Dynamics CRM 2011 offers significant new and enhanced features that can increase effectiveness and productivity in your organization. This article will highlight Dashboards, one of the many enhancements delivered with the new version. To learn more,.
In previous versions of Dynamics CRM, system administrators could create dashboards by developing a SQL Server Reporting Services Report with the desired dashboard elements, and displaying the report in Dynamics CRM. This solution worked well when implemented but required a more advanced skill set to deploy. Dynamics CRM 2011 introduces the ability for users and system administrators to create and share unlimited dashboards with simple user friendly tools from within the application interface.
Dynamics CRM 2011 provides a new Dashboard area where users can view dashboards that are relevant to their job roles. Available dashboards can include ones created by system administrators and shared with individual users, teams, or all users. In addition, users can modify provided dashboards or create entirely new dashboards to help them visualize and interact with their important information in one place.
Basic dashboards can display multiple elements including charts and list views. More advanced dashboards might include report information, data from external systems, maps, and other elements. While working with a dashboard, users can enlarge a particular chart for enhanced viewing, drill down on a particular piece of the chart (eg: a particular salesperson listed on the chart), drill down to the records represented on the chart (eg: all open opportunities for the salesperson), and drill in to a particular record (eg: a particular opportunity.)
Many of our clients use a dashboard to run their weekly sales meetings for example. A special “Sales Meeting” dashboard will be created and then displayed with a projector in a conference room and/or in a web meeting for all attendees to view. Then the sales manager can use the dashboard as a meeting agenda, reviewing the various dashboard elements and drilling down to greater levels of detail as necessary during the meeting. Salespeople are motivated to accurately update their opportunity data in the system before the meeting so they don’t run the risk of being called out for missing or inaccurate data.
If your organization could benefit from the power of Microsoft Dynamics CRM for dashboards or to address any other business objectives you might have, please contact NexusTek at 303.773.6464 or [email protected].
by Nexus Tek,
