Microsoft Dynamics CRM and Microsoft SharePoint Services or Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server (commonly referred to by its acronym MOSS) can be used together to greatly enhance document management and team collaboration. Better yet, the combination is intuitive, powerful and very user friendly.

At The TM Group, a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner in Michigan, we often use Microsoft Dynamics CRM iFrames and CRM workflows to automate the creation of SharePoint sites and folders. iFrames are used to display custom applications or web pages such as company home page or a SharePoint page within the Dynamics CRM forms.

For example, let’s say you wanted to use Microsoft Dynamics CRM for opportunity tracking and SharePoint for the management of opportunity-related documents such as quotes, RFP responses, vendor pricing and estimate Excel Workbooks. You can easily utilize Dynamics CRM and SharePoint Web Services as well as a series of custom CRM Workflow entities. Events within Microsoft Dynamics CRM can automatically create and populate sites and document libraries and include an iFrame within a new CRM tab called “SharePoint” where such documents can be stored. In fact, you can also use rules in the workflow such as “when and opportunity has a 40% or more probability, create a SharePoint Folder." Why create folders for opportunities that haven’t completed the qualification stages?

You can use the “Notes Tab” in Microsoft Dynamics CRM to attach documents to Accounts, Leads, Opportunities or any other Dynamics CRM standard or custom entity. You’ll notice there is a paperclip icon on most screens which will do this. However, Microsoft SharePoint allows for a richer set of document management tools, including check in/out management and versioning, and integration with Information Rights Management helps ensure that proprietary and confidential information is better protected. Additionally non-CRM users can access the documents through the SharePoint interface.

Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services comes free with the Windows Server operating system. Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server is licensed separately and adds a lot of additional functionality such as enterprise search.

By The TM Group, a Michigan Gold Certified Partner for Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics SL, and Microsoft Dynamics NAV