Summary

Add native, automated ABC inventory classification to Dynamics 365 Business Central, based on the Pareto principle (80/20). Let planners classify items by value (cost or sales) or quantity, recalculate on a schedule, and use the class in planning, purchasing, and warehouse workflows. Include Word/Excel-ready reports with visual indicators and an API/event so partners can extend it.

Problem / Pain

Today, BC lacks system-level ABC classification. Customers either maintain manual fields or build custom extensions. That leads to inconsistent policies, high effort to maintain, and missed savings from optimized stock levels and cycle counting.

Proposed Solution (What to add)

1. ABC Classification Core

• System fields on Item: ABC Class (A/B/C), Last Calculated Date, Calc. Value (period).
• Methods: Value by Cost, Value by Sales, Quantity (select one).
• Thresholds (defaults): A=80% cumulative, B=95%, C=rest (configurable).
• Period selection (e.g., last N months; default 12).

1. Engine & Scheduler

• Standard calculation engine using Item Ledger/Value Entries.
• Job Queue integration (monthly by default; configurable cadence).
• Runs per company; respects filters (e.g., include/exclude blocked items).

1. Usability & Reporting

• Item Card group displaying ABC fields.
• Two out-of-box reports: ABC by Value (cost/sales) and ABC by Quantity, with Word layouts (color cues) and Excel export.
• Role Center cue(s) for “Last ABC run” and class distributions.

1. Integration Points

• Class-aware Planning Worksheet filters and policy suggestions (e.g., tighter reorder parameters for A).
• Cycle counting frequency suggestions by class.
• API: read/write ABC fields; events before/after classification for partner extensions.

1. Governance & Security

• Permission sets for running reports vs. recalculation.
• Telemetry (App Insights) for run duration, item counts, class splits.

Business Value / Outcomes

• Reduce working capital & carrying costs by focusing on A items, de-emphasizing C.
• Fewer stockouts for high-value SKUs via tighter controls.
• Faster cycle counting and better warehouse efficiency.
• Lower partner TCO by removing the need for custom builds for a common need.

Who Benefits

Operations managers, inventory planners, finance (cash tied up in stock), partners/ISVs who can extend the standard model rather than reinvent it.

Functional Details

• Edge cases: zero-usage periods classify all items to C; negative ledger amounts treated safely (no skewing).
• Configurable thresholds and analysis period.
• Multi-company ready; per-company setup.
• Localization: captions, number formats, LCY-aware value display.

Technical Notes

• Source: Item Ledger Entry + Value Entry (for sales value).
• Cumulative ranking by descending contribution; thresholds split A→B→C.
• Public Codeunit and page actions; API entity exposes ABC fields.
• Non-blocking background Job Queue support with progress telemetry.

Success Metrics

• % reduction in inventory value for C items over 3–6 months.
• Improved fill rate for A items.
• Adoption: # companies enabling scheduler; # runs/month; report usage.

Why Microsoft should build this

ABC is a foundational inventory practice across industries. Baking it into BC aligns with “intelligent inventory” goals, improves time-to-value for new customers, and creates extensibility points for partners instead of bespoke solutions.

Call to Action

Please add native ABC classification with scheduling, reports, and extension hooks in the next Business Central wave. Happy to share sample AL and UX mockups from real customer deployments.