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The MSDynamicsWorld.com (MSDW) podcast explores news, ideas, and events in the Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM community.
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Now displaying: May, 2023
May 31, 2023

This episode is sponsored by commercebuild.

 

Early generations of e-commerce may have suited the needs and expectations of consumers, but they often fell short of the needs of B2B organizations. One of the key challenges in B2B, say our guests, Jay Newman and Megan Mann of commercebuild, is the alignment between critical business systems like ERP with the e-commerce experience that customers have come to expect based on their years of B2C online shopping.

 

But as workers with buying authority trend younger and bring distinct e-commerce sensibilities to their organizations, B2B sellers must be prepared to account for some of the most challenging requirements in areas like personalization, inventory availability, order management, mobility, and self-service.

 

Jay and Megan share recommendations based on some of the emerging scenarios their customers are already supporting and they offer advice on how Dynamics 365 Business Central customers can plan for a successful e-commerce project.

 

Show Notes:

  • 2:30 - The impact of B2B e-commerce trends in the context of ERP-centric businesses
  • 6:00 - Common reasons companies had unsuccessful e-commerce investments in the past
  • 8:30 - Trends in how younger workers are changing B2B e-commerce priorities
  • 11:00 - B2C trends that are taking hold in B2B today
  • 15:00 - e-Commerce use cases that are emerging in the market (and why they should treat Amazon with caution)
  • 18:30 - Advice for D365 customers when running an e-commerce project

 

Resources from commercebuild:

May 17, 2023

This episode is sponsored by Cavallo.

Microsoft has provided a wealth of Dynamics 365 Business Central product and channel guidance in 2023 that is sure to impact strategic planning across the ecosystem. Our guests on this episode, Matt Abbott and Bob McAdam of Cavallo, share their views on what the future holds for customers, VARs, and ISVs. Coming out of Directions North America 2023, they discuss their unique perspective on going to market with advanced capabilities that augment Business Central. In a specialized area like advanced workflow capabilities for order management, Cavallo must stay aligned with Microsoft's process automation capabilities, they say, while continuing to differentiate their advanced out of the box offering.

Bob and Matt also offer a preview of their team's conference plans for the near future.

Show Notes:

  • 2:30 - Our guests' impressions of the Dynamics SMB channel after Directions North America 2023
  • 7:00 - Is Microsoft encouraging Business Central customers toware ISV solutions and away from customization?
  • 10:45 - How VARs are transitioning to embrace ISV solutions
  • 14:30 - The importance of building successful partnerships between ISVs and VARs
  • 16:00 - Thoughts on the Business Central team's AI roadmap
  • 20:30 - Digital commerce opportunities around Business Central today
  • 24:30 - The importance of workflow automation tailored to an industry
  • 29:30 - Update on Cavallo's community activities: DynamicsCon Live, Innovia's customer event, and more

For more information or to see a demo of Cavallo, reach out to Matt Abbott: matt.abbott@cavallo.com.

May 11, 2023

Training workers on their organization's Microsoft Dynamics 365 F&O or CE solution is never a simple initiative. Trainers must factor in the way users learn and the way they do their work. Another critical factor: the choices the organization makes throughout an implementation project in terms of scheduling and funding training efforts. Our guest on this episode, Elif Item, is a Dynamics AX and Dynamics 365 consulting veteran and trainer and she works hard on optimizing training to match the way software users learn. Recently recognized as a Microsoft MVP, Elif talks with us about her latest work including a new video series for MSDW, her journey to becoming an MVP, expanding her work to include training on D365 CE applications, and what younger people entering the workforce will expect from their employers when it comes to technology training.

Show Notes:

  • 2:15 - Becoming an MVP and joining a small F&O MVP community in North America
  • 6:30 - Elif's story of becoming an MVP
  • 13:00 - What makes an F&O project successful when it comes to training?
  • 16:45 - Developing new training programs as Microsoft's product roadmap evolves, both in the F&O space and CE
  • 20:30 -  The unique training needs of sales-focused employees
  • 23:00 - How has Covid impacted customers' approaches to training?
  • 27:30 - What does the future of D365 solutions mean for users' training needs?
  • 38:00 - Will AI disrupt training development or change users' training needs?

 References:

 

May 5, 2023

This episode is sponsored by Microsoft. 

FastTrack senior program manager Rachel Profitt joins us to talk about Dynamics 365 F&O migrations, the latest updates to the FastTrack program, and her team's newest achievement, the launch of new business process guides and a guidance hub.

The first editions of the guides have just launched, and Rachel talks about what it means to take a business process-focused implementation, how to use the tools, how partners and users might contribute, and how to give her team feedback.

This conversation follows a Microsoft roundtable on successful AX to D365 migrations hosted by MSDW in which Rachel also participated. 

Show Notes:

  • 3:00 - Reviewing recent and upcoming community events and activities
  • 8:00 - The return of bigger user-focused events in Europe
  • 11:30 - The launch of the Dynamics 365 Guidance Hub
  • 15:00 - Using the process catalog: Defining project scope, capabilities, and how it fits into project management
  • 19:00 - The evolution of the Guidance Hub with feedback from customers and partners
  • 21:00 - Which parts of the process catalog are most developed today
  • 27:00 - Common scenarios in which customers can take advantage of this guidance
  • 28:00 - How the FastTrack team is progressing to incorporate more implementation process in addition to technical expertise

Resources:

May 4, 2023

This episode is sponsored by Forceworks.

 

Microsoft has revealed a broad range of plans to bring generative AI to businesses. The Copilot brand now spans productivity tools, collaboration, and business applications, and their Azure OpenAI Service  will offer any developer new ways to incorporate the technology into their own offerings.

 

Our guest, Microsoft MVP and Forceworks CEO Steve Mordue, has been thinking about the impact AI will have on some of today's conventional wisdom around developers and applications. He wrote about Microsoft's vision for building a massive population of no-code/low-code citizen developers and why that could be as unrealistic as the myth of the so-called full-stack developer. Microsoft's Copilot investments could expose the weak points in how customers use Power Platform or how they customize their business applications more broadly, Steve says. He even offers a few guesses at what could come next as Microsoft and others in the generative AI market accelerate their efforts.

 

Show Notes:

  • 1:00 - Did the velocity of ChatGPT's uptake surprise Microsoft
  • 3:00 - The challenge of making generative AI useful and not generic
  • 4:30 - Roles that AI will impact heavily, according to Microsoft executives
  • 6:30 - The value of AI tools for end users compared to developers
  • 9:00 - Has no-code-low-code and the push for more citizen developers helped Microsoft customers?
  • 13:30 - Foreceworks's progress on their services as a subscription model
  • 16:30 - What could come next in the generative AI space at Microsoft and with competitors

 

References:

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