Microsoft Dynamics CRM Partners Await New Features, Flexibility in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Beta

With the release date for the public beta of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 on tap for September, Microsoft partners are already identifying some of the most popular enhancements to the new version.

One of the first major changes will come to Dynamics CRM Online in the fall, allowing partners to begin deploying customizations to the online software.

One of the drawbacks to CRM 4.0 is that partners aren't able to do very much custom coding. And since some customers require complex customizations, partners were forced to recommend on-premise deployments. 

"One of the biggest things is that the CRM online experience will be improved," said Mike Snyder, a principal at Sonoma Partners. "In the Microsoft-hosted version of 4.0, there are very limited code and customization capabilities to support it. But in 2011 there's a whole new box of customizations you can do. We're excited to offer that because a lot of customers want that capability in the Microsoft-hosted product."

Partners are also looking forward to the new role tailored functionality, which is already part of other products such as Microsoft Dynamics NAV, that's now being incorporated into Dynamics CRM 2011. Role tailoring removes the features and functions that users don't need or use and cleans up their CRM workspaces. The result, users find, is that they quickly and easily find the information they need.

Another important feature of CRM 2011 is the ribbon toolbar that replaces the drop-down menu in CRM 4.0, said Jim Sheehan, COO at PowerObjects.

"One of the big changes in Office 2010 that people really liked is the ribbon [interface] and Microsoft is taking that whole concept into Dynamics CRM 2011, so the user experience on the toolbar matches ...