What's new in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0
Published: 30 January 2008
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 business software is a complete customer relationship management (CRM) solution that provides the capabilities that organisations need to gain and retain competitive advantage in today's business world.
Microsoft relies on customers to guide product evolution. To this end, the Microsoft Dynamics CRM team spent significant time listening to customers and observing how they use CRM. The results of this research have helped us bring our customers Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0. Here's a quick look at the latest Microsoft Dynamics CRM features.
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Improved end-user benefits
User interface improvements make Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 even easier to use and make it simpler to complete tasks with fewer clicks. And when end users have tools that are easy to use, it not only means they can work more efficiently, it helps make them happier in their work.
New benefits to end users include AutoComplete, so they don't have to type the same information over and over; faster searching; support for bulk execution and closure of campaigns; and improved mail merge. Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 also enables users to customise their Navigation Pane to give them fast access to information they need and data relevant to their specific work role.
Other refinements include tools to create reports from their CRM data without IT support; advanced functionality that enables users to create, find, and implement workflows; more consistent offline user experience with offline reporting and customisation; and improved synchronisation.
Enhanced integration with Microsoft Office
Integration with the Microsoft Office system has been improved in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0, which gives users new ways to take advantage of their existing Office applications.
For example, Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 users will have a richer data experience in Microsoft Office Excel. When a user exports and works with Microsoft Dynamics CRM data in Excel, they have the option of re-importing any changes they made back into Microsoft Dynamics CRM. This makes it easier for users to enrich their data using the tools offered by Microsoft Office Excel.
Users of Microsoft Office OneNote can also now take notes created in OneNote and assign them to Microsoft Dynamics CRM users with a single click.
Greater support for global business
Many companies require the ability to work in multiple languages and currencies whether globally or within their own geographical area. The Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 client provides improved support for multiple languages and currencies, making multinational deployments for Microsoft Dynamics CRM much easier.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 supports multi-language deployments, so users can work and share data seamlessly in the language of their choice. Users can also create and store reports in their native language. And reports can also easily be shared between users working in multiple languages.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 also allows transactions to be recorded in localised currencies. The CRM system maintains a list of international exchange rates and automatically converts currency amounts to a base currency for reporting purposes.
Flexible hosting scenarios with multi-tenant installations
Many CRM scenarios require an organisation to support multiple groups of CRM software users while keeping their data distinct. For example, a hosting company may have multiple customers using Microsoft Dynamics CRM, or a company with an affiliate model might require each affiliate to keep their data separate from the others.
In the past, a separate server installation of CRM was required for each customer. With Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0, which is built on a multi-tenant architecture, organisations can run multiple distinct instances of Microsoft Dynamics CRM on a single server.
Because Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 supports multiple instances of the product installed on the same physical hardware, multiple customers or business organisations can have their own distinct Microsoft Dynamics CRM implementation. This not only makes it easier to manage those customers, it makes better use of server hardware and improves overall operations costs.
Improved availability, performance, and scalability
Businesses want their CRM data accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 includes significant enhancements to availability, performance, and scalability to ensure that your CRM data is available when it's needed, without interruption.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 supports clustering for solution components, including Microsoft Exchange Server, CRM Web Services, and load balancing. The e-mail router has received several performance and scalability enhancements, including parallel processing of inboxes and better support for enterprise deployment scenarios. Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 also has better performance in Wide Area Network (WAN) environments, transferring only the data that needs to be transferred over slow connections. With support for SQL Server mirroring, an additional copy of the Microsoft Dynamics CRM database is maintained, so that in case of database failure, the Microsoft Dynamics CRM system can switch databases automatically and with minimal disruption.
