One of the advantages of Dynamics 365 Business Central over its competitors is its affiliation with the Microsoft product family. The system seamlessly integrates with Microsoft 365 solutions such as Outlook, Teams, and OneDrive. Most companies use Microsoft's office applications, and their integration with an ERP system translates to increased convenience and productivity. Let's explore how you can leverage the integration of Business Central with Outlook, MS Teams and OneDrive!
What is Microsoft 365?
We've all come across the Microsoft Office suite at some point. This set of office tools is still widely used in schools and businesses around the world. Microsoft 365 is its successor, primarily focused on cloud solutions, better integration with other solutions, and collaborative work. It includes Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, OneDrive, PowerPoint, OneNote, SharePoint, and Teams.
Utilizing Outlook and Dynamics 365 Business Central
This integration allows you to perform many tasks in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central directly from Outlook, eliminating the need to switch between programs. For example, when you receive an email from a potential customer or vendor, the system recognizes the email address saved in the contact card and links the message sender to the contact in the Business Central system. This provides access to basic contact information, such as sales history. If the sender is not in the system, you can add a new contact to Business Central directly from Outlook. Outlook, in conjunction with Dynamics 365 Business Central, also enables you to verify receivables. When receiving a new message from a customer, you can check their payment history and identify any outstanding balances. You can also create documents, such as sales quotes, sales and purchase orders, invoices, or payment reminders for overdue payments directly from Outlook. It's worth noting that for sales quotes and orders, the system can recognize items the customer wants to purchase from the email content and associate them with inventory items. Thus, Business Central suggests the items from the inventory card that should be included in the document. Of course, you can freely edit the suggestions provided by Business Central: accept, reject, or add items manually.
Connecting Dynamics 365 Business Central with Microsoft Teams
Teams is recognized as the world's most popular business communicator. What are its capabilities when it comes to collaborating with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central? Firstly, within Teams, you can share and view data from the ERP system, such as invoice lists, customer data, information about receivables and payables, or inventory levels. Moreover, you don't need a Business Central license to view this data – an MS Teams license is sufficient. Additionally, you can automate processes, such as document approvals. For example, suppose a user creates a sales quote in Business Central that requires approval from a supervisor. The request for approval can be transferred directly to Teams with the help of automation – the system detects the creation of a new document and sends a notification to the relevant user in the Teams app, along with a request for approval. Upon approval, the system automatically generates the quote and sends it to the specific customer.
Business Central Integration with OneDrive
While working in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, you accumulate a certain number of attachments: certificates, permits, contracts, and other documents. You can use OneDrive to store these attachments, either in a traditional folder on your drive or through OneDrive integrated with SharePoint. In the ERP system, documents are saved as links, but physically reside in OneDrive. It's important to note that OneDrive is a personal drive, and SharePoint is used for sharing documents with other users. Thanks to different permission levels, you can also manage access to individual attachments.
These are just some of the possibilities that come with integrating Business Central with Microsoft applications. Business Central also collaborates with other products in the M365 family, such as Microsoft Excel. This certainly sets it apart from the competition.
