What if I told you that the biggest feature in Business Central version 29 isn't AI...
It's the possibility that Microsoft could eventually eliminate MRP as we know it?
For fifty years ERP systems have worked the same way.
You configure:
- Safety Stock
- Reorder Points
- Lead Times
- Planning Parameters
The system calculates.
Then humans do the thinking.
But Microsoft is already introducing autonomous agents into Business Central, including Sales Order Agents, Payables Agents, Agent Designer capabilities, and broader agentic ERP investments.
So, here's the big question heading into Directions EMEA 2026.
What happens when a Purchasing Agent doesn't just create purchase orders...
But decides what to buy?
What happens when a Manufacturing Agent doesn't just suggest production orders...
But actively plans the factory?
- No planning worksheets.
- No MRP runs.
- No static parameters.
- Just business outcomes.
Now, to be clear, Microsoft has not announced this. This is informed speculation based on the direction of agentic ERP and AI investments already underway.
But if this is where ERP is heading, it could be the biggest change in manufacturing and supply chain planning since MRP was invented.
I'm Andrew Burn from ERP365.
Join us after Directions EMEA 2026 as we explore whether BC29 is the beginning of the end for traditional ERP planning.
Because the future might not be better MRP.
The future might be no MRP at all.
Book a ERP strategic Planning session
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