This episode is sponsored by AutoPylot Technologies. It’s a universal complaint: the sales reps don’t use the CRM. It’s too much effort and takes too much time. As a result, the data in a system like Dynamics 365 Sales is incomplete. CRM may fail to meet expectations, yet the CRM remains the data touchpoint to a range of downstream business processes and decisions. In this episode, we talk with Steve Shaw of AutoPylot Technologies Corp. about how and why they have entered the Microsoft Dynamics space with a new mobile app for that integrates D365 with added automation and other smart features to encourage sales reps to capture key data. Steve explains why company decided to enter this competitive market and the early results of upcoming research highlighting the impact automation can have on CRM adoption. We also discuss the complementary nature of AutoPylot and Viva Sales, and how conversational AI always starts with conversations. Show Notes: 1:15 – AutoPylot's history and the decision to enter the Microsoft space 2:45 – Why sales reps embrace automation, including new research findings 4:45 – Must-have features of sales automation 6:30 – The importance of tracking data to manage the sales process 8:00 – What it takes to deploy an automation solution for sellers on top of CRM 9:15 – How do companies tend to get started with AutoPylot? 10:30 – Engaging with the Microsoft channel 11:30 – Viva Sales and how AutoPylot will complement it and contributer to conversation intelligence 14:45 – Experiences as part of Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub 16:00 – Why sales automation remains relevant To learn how AutoPylot can solve for your biggest CRM frustration, visit www.autopylot.com. And they will be at booth 640 at Community Summit North America 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iREUzWQfBy4

This episode is sponsored by Enavate. Cloud ERP and CRM migrations remain a significant but challenging opportunity for Microsoft partners. From Dynamics GP and NAV to AX and CRM, Dynamics customers are planning for the future of their enterprise solutions, but the path forward is not always clear, both in terms of understanding the technical challenges and planning for the optimal future state. Jennifer Ranz and Chad Sogge of Enavate join us on this episode to provide updates on their team's various upgrade and migration tools and programs. A significant portion of Enavate's effort is focused on working with other partners, they explain, because the demand for cloud migration projects remains high even as partner organizations remain stretched. We discuss the launch of the Dynamics 365 Business Central assessment tool developed by Enavate and its role in the channel. Chad also provides an update on enterprise migrations to F&O and CE. And we discuss what the upgrade and migration landscape looks like overall today, both for partners and for customers. Many of the challenges, risks, and opportunities of the past look very different today, they say, and we discuss how the technology and methodologies have improved. Show Notes: 2:00 – What's new in upgrade services and tools at Enavate 3:30 – The launch of the Dynamics GP to D365 upgrade & migration assessment tool 6:45 – How partners should think about using the GP to Dynamics 365 assessment tool 8:45 – What partners should do if they are not ready to support a Dynamics 365 migration 11:30 – How GP customers can get access to the assessment tool (and share the findings with their partner) 15:45 – Observations based on aggregated, non-identifiable usage metadata from the assessment tool 20:15 – What's new in standard migration assessments to Dynamics 365 F&O and CE and how partners work together on white labeled services 23:45 – Making the channel economic case on increasing the volume of enterprise migrations to the cloud 26:45 – What NAV customers need in an assessment tool for moving to Business Central More from Enavate: GP to BC Assessment Tool: enavate.com/partner-assessment Partner Services: enavate.com/partner-services https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxFOhJ1Oh8I

The first Microsoft Power Platform Conference (MCCP) 2022 has now concluded, and we catch up with Microsoft MVP Asif Rehmani to discuss what we learned at the event. We review some of the things we learned about Power Platform's position within the larger Microsoft Cloud, how SharePoint will co-exist with it, the various user roles related to Power Platform adoption, and our perception of the Microsoft product team's outlook. We also look ahead to how Power Platform events supported by Microsoft could change in the next year. Asif has also written a LinkedIn post sharing his event experiences. Related MSDW articles: Microsoft announces improved Power Platform governance, app coauthoring Microsoft announces Viva Sales general availability with new sales enablement integration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkPlzHSC5oI