Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2016 - What's coming

Gayan Perera, 09 September 2015

The Dynamics CRM team at Microsoft are doing an amazing job rolling out releases with great features. Here are some of our favourite new features.

Modern Design

The modern design reduces the number of clicks and eases navigation by pulling together relevant information from multiple locations.  Another benefit been shipped with this release is the ability to execute actions based on search results such as responding to a tracked email from within CRM.  These are really great usability improvements for all CRM users.

CRM App inside Outlook

CRM 2016 will make it easier for you to track emails, create contacts, and other types of records directly within the browser from a PC or MAC. You will also be able to view related CRM data from within your inbox – no need to navigate into CRM for more info.  This feature is acknowledgement of Microsoft's’ commitment to delivering you what you need to where you need it.

One-Click Document Generation

End-users will now be able to generate documents such as contracts, quotes, orders, invoices and other template (Word or Excel) documents with a single click. Templates can be generated and pre-defined using a wizard. The flexibility this introduces to business to provided branded and easily modifiable customer facing documents is huge.  You do not need to call on your local developer to build custom reports anymore!

Interactive Service Hub

Customer service representatives can view and action items based on multiple streams such as my emails, tasks, cases and queues. The interactive dashboard provides a visual snapshot of key data related to the work items which will allow the CSR’s to quickly action important items. System customizers and administrators can create single stream dashboards, which promotes focus and attention to specific tasks such as incoming customer enquiries, removing unwanted distractions and improving productivity.

Knowledge Management

CRM 2016 will allow single source of knowledge for the entire organisation. The process of creating, updating, reviewing and approving knowledge has been made easier and slicker by introducing an enhanced content editor.  It comes  with a comments area which enables better team collaboration with feedback loops, ensuring your knowledge base provides up-to-date, relevant information to users and customers alike.

Offline Support for Mobile Devices

The Dynamics CRM 2016 Mobile Client will provide a seamless offline experience allowing users to create, update and delete records regardless of connectivity. Just to note at this stage this feature is only available for CRM 2016 online customers.

Enhanced Search

Building on the Global Search introduced in CMR 2015, Microsoft have delivered a much more intuitive search engine with CRM 2016. You will now be able to get a similar experience to a browser based search engine, with results sorted by relevance.