TIDBITS on the Microsoft Power Platform

Tying Active Directory Groups to Microsoft Dynamics CRM security roles - Now there is a thought. 

Two things on my mind tonight.

1) Twitter is proving it's value in a key area. Immediate alerts to information long before I pick it up on the blogs. For instance the new Microsoft Dynamics CRM v4.0 2009 VPC has been posted and I found out about the final post via Twitter.

2) Outside the box Customer Relationship Management thinking (while traveling). Each area has a certain feel, a certain culture, a certain tone. What are people's thoughts on capturing this information as a variable in approaching contacts or customers incorporated into different communities?

Certainly this comes into play when the International variable comes into play, but even within the US - each town, city, state and community have a particular flavor.

Download the Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0: Planning and Deployment Guidance for Service Providers

"Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0: Planning and Deployment Guidance for Service Providers contains the following documentations and tool:
1. Deployment Walkthrough Guide for Service Providers
2. Planning Guide for Service Providers
3. Development Guide for Service Providers
4. Microsoft Software License Terms
5. Deployment Configuration Tool"

Are you ready to dive into something new with Dynamics CRM?

"The Agent Communications Panel for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 is an application add-in to Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0. It works with Microsoft Dynamics CRM and Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, and enables agents to manage their communications (make calls, receive calls, conference, and chat) from their Microsoft Dynamics CRM system.

The Agent Communications Panel is an XAML browser application (XBAP). It is published to a Web server and opened from a Web browser. "

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=0d689f13-4953-40ea-995e-49469dae559e 

How many times has the CRMLADY blog been viewed?

Wikipedia has a very interesting article that starts like this

"Customer relationship management (CRM) consists of the processes a company uses to track and organize its contacts with its current and prospective customers. CRM software is used to support these processes; ........................."     Read More

but goes on to really look at many different perspectives on this powerful three letter term and the industry surrounding it. It is worth the reading time.

A Key Thought: "CRM" has been around for a lot longer than technology and the number of white papers, discussions, disbutes, successes and failures offers a very rich history. As you tackle diving into the world of Microsoft Dynamics CRM you might want to take a bit of time to also look at the entire CRM industry space.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Latest numbers: 18,000+ customers, and 900,000+ users

"For your next CRM Solution, consider breaking the project into [much] smaller phases and evolving in a phased approach, rather than doing it all at once." Steve Noe, Biz IT Pro

    in his article An Evolutionary Approach to CRM Implementations

I read the below article, provided by Craig Bailey of Customer Centricity, Inc. in his eNewsletter, and I had a major aH Ha moument. The material just rang true with some of my experiences over the years. I realized that a paradigm shift for many departments could solve some pain in the field and offer some clarity and as such with Craig's permission I am resharing the article.  Take a minute, Open your mind and consider 

To the CFO:

Listen to the Voice of the Customer by Tim Althof

The Opportunity

"It is not always a natural act for the CFO to have direct contact with customers except perhaps as part of negotiations or contract discussions. Sometimes it's just not a priority in the CFO's packed schedule, and sometimes it's simply that customer contact is viewed solely as the purview of sales and customer service. In this environment, customer satisfaction feedback reaching Finance is indirect at best. Many issues can be lost in translation or their implications not fully appreciated. "

Read More