Dynamics 365 Learning, Training and Resources Series: Partner Next Free Available training videos and material

In this series of post regarding Dynamics 365 Learning and Personal Development, I discussed some of the basics for learning Microsoft Dynamics 365 including an Introduction to Learning Dynamics 365, setting up trial Dynamics 365 Online instances and Creating your Learning Plans in Dynamics Learning Portal

In the last post in this series, I also talked about gaining access to Dynamics 365 Talent Portal through various ways.

In this post, I’d like to introduce Partner Next and its free training videos section. You can see the full list of Dynamics 365 training videos on this Partner Next section. The Videos cover various Dynamics areas including Customer Service, Operations, Sales, Financials and a lot more.

Here is a list of each Video on this page:

Module 1: Getting started with Dynamics 365
Module 2: The market opportunity with Dynamics 365
Module 3: Dynamics 365 workload 101 – Customer service and sales
Module 4: Dynamics 365 workload 101 – Operations and financials
Module 5: Dynamics 365 workload 101 – Customer insights and marketing
Module 6: Dynamics 365 workload 101 – Field service and project service automation
Module 7: Building a Dynamics 365 practice
Module 8: Key industry scenarios for Dynamics 365
Module 9: Dynamics 365 transactional options
Module 10: Next steps

Finally, Talent 365 Portal has an interesting Dynamics 365 Readiness guide, and you can also review their current Dynamics Learning Portal course catalogue for Dynamics 365

Hope this helps all new Dynamics 365 Learners! Always remember you can join the CRM Boutique Mentoring programme if you want a Mentor to support you through your career development.

Microsoft is due to make important Dynamics 365 Announcements on 3rd May 2017 Business Forward event – link to register free

Please make sure you register free and join Microsoft Business Forward event on the 3rd May 2017. Here is a link to the event so you can register:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/business-forward

Speakers include Satya Nadalla and Microsoft is promising to provide details on the “new generation” of Dynamics 365 applications, LinkedIn, Power BI, and the Microsoft Cloud.

This should be an important event not to miss.

Microsoft becomes the first Cloud Provider to offer GDPR contractual commitment publicly

In an official Microsoft blog post, Microsoft has guaranteed contractual public commitment for the European Union’s General Data Protection regulation (GDPR), a privacy regulation which goes into effect on May 25, 2018.

If your organization collects, hosts or analyses personal data of EU residents, GDPR provisions require you to use third-party data processors who guarantee their ability to implement the technical and organizational requirements of the GDPR.

Microsoft is making its contractual commitments available so that it provides key GDPR-related assurances about Microsoft services. Microsoft contractual commitments guarantee that any organisation using Microsoft cloud can:

  • Respond to requests to correct, amend or delete personal data.
  • Detect and report personal data breaches.
  • Demonstrate compliance with the GDPR.
This is great news for all Microsoft Azure cloud customers and equally significant for Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM Customers in Europe who are directly impacted by all the new GDPR regulations.
Read the full blog post at https://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2017/04/17/earning-trust-contractual-commitments-general-data-protection-regulation/#H1002zFpei8dJ9wC.99

 

Earning your trust with contractual commitments to the General Data Protection Regulation

Microsoft is bringing LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Dynamics 365 Much Closer Together – New announcement today

Today Microsoft announced a new integration that brings Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Sales and LinkedIn’s Sales Navigator much closer together and offering a new license that combines the two essential tools together: Dynamics 365 and LinkedIn. The new license for both products will start at $135 per seat per month. UK / Europe pricing is not available yet.

The new integrations between Sales Navigator and Dynamics 365 for Sales delivers what appears to be a great experience in the following ways:  

  • Displaying Sales Navigator person and company information on every Dynamics lead, contact, account and opportunity page.
  • Daily updates between systems so the accounts and contacts sales representatives are actively working on in Dynamics 365 are automatically saved to Sales Navigator. In addition, sales reps can see in Sales Navigator what people and companies are already saved in Dynamics, and vice-versa.  
  • With a single click, the ability to write select Sales Navigator activities (InMails, messages, notes and call logs) to Dynamics 365.

The new Dynamics 365 and LinkedIn Sales Navigator license sku will be on sale starting on 1st July 2017. The new offer that combines Microsofts Dynamics 365 for Sales and LinkedIns Sales Navigator Team Edition, starts at $135 per seat per month before volume discounts. 

Full details in the official LinkedIn announcement page:

https://business.linkedin.com/sales-solutions/blog/linkedin-sales-navigator/2017/04/bringing-sales-navigator-and-dynamics-closer-together

Microsoft announces an array of new Business Apps to Dynamics 365 fully integrated with LinkedIn

Today Microsoft announced a long list of new Business Apps for Dynamics 365 with the majority of these Apps integrated with LinkedIn.

Here is a summary of Microsoft’s today’s announcements. I’ll be writing a post to cover each point shortly:

  1. Sales Navigator with Dynamics 365: https://business.linkedin.com/sales-solutions/blog/linkedin-sales-navigator/2017/04/bringing-sales-navigator-and-dynamics-closer-together
  2. Dynamics 365 for Talent:
  3. Dynamics 365 for Retail
  4. Dynamics 365 Business Edition apps for Sales and Marketing, available in preview July 1
  5. New industry-specific solutions available in Microsoft AppSource
  6. Plans to deliver Dynamics 365 from local datacenters in the U.K. and Germany. These new Dynamics 365 regions adhere to our Trusted Cloud principles

Full announcement of the enhancements can be found at the original Microsoft blog post here:

https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2017/04/24/new-ways-drive-business-forward-todays-digital-landscape/

I’ll be writing a post to cover each point shortly.

Hope this helps!

Free Dynamics 365 Accelerate programme for All Microsoft Dynamics Partners

For all Dynamics partners, Microsoft is offering a free training program to on-board new consultants and developers in your practice called Dynamics 365 Accelerate. The training program gets professionals ready for certification and project implementation after a 30 to 45 days’ cycle where professionals learn the best practices of implementation thru case studies and a sandbox environment.

Majority of the programs are virtual, requiring no travel. Microsoft next wave starts in May with the following programs:

Americas and Europe Time Zone:

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Sales,

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Customer Services

Dynamics 365 Accelerate Customization and Configuration

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Online Deployment

 

Asia Time Zone:

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Sales

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Customer Services

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Customization and Configuration

Dynamics 365 Accelerate for Online Deployment

There are also other programs available for Dynamics 365 for Operations, for more options, check the Dynamics Learning Portal

The program is free for Dynamics Partners.

What’s different in GDPR from existing Data Protection Act & how it impacts Dynamics 365

This is the third article in my series covering GDPR considerations for Dynamics 365. If you haven’t read the previous two articles, then you can read the first post here and the second article here.

In this post, I’m covering some of the highlights of GDPR and how they affect Dynamics 365. The main changes and their impact on Dynamics 365 can be summarised in the following points:

  1. GDPR applies to EU citizens personal data even if the data is processed outside the EU. This was not the case before. This has massive impact on outsourcing development work to teams outside of the EU as it may mean a change to implementation processes or lack of access to data to comply.
  2. With GDPR, you are required to have an explicit and informed consent by your data subjects (e.g. customers). This consent must be given to all entities that will process or analyse personal data. The consent should also be easy to withdraw. This is particularly important for Dynamics 365 Portals and websites to allow customers to easily withdraw their consent for you to access, process or analyse their data. This means your Dynamics 365 system and its portals must have the processes and the capability to allow for such easy withdrawal of consent.
  3. GDPR will give customers the right to compensation for monetary damages in the event that unlawful data processing occurs. Fines could go as high as 1 million Euros or up to 2 % of a company’s total worldwide annual turnover for non-compliance!
  4. Mandatory risk assessments and in-house data protection offices means you have to include rigorous Dynamics 365 data protection policies to your system and to your implementation project including everyone who may process any data in your Dynamics CRM system to be GDPR compliant.
  5. GDPR brings reporting requirements for every person or entity that is part of the Cloud supply chain. So every supplier and every contractor (not just employee) with access to Dynamics 365 cloud will have direct accountability and the vendor, Microsoft in this case, as well as the clients and Dynamics partners will have to satisfy reporting requirements on who can access this data.

 

In this post, we covered 5 main changes that GDPR will impact Dynamics 365, projects and live systems. These are really important considerations and changes that require amendments and adjustments to Dynamics 365 solutions and implementation projects.

In my next article, I’ll be covering in detail 7 areas of interest that directly impact Dynamics 365 programmes and solutions once GDPR is effective in May 2018:

  • Personal Identifiable Data (PII)
  • Customer Sensitive data versus Personal Identifiable Data & how to handle in Dynamics 365
  • Children data
  • Consent
  • The Right to Data Portability
  • Governance and Accountability
  • Incident and Breach Management

 

Disclaimer: I’m not a GDPR or Data Protection expert but a Dynamics 365 one. All posts on this blog including the GDPR series are provided as is and are the product of my research and understanding. Please speak to a legal or regulatory advisor if you need an expert GDPR opinion. However, you can speak to me if you need an expert #MSDyn365 opinion! 🙂

Gaining access to Dynamics Learning Portal: Essential Dynamics 365 Learning & Study material – Part 3

In the past 2 articles, I discussed some of the basics for learning Microsoft Dynamics 365 including an Introduction to Learning Dynamics 365, setting up trial Dynamics 365 Online instances and Creating your Learning Plans in Dynamics Learning Portal

In this article, I’m trying to give some guidance to new Dynamics 365 learners on how to gain access to the essential Dynamics Learning Portal (DLP). You can access DLP through this link: https://mbspartner.microsoft.com/Home

However, you need to make sure that you are using Microsoft logins that are associated with a Dynamics Partner or Customer who have access to the Dynamics Learning Portal. Otherwise, you will not be able to access DLP.

Alternatively, if you do not have access to DLP via your employer, either as a partner or customer, then your next best option is to register as a consultant at https://www.365talentportal.com/. Talent 365 Portal can give you access to DLP as a signed up consultant with them. Please talk directly to them if you require further guidance.

Once you gain access to DLP, my advice is to build up a learning plan (as per my previous post) that can help you learn Dynamics 365 step by step through video tutorials, live sessions, etc. You should always start with the “Introduction to Microsoft Dynamics 365” video (level 200) and then move to the value proposition.

Hope this helps! Feel free to comment below if you need help accessing DLP and I’ll see what I can do. You can also register for the Free Dynamics 365 Mentoring Programme on the CRM Boutique: http://crm.boutique

Introduction to basic and essential Dynamics 365 Learning & Studying material and content – Part 2

This is the second article of my series on the introduction and first steps to study and learn Dynamics 365 if you are new to the technology and platform. If you have missed the first post, then I suggest you read it first please to ensure you keep up with the flow.

Now that you have a Dynamics 365 instance, you need to start following a step by step training or guide to learn Dynamics 365 functionality. I strongly suggest using Microsoft Dynamics Learning Portal as it has training videos, virtual sessions, live online training and training guides and content for Dynamics 365 across the various modules: Sales, Services, Field Services, Project Services, Marketing, etc. This is all delivered through what is called “Dynamics Learning Plans”.

In summary, the Dynamics Learning portal offers two types of learning plans:

  • Readiness Learning Plans are recommended, product-specific, role-based, sequentially ordered and category-driven plans that prompt users through the curriculum, while highlighting certification and specialized topics.
  • My Learning Plans have an intuitive, user-friendly UI that provides more flexibility and customization without sacrificing current features. My Learning Plans are offered in two views:
    • Tracks and Capabilities view offers users the option of viewing a taxonomy-driven format that displays the training assets in your learning plan alphabetically by track and capability. While users will not be able to edit from within this plan, they will have the ability to track progress, print, export and apply filters.
    • Customized view offers a taxonomy free, cross product, sequentially ordered format, enabling users to organize their unique plan, while providing the flexibility that is required to fit partner’s business model. Users can select this view to create new plans, add assets, edit the plan, reorder groups or training assets, create, add or rename groups, apply filters, track progress, share, print and export.

My suggestion is that you choose the Readiness Learning Plan, select levels 100 and 200,

select “Application Consultant” role

and then select the business application you are most interested in (Sales, Customer services, etc.)

Here are the results that come back from these selections:

Once you got the results, you can start adding these results to your learning plan using the “+” under my learning plan in the bottom right hand corner.

In my next blog post, I will discuss more about how to gain access to Dynamics Learning Portal if you don’t have it through your Microsoft partner or customer account. I will also cover the next learning and development areas and options available to progress your career in Dynamics 365.

Introduction & First steps to Learning Microsoft Dynamics 365 for those who want to move to the Dynamics Domain & Market

This is my first post in a series of articles I’ll be publishing to help new comers into the Dynamics 365 domain learn the technology and the platform to become Dynamics 365 consultants, developers and Architects. This series is aimed at graduates looking to study and learn Dynamics 365 so they can become consultants or analysts in this striving and growing market. It is also aimed at other IT consultants who are moving into Dynamics 365 from other CRM and ERP platforms such as SAP, Oracle, SalesForce, etc. The series might also be helpful to junior consultants at the early stages of their career in Dynamics 365.

So, if any of the above applies to you, you must have wondered what are the first steps to learn Dynamics 365 so I can sell the platform, implement it or even just talk confidently about it.

My recommendation is that you should always focus on learning the functionality and studying the capability of the solution before trying to learn how to extend the platform with custom code and custom development, even if you are a seasoned .Net developer. The reason for this is that you should always try to use Dynamics 365 built-in functionality and features to its maximum (and there is a lot to utilise here) before you consider writing any custom code or extending the platform with .net plugins, custom workflow activities, custom actions or even JavaScript web resources. The organisation that has acquired Dynamics 365 licenses to utilise the platform is expecting to be get the best out of the built-in functionalities and capabilities before paying for expensive custom development that would require even more costs in the future to maintain, support and upgrade. Finally, with the Dynamics 365 Cloud has now become the norm, as opposed to Dynamics 365 on-premise option, you have twice a year upgrade to your Dynamics 365 instance so it’s best practice, Microsoft’s recommendation and for the benefit for everyone that your Dynamics 365 solution sticks to the out of the box capabilities and utilise built-in features as much as possible.

This is a long but really important introduction as the above could literally shape your career in Dynamics and you should start on the right foot by following the best practices and Microsoft recommendation for implementing Dynamics 365 solutions.

 

Now, the first ever step you should do to start learning Dynamics 365 is to get yourself a Dynamics 365 CRM Online (Cloud) instance. You can get this from your organisation / company where you work, or alternatively if this is not available, then you should subscribe to a free 30 (or 90) days trial Dynamics 365 instance. The simplest action is to get the 30 days free trial using the following link:

Dynamics 365 Free 30 days trial

If the above link doesn’t work, you can search online for Dynamics CRM Online Free trial and get the relevant page for the free trial in your country. If all of this doesn’t work, please comment below and I can send you an invitation for a 30 days free trial (subject to availability) from my Microsoft partner account.

The other option to the Dynamics 365 30 days free trial is to get a 90 days free trial Microsoft Dynamics 365 tenant with office 365 using the Microsoft Demos website. This option is only available for Microsoft Partners though.

In my next article, I will be taking you through the step by step guide on where to start your learning of Dynamics 365 and how to apply your learning onto a Dynamics 365 solution built on your new free trial instance you have.

Hope this helps!

Note: You can always register with the free Dynamics 365 Mentoring programme on CRM Boutique and get help from a Dynamics 365 expert as your career Mentor