Purchase of Upgraded Financial Management System (FMS)

PurposeAfghanaid, is seeking a consultant to lead all aspects of upgrading of its existing financial management software from Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2013 to Microsoft Dynamics Business Central (version 28), to plan and support the integration of the new software with Afghanaid’s Odoo-based HRMIS and Salesforce-based CRM, and to ensure timely and effective integration into Afghanaid’s operating environment.1. Existing Financial Management SystemAfghanaid currently operates Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2013 as its primary Financial Management System (FMS) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform. The system supports the organisation’s core financial operations, including General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, cash and bank management, budgeting, fixed asset management, inventory management, procurement processes, and financial reporting. The system also supports elements of award and project financial management, enabling the tracking of allocations, disbursements, expenditure, and financial reporting at award level to support donor accountability. Financial transactions are recorded on a daily basis within the system, which is hosted on an on-premises server located at the Kabul Head Office. Authorised users in the UK office and provincial locations access the system remotely through secure network connectivity to the central server.In addition to the core financial system, Afghanaid operates specialised information systems to support other operational functions. Odoo is used for human resources management and payroll administration, while Salesforce supports fundraising, donor engagement, and relationship management. These systems currently operate as stand-alone platforms with limited system integration with the existing financial management system. As a result, data exchange between systems is largely manual, which increases administrative workload, creates risks of data duplication or inconsistency, and limits the organisation’s ability to generate integrated operational and financial reporting.Afghanaid intends to migrate from Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2013 to Microsoft Dynamics Business Central (Version 28). Business Central represents the latest generation of Microsoft’s ERP platform and provides a modern, scalable, and secure financial management environment aligned with contemporary enterprise technology standards. The upgraded system is expected to support cloud-enabled architecture, enhanced multi-currency and multi-entity accounting, improved grant and project financial management, stronger internal control frameworks, integrated data management, and advanced reporting capabilities. The new platform must also support secure integration with existing organisational systems, including Odoo and Salesforce, in order to facilitate automated data exchange, improve operational efficiency, and enable consolidated organisational reporting. Afghanaid’s financial year runs from January to December, consistent with the calendar year. The new system must be capable of supporting the organisation’s current operational scale as well as anticipated future growth, including expanded programme activities, increased transaction volumes, and evolving donor compliance requirements.FUNCTIONAL SPECIFICATIONSThe Microsoft Dynamics Business Central v28 system should be robust enough to be able to cater for the following functional specifications:CORE FUNCTIONSFUNCTIONALITYDESCRIPTIONSystem Deployment* Provide multiple system deployment options such as cloud, hosted, etc. * Provide support with the implementation of the system and assist with solutions for data migration from current to new systemCore Structure* Ability to handle multi- branch with -inter-branch transactions and consolidation. * Must also have the ability to operate one company with multiple geographical locations i.e. two or more countries * Ability to accommodate data entry from multiple locations and using different interfaces * Provide multi-user with concurrent access and different access levelsMulti-Currency Management* Multi-currency with the ability to handle at least two functional currencies; reporting currency. Ability to extract exchange rates from websites, Automated currency conversion and revaluation entries. * Functional currency (AFN), Reporting Currency (GBP) and Donors or award currencies (USD, EURO, AFN & GBP).General Ledgers* Ability to manage a standardised chart of account across companies/entities.Sub-Ledgers* Maintain sub-ledgers for bank, debtors, inventory, fixed assets and vendors. * Produce sub-ledger reports e.g. bank reconciliations, fixed assets register, aging analysis, stock reports, reports etc.Fund and Award Management* Track funds (fund accounting) and distinguish between types of funds i.e. restricted, unrestricted, etc. * Manage different types of relationships between awards/funds and projects e.g. one to many or many to one * Track costs and income by project, country, province, district, department, implementing partner and programme pillar.Financial Analysis and Reporting* Analyse transactions by country; province, donors, projects, location, country, department. District, partners, direct and flow though Staff etc. with automated donor reporting templates. * Multi-currency reporting, enabling financial reports to be generated in the organisation’s functional currency (AFN) as well as reporting and donor currencies (GBP, USD, EUR). * Configurable financial statements and analytical reports using dimension-based reporting structures (e.g. donor, grant, project, department, programme, and location). * Automated donor financial reporting, enabling expenditure tracking and reporting by grant or award. * Automated management reporting, including budget-versus-actual analysis, project performance reporting, and financial oversight dashboards. * Generation of statutory and audit-compliant financial reports in accordance with applicable accounting standards. * Capability to export reports in standard formats such as Excel, PDF, and other secure formats. * Integration with advanced reporting tools such as Microsoft Power BI or equivalent analytics platforms for dashboard development and visual reporting.System Integration* The system should be integrated, OR * The system should have capacity to interface other systems e.g. Odoo, Salesforce and data management system.Workflow Management* Provide workflow for purchases, data entry review/approvals, payroll and journal entries.Automated processing* Automatically perform processes such as cost allocations, award closing, period close, year-end close, ledger revaluation. Indirect cost calculation, pool costs allocation, revenue recognition.AI Integration & Audit* Automated anomaly detection, audit trial, predictive cash flow and fund utilisation, budget optimisation suggestions, natural language reporting queries. Provide audit trail for all transactions.Scalability* Handle significant increases in volumes of transactions * Easily accommodate & Customisable, functional scalability, infrastructure scalability, integration scalability, multi entity scalability.Maintainability* Support automatic and manual updates.Security* Protect accounting information against unauthorised access (read and write) through the implementation of secure authentication controls, including unique user IDs, strong password policies, multi-factor authentication, and role-based access restrictions based on business need.Hosting and Infrastructure Security, Data Residency and Compliance, Access Control and Authentication and Backup and Disaster* RecoveryAward Management* Real time reporting, track contractual requirements to manage awards, grant management layer, grant management register, start/end date alerts, budget ceiling enforcement, cost share tracking, indirect cost rate application, funding tranche tracking, no cost extension tracking, grant close out checklist.Budget Management* Assist with a simplified driver based budgeting and budget management, field local budget controls, BVA reporting, budget ceiling block overspendings.Assets/ Inventory* Fixed assets and inventory registers, track asset lifecycle, depreciation, stock levels, barcoding, and inventory movements.Procurement Management* Full procurement lifecycle (requisitions, call for quotation, quote comparative analysis, purchase orders, good delivery/ receipt note, invoice), preferred suppliers listing, and vendor management.Banking Management* Integration with online banking for payment processing, cash and bank reconciliation, rolling cashflow forecasts, real-time cash visibility reports.Time keeping* Integrated timekeeping or interfaced third party solution. Labour distribution reportsPayroll allocation* Integrated payroll function or ability to interface with Human Resource Management (HRM) Odoo system.Reports* Generate automated management financial reports, donor reports, annual statutory reports, must enable secure reporting integration between the financial management database and through authenticated and encrypted database connections. Access to reporting data shall be controlled via role-based access control (RBAC) aligned with application-level permissions to ensure users can only retrieve data authorised for their role.Other?* User-friendly interface, flexible for future expansion, compliant with international accounting standards and donor requirements.Controls Layer* Access level, threshold based approvals, segregation of duties, audit logs, budget blocking controls, vendor master approval, payroll change approval, bank reconciliation approval. Compliance controls must be embedded not manual. Two layer authentication login. Centralized oversight, ERP integration. Donor reporting automation.Dimension Tracking Accounts/ codes* Donor code, award code, programme code, project code, country code, department code, location code, currency code, programme pillar codes, employee codes, and partners codeLicensing and Charity Eligibility* The proposed solution must be aligned with Microsoft’s non-profit and charity licensing framework. The vendor shall assess and confirm Afghanaid’s eligibility for applicable charity or non-profit licensing programmes offered by Microsoft, including discounted or grantbased licenses for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. * The vendor shall advise on the most cost-effective and compliant licensing model available under such programmes and ensure that all licensing is structured to maximise value for a registered charity organisation. * The vendor shall support Afghanaid throughout the application and acquisition process for charity licences, including any required documentation, validation, and liaison with Microsoft or authorised partnersSCOPE OF WORKThe selected firm shall be responsible for the supply, configuration, implementation, and support of the upgraded Financial Management System based on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (Version 28).The assignment shall include, but not be limited to, the following services:Business Requirements Assessment: Engage with Afghanaid’s key finance, HR, and IT personnel to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the organisation’s operational structure, financial management processes, reporting obligations, and system integration requirements.System Requirements and Solution Design: Develop a detailed System Requirements1. Specification (SRS) and implementation plan aligned with Afghanaid’s operational needs, internal control requirements, and the functional specifications outlined in this document. 2. System Configuration and Customisation: Install, configure, and customise Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central to meet Afghanaid’s financial management, grant management, procurement, reporting, and control requirements, ensuring alignment with Microsoft technical standards and best practices. 3. Data Migration: Plan and execute the secure migration of historical and active financial data from the existing Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2013 system to the new platform. The migration process shall include data validation, cleansing, reconciliation, and verification to ensure accuracy and completeness. The migration shall also include closing balances plus at least three years of transactional history, all open items, and any relevant attachments such as scanned invoices or supporting documentation. Vendors must also describe their migration methodology, including data extraction, transformation, loading, and validation processes, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and reconciliation of migrated data. 4. System Integration: Configure or develop the necessary interfaces to enable integration with existing systems, including Odoo (Human Resources and Payroll) and Salesforce (Fundraising and Donor Management), where applicable. 5. System Testing: Conduct comprehensive system testing, including unit testing, transaction testing, and system integration testing, to ensure that the system performs in accordance with the approved design specifications and produces accurate outputs. 6. User Acceptance Testing (UAT): Facilitate structured user acceptance testing with designated Afghanaid staff to confirm that the system meets operational requirements and that end users are able to effectively perform required tasks within the system environment. 7. System Deployment and Implementation: Implement the fully tested system across Afghanaid’s Head Office in Kabul, provincial offices, and the United Kingdom office, ensuring stable connectivity and access for authorised users across all locations. 8. Training and Capacity Building: Deliver training programmes for end users, system administrators, and IT personnel, including user manuals, technical documentation, and operational guidance necessary for the effective use and management of the system. 9. Post-Implementation Support: Provide on-site or remote technical support for a minimum period of twelve (12) months following the system go-live date to assist with troubleshooting, system stabilisation, and resolution of operational issues. 10. Security Implementation and Compliance: The vendor shall design and implement all necessary security configurations, including data encryption, user access controls, audit trails, backup procedures, and disaster recovery protocols, ensuring compliance with organisational, donor, and regulatory requirements. 11. Knowledge Transfer: Ensure a highly robust, structured, and comprehensive knowledge transfer programme to Afghanaid’s designated finance and IT personnel. This shall include intensive, handson training and detailed documentation to enable full and independent system utilisation, effective internal management, routine system administration, and competent provision of first-line user and technical support. 12. Documentation: Provide complete system documentation, including configuration details, integration specifications, data migration reports, and operational procedures.…