What's new in Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0

Updated: May 10, 2007

Microsoft Dynamics SL has long helped small and midsize organizations operate more effectively. The latest version—Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0—empowers your employees, managers, customers, and vendors to be even more productive. It also helps increase effectiveness by providing the tools your people need to view and process data based on the permissions that you establish.

Enhancements to this latest version include new RoleTailored menus that make it easy for your people to focus on functions they need to do their jobs more efficiently. New reporting tools also help people better understand what is happening in the business. Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0 is built with Microsoft Visual Studio 2005, providing new tools for developers and interfaces to products like Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services.

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Enable employees to focus on business tasksEnable employees to focus on business tasks
Provide managers and executives with decision-driving insightProvide managers and executives with decision-driving insight
Connect your people, your customers, and your companyConnect your people, your customers, and your company
Adapt your solution to meet specialized business needsAdapt your solution to meet specialized business needs
Work on a Microsoft-supported solution while maintaining low total cost of ownershipWork on a Microsoft-supported solution while maintaining low total cost of ownership
New features in Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0New features in Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0
Next stepsNext steps

Enable employees to focus on business tasks

A new user interface and familiar new design themes make Microsoft Dynamics SL easy to learn and cost effective. RoleTailored menus direct your employees to the functions they need to do their jobs more efficiently.

Image of new menu interface in Microsoft Dynamics SL

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Illustration: Navigate the new Microsoft Office-like menu interface with ease as Microsoft Dynamics SL provides menu trees and user-specific home pages.

Personalize tasks and information to make jobs easier for employees. Create step-by-step menus to streamline and standardize your business processes. Pre-configured screens determine the functions and information employees can access through the Web portal. For example, a project manager can access the Project Center page, or sales personnel can easily access customer, order, and receivables information.

Microsoft Dynamics SL custom menu

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Illustration: Create custom menus that list step-by-step instructions for specific job processes.

Manage customer communications effectively and improve order management efficiency with Quick Send. The feature provides Electronic Documents Delivery—the capability to send purchase orders, and invoices—to customers and vendors by e-mail or fax. Send batches or individual documents in the format your customers or vendors prefer.

Electronic Document Delivery Setup screen

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Illustration: Set up Quick Send Electronic Document Delivery for instant communication with customers about their orders and invoice status.

Provide managers and executives with decision-driving insight

Enhance project and distribution performance. New capabilities help maximize productivity, improve operational control, and provide quick access to timely, accurate information.

Find the information you need, when you need it, in a context that is meaningful by using enhanced reporting functionality. Easy-to-use tools help your people tailor standard reports and information views. Drill down to detailed information from any module. Access role-based information and up-to-date reports from your Web browser. And schedule and distribute reports automatically. These capabilities help to make sure that everyone in your organization is involved, current, and connected.

Create and share interactive scorecards by using BIO for Microsoft Dynamics SL to analyze tracked business activities. BIO for Microsoft Dynamics SL provides personalized, RoleTailored scorecards for everyone in your organization based on a common set of data. Work from one set of company data by bringing operations and finance data such as projects, sales, inventory, customers, accruals, revenues, budgets, and more into one information tool. Then, share the scorecards using Microsoft Internet Explorer, the Microsoft Office system, and other applications you already use.

Interactive scorecard in Microsoft Dynamics SL

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Illustration: Compile data from different sources into interactive scorecards and share them with managers throughout your organization.

Connect your people, your customers, and your company

Unify project, financial, sales, and operational information and processes across your business. Employees can collaborate with each other and with customers and partners quickly and easily. Flexible architecture and customization tools help your organization integrate applications and extend functionality to meet industry-specific needs.

Extend access to information by using the Microsoft Business Portal to set up and edit new and existing projects from remote locations and client sites—all without logging in to Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0. Expanded document sharing includes access to blogs, wikis, and really simple syndication (RSS) feeds.

Business Portal Project Center

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Illustration: Gain access to Microsoft Dynamics SL Project Maintenance through the Business Portal without logging in to Microsoft Dynamics SL.

Integrate with Microsoft products by combining the project accounting strengths of Microsoft Dynamics SL with the enterprise project management version of Microsoft Office Project. The result is integrated resources, skills, and project management. Microsoft Dynamic SL is compatible with Microsoft Windows Vista and Microsoft Office 2007.

Image of Microsoft Project

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Illustration: Data viewed in Microsoft Office Project helps monitor profitability.

Manage resources efficiently by using Microsoft Dynamics SL integrated functionality. Gain Web-based access to information and processes. And automate everyday tasks by using product-wide workflow.

Integrate with industry standard technologies and industry specific offerings by matching your unique business needs with hundreds of industry specific applications. Solutions developed by independent software vendors (ISVs) can provide you with a complete business management system.

Connect across your business by building on the open architecture of Microsoft Dynamics SL and Microsoft SQL Server technologies. The e-business capabilities of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) help to integrate information and centralize access. New connectivity helps employees working from any location to communicate effectively with partners and customers around the world.

Adapt your solution to meet specialized business needs

Microsoft Dynamics SL is designed to help you build for change and growth. Integrated capabilities, automated accounting, and instantly accessible information help to speed closing time and improve cash flow.

Tailor your solution to work the way you do with built-in customization tools. Integrate smoothly with cost-effective, custom solutions. Easily adapt to business growth. And deliver applications and updates from the Web browser to help minimize work disruption and reduce IT administration costs.

Control operations with ease and confidence by using integrated processes and data. Whether you are a single company or a multi-company organization, you can link every aspect of your business. Connect project accounting, distribution, financial management, field service, and payroll.

Improve your business performance and increase cash flow and profits with faster closing times, improved capture of billable transactions, increased collections, efficient payroll management, and updated Accounts Payable processes. The new Pay-When-Paid feature releases payment vouchers to subcontractors when the associated customer invoice is paid. This ensures your subcontractors get paid only when your customers are satisfied.

Pay When Paid Link Entry screen

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Illustration: Link customer invoices to subcontractor vouchers, paying subcontractors only when the customer has paid for the work.

Work on a Microsoft-supported solution while maintaining low total cost of ownership

You can control costs and optimize revenue. Drive demanding projects to profitable outcomes. Manage distribution processes efficiently. Improve service operations. And deliver the focused insight that fosters shrewd business decisions.

Equip your organization to achieve excellence by using project and distribution enhancements to plan and execute projects across multiple sites. Remote employees can enter and view information. Distribution-driven industries can automate distribution flow. And powerful shipment planning helps to address unique customer priorities.

Rely on Microsoft support to help you update and adapt your solution easily and affordably. Microsoft Certified Partners and ISVs are available to help you implement, customize, and extend your solution. At all times, you can rely on Microsoft for the dedicated services and support that promote your long-term success.

New features in Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0

Functional AreaFeature

Foundation

Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0 is written in the latest version of Visual Basic 2005, making it .NET compliant.

Integrated Windows Authentication associates each user's computer login to their Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0 login.

The intuitive user interface is similar to the 2007 Microsoft Office system.

Configure RoleTailored menus and home pages.

C and display custom home pages for people using the application.

The business solution is compatible with Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office system.

Financial Management

The Pay-When-Paid feature releases subcontract vouchers to be paid only when the associated customer invoice is paid.

The Quick Send feature enables Electronic Document Delivery of purchase orders and invoices.

Project Management and Accounting

Foreign currencies and a Value Added Tax line item are now accepted in the Expense Report entry programs.

Enhanced multicurrency, Scheduled Billings, and Billing by Percent Complete can produce bills in the currency and format of each project.

Service Series

You can specify invoice line types and preventive maintenance tasks in Generate PM Service Calls screen.

Specify a different customer ID on a service contract attached to a master contract in Service Contract Entry.

Graphical Dispatch Board (SD.900.00) now also filters the views in Dispatch-View Maintenance.

Microsoft Dynamics SL Business Portal

Gain remote access to Microsoft Dynamics SL Project Maintenance program using Business Portal without needing to log into Microsoft Dynamics SL.

New access to Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 features includes blogs, wikis, and RSS feeds.

Microsoft Dynamics SL Business Portal is compatible with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Server 3.0.

Reporting and Analytics

Analyze and track up to 900 business activities within the Microsoft Dynamics SL database.

Access reports written in SQL Server Reporting services for SQL Server 2005 directly from Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0.

Next steps

Find out what's new in Microsoft Dynamics SL 7.0.

Find industry-specific solutions from Microsoft Dynamics SL.

Use Microsoft Solution Finder to search for add-in solutions developed for Microsoft Dynamics SL by Microsoft Certified Partners to meet unique business needs.

Get an overview of the buying process, financing options, and pricing information.

Contact us with questions and for help finding a Microsoft partner.



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