Microsoft Teams users to gain new level of access to Dynamics 365

At Microsoft’s annual Inspire partner conference this summer, the company announced that Microsoft Teams users will gain access to view and edit Dynamics 365 data in Teams at no extra cost and without the need for Dynamics 365 licenses. The over 145 million Teams users will now be able to view and collaborate on customer records after being invited by a Dynamics 365 user.

This update eliminates the licensing barrier where previously only Dynamics 365 users could access and edit customer records. Any employee with a Microsoft Teams license can now see Dynamics 365 records in Teams.

Key features announced at Inspire include: viewing and editing Dynamics 365 records within Teams, adding a Teams meeting to appointment and capture notes, and setting automatic notifications when a record is updated. Below is our summary of the updates to the dynamic duo and how it will revolutionize the workflow for millions of users.

Dynamics 365 users can invite anyone in the organization to view and collaborate on customer records right within the flow of a Teams chat or channel. This ensures the right individuals can take the best next action—faster and more efficiently without needing to switch context across multiple apps and data sources. For sellers, this integration means the ability to share details on a sales opportunity, customer history, health of the customer relationship, key contacts, and more. For customer service representatives, they can now share a customer case record, source troubleshooting steps, and monitor follow-up tasks.

When creating an appointment, Dynamics 365 users can now add a Teams meeting, which enables access to key customer information during the Teams call. Additionally, users can capture notes directly with the Teams call, which is automatically saved in the timeline of the Dynamics 365 record; a big time saver of not having to switch between two applications. Of course only users with appropriate permissions can access the data, helping to ensure the right employees are viewing, interacting with, and sharing customer records.

With more employees collaborating on records through Teams, it’s critical for stakeholders to know when colleagues make key changes as they happen. Automatic notifications keep stakeholders alerted to updates. Users can select specific chats and channels through which notifications are sent, as well as the frequency of notifications.

The ability for users to be able to access the power of Dynamics 365 within Teams is a massive opportunity for Microsoft users to improve efficiency and collaboration throughout the organization. If you would like to take advantage of the dynamics duo of Microsoft Teams + Dynamics 365, contact Rand Group today to get started. Our experts will design a solution tailored to your business needs.