Tag Archives: Functionality
Dynamics 365 v. 9 New Functionality – Virtual Entities
Virtual entities were introduced in Dynamics 365 (Online) version 9.0. Virtual entities sound quite futuristic but put simply they enable integration of data stored in external systems without the need of custom code and data replication. This blog describes the benefits of using virtual entities, how to use them and what to think about when using them.
The first release of virtual entities only allows Read-Only access to the data and there are a few other limitations which I have been detailed here in this post.
- There are no physical tables created in the database to store the data. The data is retrieved dynamically as and when it’s needed allowing for a reduction in storage space, therefore, reducing monthly CRM storage costs. Please note as it currently stands in the Microsoft Dynamics 365 licensing guide for Online (October 2018) as standard you will get 10GB. For every 20 full plan users, you will receive an extra 5GB.
- No code is required to display the external data in CRM, which reduces project costs and time.
Limitations
The initial release of virtual entities does, unfortunately, come with some limitations. These limitations should be considered to evaluate the use of virtual entities.
These limitations are:
- The data displayed within the virtual entity is read-only. This means that if a user updates the data the data cannot be pushed back into the external system.
- Only Organization owned virtual entities are supported in the current release. When creating a new virtual entity you must ensure that the ownership dropdown is set to Organization rather than User or Team as per the image here taken from Microsoft Dynamics 365.
- Please note that Field Level Security is not supported in the current release.
- If the virtual entity has been set up with ‘User or Team’ ownership then any associated security role settings for the entity are not supported.
- Auditing of the Virtual Entity is not supported in the current release and instead will be required to be implemented within the external database.
- Downloading the data to use offline isn’t supported at this time. This means that data isn’t visible when working offline.
- Virtual entities cannot be configured as an active entity.
- Business Process Flows are not supported.
- Queues cannot be set up for records within the virtual entity.
- Once the virtual entity has been created it cannot then be changed back to a standard CRM entity.
Data Modelling
A further consideration to be made when using virtual entities is data modelling. The data which is held in the external data store must follow these rules:
Each entity within the external data source needs to have a GUID Primary Key associated with it. This GUID is used as the Primary Key in the virtual entity in Dynamics 365.
You must be able to display the external data properties as Dynamics 365 attributes, this also applies for all entity relationships. These attributes include
- Numbers
- Single Line of Text and option sets
- Lookups
- Date & Time
As the data in the virtual entity is read-only, calculated and rollup fields are not available. If any calculations or rollups are needed these will need to be executed in the external data source.
How to create a Data Source
To create a new data source firstly go to Settings > Administration > Virtual Entity Data Sources. From here click New in the toolbar, you will be prompted to select a Data Provider. The two options here are:
- OData v4 Data Provider or
- Solutions Component Data Provider
Select the appropriate Data Provider then click OK. A new window will now appear for you to enter the Data Source information. For the purpose of this blog, I have selected OData v4 Data Provider. Populate the Name and enter the URL then add any additional Parameters as necessary. Click Save & Close, you will now be able to use this Data Source when creating new Virtual Entities.
How to create a Virtual Entity
Virtual Entities can be created in the same way other entities are normally created however there are a number of additional steps which need to be fulfilled which I have listed here:
- Navigate to Settings > Customizations > Customize the System
- Select Entities in the pane on the left and click New
- Populate the entity details as standard making sure that the following items are populated:
- Virtual Entity tick box – this needs to be ticked in order for the entity to become virtual. This cannot be ticked once the entity has been created so be sure to tick before clicking Save.
- Data Source drop-down – this will display a list of all Data Sources that have been created in the system. Select the appropriate Data Source, if left blank no data will be pulled through into the entity.
- External Name – Populate this with the name of the matching table in the external system.
- External Collection Name – Populate this with the plural name of the matching table in the external system.
Here is an example of a virtual entity for Suppliers which uses an OData v4 feed to pull in the information.
the screenshot was taken from a Microsoft Dynamics 365 site.
- Now you can start creating the fields needed to display the information in D365. When creating the fields ensure the External Name is populated with the matching field name from the external system.
- Save and publish all changes
- A refresh of CRM may be needed for the entity to display in the Sitemap. Once CRM has reloaded you can navigate to your newly created virtual entity to confirm the data is being pulled into CRM.
Want to learn about other new features in Dynamics 365? Check out our new blog about
This blog was written by Luke Judge a technical CRM specialist at in West Yorkshire, UK.
How to set SPO Functionality for the Account Entity – Step By Step Instructions
How to set SPO Functionality for the Account Entity – Step By Step Instructions
SharePoint Connection Setup
In CRM – Settings> SPO Configuration>SharePoint Connection Tab
In this example the SharePoint Document Library is Accounts.
The connection settings above should correspond to the SharePoint URL format of the Document Library – Accounts, as in this image
Add SPO functionality to CRM Entity
After creating successful connection to the Document Library in SharePoint, the next step is adding SPO functionality to the Account entity.
Click tab: Add SPO functionality to CRM Entity, and then click the button with same label.
Select Entity: Account
Add metadata from CRM entity view: select existing view or create custom view that includes all the fields in the Account entity and related entities to Account, to be used as metadata. In this example we created a view called “SPO View”, and it includes the metadata relevant to documents uploaded from Account entity to SharePoint, including one field (Contact’s Email) from the Contact entity which is related to the Account entity.
Select the “Required” option next to the metadata field that is mandatory in SharePoint. At initial settings stage, and testing, do not use the “Required” option (unselect all).
Select step 4 to store documents in folders within the “Accounts” document library.
The folder name is a selected field from the account entity like “Account Name” or “Account number”. We recommend selecting a field that is unique and always contains data.
Click Submit to complete this process.
Configure metadata columns in SharePoint
Account Name – Single line of text
Account Number – Single line of text
Description – Multiple lines of text
Contact – Single line of text
Email – Single line of text
Credit Limit – Currency
Payment terms – Choice (menu to choose from). Enter the picklist options from CRM as menu options in SP column
Modify the view to show relevant columns only. Set up filters, sorting and other available features to make it a “friendly” view for SharePoint users.
Test uploading document to SharePoint
Open an Account record in CRM. From the toolbar (in more …. functions) click the button Dynamics SPO and select to upload document from hard disk. Select document and upload. The document is now uploaded to a folder in the Accounts document library. The folder name is the content of the field selected as folder name (in this example it is Account Name), and it is saved with metadata from the CRM record.
NOTE: each time document is uploaded to SharePoint a new SPO Error is created. Use Advance Find to find the last created record, in case you wish debugging failed document upload.
Add sub-grid in Account pointing to documents uploaded to SharePoint
Open the Account’s form editor.
Click: Insert>Sub-grid
Enter: sub-grid unique name
Enter: sub-grid label
From Data Source select:
Records: Only Related Records
Entity: account (account)
Default View: Active SP Organizers
Click: OK
.
.
.
Explore Dynamics 365’s ERP Functionality with PowerObjects [Video]
![ERP Animation Still 800x600 300x225 Explore Dynamics 365’s ERP Functionality with PowerObjects [Video]](https://www.powerobjects.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/ERP-Animation-Still-800x600-300x225.jpg "Explore Dynamics 365’s ERP Functionality with PowerObjects [Video]")
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is the perfect ERP solution for manufacturing, retail and CPG, property and housing management, and so many other industries. From its ability to readily share data with CRM workloads, now hosted on the same platform, to its flexibility in deployment options, Dynamics 365 is the ideal solution for enterprise resource planning software. Watch this video to learn how Dynamics 365 takes businesses to new heights.
Slack Enterprise Grid adds functionality, eyes big business adoption
Business communication tool Slack has set its sights on some big fish with its latest product: Slack Enterprise Grid.
Slack currently has roughly 5 million daily users among small and medium-sized businesses. The new Slack offering is aimed at adoption by businesses with more than 500 employees.
The move into larger businesses comes with new functionality, including search, business intelligence and analytics tools. These improvements will allow for easier communication between teams, better search to look for information across a company’s entire system and will suggest content and contacts to a user. Employees will also be able to communicate and interact with those in other departments in their enterprise through Slack without being bombarded with every message.
“When dealing with enterprises that have a lot of different departments, you can’t have a Slack team with 30,000 employees,” said David Markovich, founder of ChatOverload, a New York-based Slack consultancy. “Some enterprises already use Slack but would have one group for accounting, another for marketing and so on. Those individual teams, if they wanted to talk to each other, they didn’t have that option.”
Slack Enterprise Grid opens up the ability for enterprise departments to communicate with each other. By using these “federations” of teams, different departments can interact where and when they need to without being bogged down by every incoming message.
“[Slack’s] announcement is significant in that organizations can now try the free version of Slack, then migrate to Grid if they find that adoption has grown across multiple departments,” said Alan Lepofsky, vice president and principal analyst at Cupertino, Calif.-based Constellation Research Inc. “This satisfies the need of IT — scalability, central licensing, administration — while still providing the teams the flexibility to customize usage for their own needs.”
[Slack is] going to be offering more services for enterprise. David Markovichfounder, ChatOverload
These workspaces for teams can be organized by administrators who can control permissions and configure integrations on a per-workspace basis, according to the Slack Enterprise Grid blog post.
Hoping to move into regulated industries, Slack Enterprise Grid is HIPAA and FINRA compliant as well as SOC 2 and SOC 3 certified. Financial corporation Capital One was one of the beta users for Slack Enterprise Grid, moving roughly 12,000 employees onto the product, according to public reports.
“They’re going to be offering more services for enterprise,” Markovich said. “They’ll work with IT on security and offer more in-depth analytics. Those things definitely held back large enterprises from moving over to Slack.”
Slack is also partnering with several other technology enterprises, including SAP, where Slack will build a portfolio of bots that will integrate with SAP. The bots will assist with travel expenses by integrating with Concur and with performance management by integrating with SuccessFactors. In September, Slack had partnered with Salesforce to integrate the functionality into the Salesforce platform.
“It’s important to see enterprise software vendors like SAP creating integrations for Concur and SuccessFactors,” Lepofsky said. “As this validates that Slack is not just for techies and developers.”
While Slack has been working on its enterprise move for some time — including writing all new code, according to public reports — the timing can be interpreted as a shot across the bow at Microsoft, which announced Teams in November, a similar company communication tool that is expected to focus on large enterprises.
“For Microsoft, it’s a potential upsell in the enterprise space where companies are using Office 365 and Outlook,” Markovich said, “unlike Slack, where you have to go in on the ground floor for an enterprise.”
The gamesmanship between Microsoft and Slack continued this week, as the day prior to Slack’s unveiling of Slack Enterprise Grid, a blog post from Microsoft said that in the last month “30,000 organizations across 145 markets have actively used Microsoft Teams,” even though the product is still in beta. Microsoft expects Teams to be available in the first quarter of this year.
This back-and-forth comes after Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield wrote a blog post and took out a full-page ad in The New York Times the day after Teams was announced in November.
“We’re glad you’re going to be helping us define this new product category,” the blog and ad both read. “We admire many of your achievements and know you’ll be a worthy competitor. We’re sure you’re going to come up with a couple of new ideas on your own too. And we’ll be right there, ready.”
A price for Slack Enterprise Grid was not available; businesses must apply directly to Slack to obtain its new offering. Slack for Teams has three pricing scales including a free option, an $ 8 per month per user standard option and a $ 15 per month per user plus option. Both standard and plus have discounted rates for annual billing as opposed to monthly billing.
Add-On Functionality to Microsoft Dynamics CRM
| Take Dynamics CRM to the next level with add-on functionality that delivers additional benefit to the organization.
Here are some projects completed in 2016: |
||
| Mobile Access | Web page forms, designed for mobile devices, allowing users to easily create records in CRM. | |
| Tools for salespeople, to retrieve crucial and updated sales information from CRM, when meeting clients. Such information includes:
- Products stock levels and current prices - Order status - Account balance, reproduce copy of invoices, retrieving payment history |
||
| Job details including time-in, time-out and work details | ||
| Integration | Export financial records, in any format, from CRM, and import to accounting software. | |
| Credit card payment gateway | ||
| Synchronize between SQL server of any ERP system and Dynamics CRM records. | ||
Visit our website: www.DynamicsObjects.com
Thinking Outside the Box with CRM’s Out-of-the-Box Functionality
The beauty of undergoing a Microsoft Dynamics 365 implementation is that it can be as simple or complex as a user wants to make it. Often times people have a preconceived notion that Microsoft Dynamics 365 needs to be set up a particular way; that there are a few set steps to complete and once finished, the user begins to navigate through the system in a standard, pre-packaged way. However this is actually quite the opposite. Sure, there is certain terminology, like contacts, accounts, and opportunities, that Microsoft has put in place to help users get comfortable with the categorizing of their records. But really, Dynamics 365 is a shell or template for a user to get creative and envision a use of the system that fits perfectly for their organization. The great part about being able to make Dynamics 365 your own is that it can all be done Out-of-the-Box. There is no need for high level coding or development. As long as you have a basic understanding of the system, the possibilities are endless on what you can customize with your team and organization.
Personalize your Records:
Get creative with your CRM system, the functionality and power of CRM exists no matter how you choose to customize the system so you may as well make the most of it. For example, maybe your organization calls accounts ‘Records’ and contacts ‘People.’ With very little effort you have the ability to rename anything you want within the system. In the diagram I show an example of an updated account and contact entity.
By renaming and creating records with labels that an organization understands and is familiar with, it also creates a feeling of ownership and increased buy-in of the system leading to enhanced productivity. Any out-of-the-box record will function the same way regardless of what it is called, so be as creative as possible without risk of affecting performance. Also, personalize records at any level of the system starting here with entities, all the way down to fields, views, and dropdown options.
Design the Fields and Functions to Suit Your Needs
Logan Consulting recently completed a Dynamics 365 where the client wanted to use Connections as a way of linking accounts and contacts and keeping relationships organized. They asked if they could use connections to move amongst records as opposed to contacts on their main Account form. Much of our consulting advice with this client was to encourage them to envision a form and system that best suited their needs. Because of this they completely redesigned their account form to fit their internal specifications. They added a connections sub-grid and even customized the connection roles within this grid to tailor Dynamics to their organization’s culture and practice. They then moved the connections sub-grid to the top of the account form above the Social Pane, and moved the contacts down to the bottom of the form to avoid confusion on what to look at first. This client also uses company information quite often so they took the native ‘Company Profile’ section and moved it to the top right of the form. CRM does have a list of best practices, but in cases like this, there is no rule that says primary contact has to be at the top right or that nothing can be above the social pane on the form.
As mentioned, the great thing about Dynamics is that even a novice user has the ability to get creative and customize the system in many ways. With system administrator privileges, or the help of a sys-admin, moving around fields is as easy as dragging and dropping to another place on the form. Creating new fields can be done by simply clicking the new field button. And, with a little practice a user can create business rules to show and hide fields in different situations. However you decide to use Dynamics 365, remember the only constraint is how imaginative you can be.
If you think that a CRM system is your next best step for your business, contact Logan Consulting your Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner of Chicago.
This blog was originally posted on the Logan Consulting website.
New Search Functionality On Microsoft CRM – You Are Going to Love It
Microsoft Dynamics CRM has made steady improvement over the years in their search functionality, making it easier for end users to find the data they need. But one area that still was lacking was the ability to search across entities in CRM. As an end user myself, I often look for a business I need to speak with, and am not sure if they are listed as an account, lead or opportunity. A scenario like that requires three separate searches
Microsoft CRM 2016 has a new feature called global search. This allows you to look for a name across all entities in Microsoft CRM. No longer do you need to worry how a company is listed, one search looks in leads, accounts and opportunities.
This is powerful for a couple of reasons. The first is listed above. Having one field search CRM, you can find the company name regardless of how they are classified in Microsoft CRM. Another critical use for this is that it gives you the ability to see items in Microsoft CRM you have not have searched for. For instance, if you are calling a client of yours to see how things are with them, and you look up there info in a global search, you would also see any open cases they have. That client may have just opened a recent support ticket, that would be important to know before you call. By simply looking them up as an account, you may miss the open case. If you do a global search, you would see that case.
To see this new functionality, please click here to view a short video of the global search in action
By Intellitec Solutions, a Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner serving Delaware
Gaining Sales with Email Functionality from Microsoft Dynamics Marketing
If you’re relying on an independent email marketing company, like Constant Contact or Mail Chimp to stay in contact with your customers, you probably have experienced some drawbacks. Marketers looking for a better way to nurture leads and bring more prospects into the sales pipeline are making the move to Microsoft Dynamics Marketing, which is included with Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online Enterprise.
With Dynamics Marketing you are able to create and track email messages as part of a complete marketing effort. From the beginning stages of planning a marketing campaign to execution and determining ROI, Microsoft Marketing does it all.
All of your sent emails are tracked and you’re able to see each person who opened your email, clicked on the message, or other actions they took. From there your prospect is sent on a messaging journey designed previously by you in the visual campaign designer. Based on clicks and interactions, a workflow is set into motion with the intent of keeping your prospect engaged and getting closer to making a purchase.
Tracking prospect interactions is no longer tedious or time consuming thanks to lead scoring functionality in Microsoft Dynamics Marketing. You are able to assigns points to different possible interactions by your target customer. Interactions may include downloading a white paper, clicking on an email link, signing up for a newsletter and more. You can then get an instant view of your prospects ranked in order of most engaged to least.
With Microsoft Dynamics Marketing you won’t have to worry about your messages getting caught in spam folders or being delayed. Each time you send a marketing email blast your messages are first loaded from your Dynamics Marketing server to Microsoft’s bulk email server, which then distributes your message.
The best thing about sending your marketing emails through Dynamics Marketing is that the system is far more robust than just an email platform. Your entire marketing campaign is stored and managed in the same place, eliminating the need for you to manage different accounts on multiple sites and then try and combine information to gain insight.
Gain more leads and add sales with Microsoft Dynamics Marketing. Watch a video here and then contact DFC Consultants to learn more.
by DFC Consultants
CRM 2016 Improves Navigation Functionality
MS Dynamics CRM vs Salesforce Sign up for a free CRM course!
Learn more about CRM’s features
The main navigation in the CRM 2016 ribbon not only altered its look, it also made functional changes, vastly improving the end user experience. The Main Menu Button now replaces the CRM logo. Clicking this button enables the user to switch between each of the functional areas without waiting for the page to reload.
To add, a functional area can be selected where sub-areas are neatly organized in rows by category to easily view and select from. The fluid transition and absence of endless scrolling make for ease of navigation.
A sleek button aptly referred to as MRU (Most Recently Used) presents the user with up to 30 of their MRU Records and Views.
A user can also pin any of the listed records or views, ensuring they will not be recycled. Conversely, these same records can be unpinned, should ease of access no longer be necessary.
If you are coming from using CRM 2015, you’ll notice the remainder of the main navigational buttons are what have evolved over the last couple of updates.
In case you need a refresher- Quick Create offers an array of “short” forms to quickly create new records; Global Find allows for cross-entity searching; and Advanced Find provides for the filtering of data by specified criteria.
To learn more about how Microsoft Dynamics CRM can improve efficiencies for your organization, visit us at www.websan.com.
Stacey Mancuso, CRM Certified Application Specialist, WebSan Solutions Inc. a 2014 Ontario Business Achievement Award Winner for Sevice Excellence
Microsoft Dynamics CRM vs Salesforce: Missing Functionality and Hidden Costs
When comparing the costs of Microsoft Dynamics CRM versus Salesforce.com, it’s critical to evaluate the functionality to make sure that you are comparing apples to apples.
To make sure you get what you need, ask if there is an extra cost for additional functionality, including:
- Visual workflow
- Partner and community portals
- Mobile support
- Outlook integration
- Data migration and de-duplication.
When comparing these two products, make sure that you compare all the benefits, not just the costs.
Find out more in the white paper “Microsoft Dynamics CRM vs Salesforce.com: 8 Reasons Microsoft is the Better Investment”. (no registration required)
If you are interested in comparing the value and benefits of Microsoft Dynamics CRM versus Salesforce for your organization contact AbleBridge at [email protected] or 877-600-2253.
By AbleBridge, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Partner, www.ablebridge.com
Twitter: @AbleBridge
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service – if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.