session with Telefónica Tech and Microsoft helped FRP identify challenges and objectives at the beginning of the project, laying the foundation for successful implementation and migration.
Following the session, Telefónica Tech helped FRP implement a new CRM solution including Dynamics 365 Sales and Dynamics 365 Customer Insights – Journeys, which replaced Salesforce Account Management. FRP uses Sales as its primary sales pipeline management tool, sharing customer contacts across the business, and driving business development and relationship management.
Power BI dashboards provided embedded analytics, equipping leadership with meaningful insights into company performance. In addition, Dynamics 365 Copilot introduced AI-driven insights, with plans to configure Copilot Studio in the future. Dynamics 365 also integrates easily with Microsoft Fabric, which FRP is investing in as an end-to-end intelligence platform.
With Dynamics 365 at the heart of its business, FRP has standardized processes, making collaboration across its businesses easier and more efficient.
FRP and Telefónica Tech completed the migration from Salesforce to Dynamics 365 in just three months, on time and on budget. Telefónica Tech’s collaborative approach and deep understanding of FRP’s requirements were key to the project’s success.
FRP and Telefónica Tech used a rigorous change management process, including a champions network, regular feature sessions, strong update communications, and a knowledge hub with on-demand training. This approach was instrumental in boosting adoption.
“Through becoming a collaborative team with FRP, Telefónica Tech delivered a painless switch from Salesforce to Dynamics 365,” says Yvonne Finlayson, Business Transition and Projects Director at FRP Advisory. “We now have a modern, easy-to-use CRM system that will help FRP continue to grow into the future. The Telefónica Tech team were instrumental in ensuring success—their understanding of all stakeholder perspectives and solid blend of soft and technical skills helped us feel like one team.”
“Through becoming a collaborative team with FRP, Telefónica Tech delivered a painless switch from Salesforce to Dynamics 365. We now have a modern, easy-to-use CRM system that will help FRP continue to grow into the future.”
Yvonne Finlayson, Business Transition and Projects Director, FRP Advisory
Since going live with Dynamics 365, FRP has reduced its licensing costs, saving approximately 34 percent over three years, including transition costs. “We saw clear financial savings from moving to Dynamics 365 immediately following implementation,” Winder says. “We can then reinvest those savings back into the business.”
User adoption has been strong, with the intuitiveness and functionality of Dynamics 365 helping new users engage with the platform quickly, building trust and delivering clear ROI. FRP increased its active CRM license holders from 42 percent to 62 percent, and demand for licenses surged by 49 percent, rising from 335 to 500 in six months.
FRP is also gaining efficiency by using Dynamics 365 and Azure DevOps, leading to faster development cycles. “Previously, it could take up to a week to make one simple change because it was so complicated and there were so many variables,” Winder says. “This solution has simplified everything, which streamlines and speeds up our development time for new features.”
“We saw clear financial savings from moving to Dynamics 365 immediately following implementation. We can then reinvest those savings back into the business.”
Sarah Winder, Client Data & CRM Senior Manager, FRP Advisory
In the advisory industry, anyone across FRP can bring in business, not just the sales team. Dynamics 365 enables employees across FRP to log opportunities, track referrals, and manage relationships with ease. The marketing team benefits from Dynamics 365 Customer Insights – Journeys, which streamlines webinars, networking events and campaigns. “Dynamics 365 has removed bottlenecks around email and other marketing initiatives by automating and centralizing our marketing and event planning,” Winder says. “With this solution, we have enhanced email marketing and real-time marketing and customer journey tracking.”
Recently, FRP managed an 800-person event celebrating its 15th anniversary entirely with Dynamics 365. “We were able to easily manage the entire event in Dynamics 365, including event registration, room management and meal choices, with the standardized templates we built very quickly,” says Winder.
In addition, the company can now more easily refer business to partners, and those partners can track opportunities in Dynamics 365. This helps partners build a view of performance insights, supporting them as they develop and strengthen industry relationships.
FRP has improved reporting capabilities with Dynamics 365 and Power BI dashboards while Data 8, a third-party solution, enhances data quality through validation and enrichment. “Power BI and Dynamics 365 give us actionable analytics, with dashboards providing sales pipeline data, referrals, and other activities,” says Winder. FRP will soon integrate billing and onboarding systems for deeper analytics.
Looking ahead, the organization plans to deploy and configure Microsoft Copilot Studio, expand Power BI reporting, and explore Power Pages for enhanced customer engagement. FRP is also trialing Copilot Pro and considering AI-driven automation such as chatbots and agents for self-help and data analysis.
The company’s initial success with Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Power BI is a testament to the power of collaboration, innovation, and a commitment to continuous improvement. FRP looks forward to leveraging new technologies to drive further business outcomes and maintain its leadership in the advisory sector.
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