Three Keys to Keeping Data Accurate and Reliable in Your Microsoft Dynamics CRM Application

After your Microsoft Dynamics CRM solution goes live with a carefully planned design and initial data, it is important to keep your data reliable and up-to-date. Most CRM systems will endure some amount of change, expected or not, in the months and years after the initial launch.  Rather than try to prevent every change or expect to control every user's smallest actions, it is best to be aware of the common risks and be ready to adapt and respond so your CRM solution can continue to operate smoothly with accurate data.

User interface

The process of running a CRM solution is dynamic and could continue to change after you launch your new CRM application. For example, it is not uncommon that you would adjust the screens of your entities after a few month of observing the daily use of the application. One common observation: in daily life, an end user will choose the easiest way to fill out the minimum required data.  Additional data is often forgotten or, at best, stored in fields other than originally designed.

One adjustment you can make is to support the end user in making data entry a more convenient process. For example, after your screen designs are complete, part of the functional design process should be to also define the fields that are required.  Consider giving fields one of three statuses: mandatory, business recommended, or optional.

To keep data useful, try to keep to standards.  As one of the most common examples, we have a list of countries. The standard ISO lists are very useful and could be stored in global lists. This prevents end users from making mistakes in spelling or using different standards.

Another example is addresses, which  could ...