November 2013 – Mike Hammons

November 8, 2013

How to Mirror Your iPhone or iPad on a Laptop

Have you ever wished you could display your iPhone or iPad on a laptop or PC? Well, it’s always been a big PITA thanks to Apple and their restrictive lock down policies on these devices. In the past one had to Jailbreak their device to make this happen….and who really likes messing with that? Obviously, jailbreaking is still possible but I really hate to spend the time and effort messing with that, particularly with the cat and mouse updates required when Apple patches the “holes” that allow this to happen.

Yes, there is also the ability to plug in an expensive VGA connector and display your device on a monitor, but, that’s not ideal, especially for people like me who need do a lot of demo’s. This approach makes things like a projector, Lync, GotoMeeting and Webex impossible.

Well, finally Apple added a feature called Airplay that makes this possible. It’s still not as easy as it should be; and, it’s still not really built in. In order to make this happen on your device of choice, you need to purchase an additional software app (for your laptop or PC, not your device). I recently checked out AirServer which to setup, configure and use. You can choose to run it on your Mac or PC and the iOS device requires iOS 4.2.1 or later, and they have to be on the same Wi-Fi network.

AirServer makes sharing your iPhone or iPad screen to your computer with AirPlay mirroring. After you install AirServer, your computer name will appear in the list of devices available for AirPlay Mirroring on your iPhone or iPad and when you select your computer, your iPhone or iPad screen will pop up on your computer screen, just like it would on your television with an Apple TV or VGA connector. Now it’s super simple to just share your desktop in a Lync or GotoMeeting; or show it on a projector and demo whatever you need from your iDevice.

If you want to check our a trial version you can get it from here:?http://www.airserver.com/trial

November 4, 2013

Dynamics CRM 2013 Business Process Overview

One of the amazing new capabilities in Dynamics CRM 2013 are Business Processes. this post provides a Dynamics CRM 2013 Business Process Overview.

Business Processes are new way to help guide users through any type of business process in a simple and intuitive way. The process is presented in stages and steps that are clearly shown to the user and very easy to complete.

What really makes these processes powerful are:

Multiple processes enabled per entity
Multiple entities per process
Stage gating
Role based processes

So what does that mean? I’ve recently been working with a lot of Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology companies Innovation Centers. These are the business units responsible for partnerships, licensing and merger & acquisition activity. In this context, I’ll briefly explain each of the above.

Multiple Processes enabled per entity

An entity is simply the technical word that CRM uses for an organization (account), or contact, or opportunity. It’s the main record you are dealing with. So, multiple processes per entity means that I can have any number of processes for an organization. I might need a processes for an agreement with new potential partner, and a different process for an exiting partner. I could have different processes based on the type of partnership required, is it related to licensing (in or out), an investment, a purchase, or you name it.

Multiple entities per process

This is where things get really powerful. In our partnership example, we might start with a lead from a biotech event. The forst part of the process then is linked with the Leads entity (or records) in CRM. Once the lead has been qualified, the next stage would convert this to an organization record which could kick off an entirely new set of processes (e.g. vetting the partner through legal, compliance, AP/AR, etc.). Once vetted, the next step would then be an opportunity record. Once we come to agreement the next step would then be a Deal or Alliance record (or agreement). Each one of the stages in the process would be linked with a different recod, however, it’s presented to the user as one single connected process….very powerful, efficient and easy.

Stage gating

This is pretty much how it sounds. You can set rules that state all steps in the stage must be completed before moving onto the next stage. So, when starting a new partnership, confidential agreements (CDA) must be in place before the details can be discussed with the partner. This would be a stage gate, CDA must be in place and attached before the next stage is allowed to proceed. So, important stuff is not missed, and it’s all front and center for the user and team members to see exactly where things are in the process.

Role based processes

This too is how it sounds. Processes can be defined by your role in the organization. This is a great way to add security around different parts of the process. Legal may have steps that are very specific to them, and they are the only ones that see those details. The rest of team might just see a status and perhaps a due date. Nice, right!

So that’s it in a nutshell.

I’ve included a video below from Eric Boocock, Senior Product Marketing Manager for Microsoft Dynamics CRM. This video?shows you how business processes help you rapidly respond to changing business needs. it also goes into more detail on how you can quickly and easily create or change processes.