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.