Chris A Watkins - Business

 M365: CRM Software- why you probably don't need it. See also -  Other Office 365 Posts I follow several business forums and frequently I see questions posted that relate to the use of CRM software. 'Do I need a CRM?' 'Which is the best CRM?' and, too frequently  'Which is the cheapest CRM?' Customer Relationship Management is a strategic aim, an operational process, or both.  However, the term CRM is often used to describe the software that enables a business to achieve the strategic aim, or run the operational process. Often a CRM software solution is deployed and the resources to run data capture and categorization are added according to the needs of the software.  This is not the most cost effective approach. Ideally the strategy and the operational means should exist before any software solution is attempted. In short the business must have a clear idea of what is to be achieved before the CRM software solution is evaluated for cost effectiveness. What ...

 O365: Mobile Apps - the easy way See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Anyone following these posts will now know how easy it is to create data stores in SharePoint for documents and files and for listing data, such as customer details. We've also looked at making this data easily findable, how to flag items for the attention of individuals and teams within the Office 365domain and moving work through the system in a controlled manner. We've also seen how we can access this content when away from the office via mobile apps for Teams, SharePoint and OneDrive. Occasionally the standard apps aren't really convenient and fail to lend themselves to mobile use. I'm thinking here of functions like stock lists, customer contact lists and the like, when the standard app delivers too much detail for a small screen, or where links and buttons are small and difficult to use. For these functions it would be better to deploy an app that is designed for fast, effective use on a mobile. ...

 O365: Meta Data - Auto Population for improved Search See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Having discussed the advantages of using meta data so far we have touched only on populating these fields using manual entry, either by typing or by selection from a drop list. If we wish to auto populate meta data fields we can do this in one or two ways. Default Meta Content. This method populates a Meta Data field with content that can be changed, removed or enhanced. Any Meta Data field that is created by adding a SharePoint list or library column will have a default value setting. This can be set in the List/Library Settings page to any value you wish. In the above illustration I have set the DocType column in a Training Documents Library. The effect is that any document created from the template in this library will be flagged as DocType = Training:   The content of the field can be subsequently changed or amended. So, A user could change "Training:" to "Training: SharePoint L...

 O365: Meta Data - the key to success? See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Having introduced the concept of Meta Data in the last post I will expand on its importance in the Office 365 environment. Auto generated Meta Data, such as dates of file creation and modification, added to author's ID and last editor's ID, provide very convenient methods to categorise and index both files and data. Manually added Meta Data, such as entry in the SharePoint or Office Title field, increase the power of search, sort, categorisation and index exponentially. Simply adding an 'Allocated to' field to any SharePoint library or SharePoint list means that ownership of any file, document or task can be identified with ease and speed. Changes to the same field can be updated to move data from one filtered list to another to accommodate simple and effective work flow. Adding the Field  For this exercise I am using an existing SharePoint List .  The list records events for a CRM style workfl...

 O365: Improving Search and Fast Find in Teams and SharePoint See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Okay. I just spent the last few posts saying how good search is in Office 365 and now I say it can be improved? Well, even the best can be better.  SharePoint Search launched with  or     followed by selecting SharePoint gives access to a search tool that spans content across the Office 365 domain and returns results for the user, filtered by the user's level of access. The search covers file name, meta data and text in the body of the document. Meta Data The important thing here is Meta Data. The elements of data that is used to index and categorise information. Meta Data has been an integral part of Microsoft Office apps for many years with Word automatically creating fields like - The items listed in the properties column are meta data fields. It can be seen from the above illustration that date and times of creation and last modification, document size,...

 O365: Search and Find Data when you need it See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Pervious posts have illustrated how easy it is to create storage in Office 365 and how you can populate the libraries and lists easily from the office PC or from a mobile or tablet when on the move. We've also looked at the powerful search and find functions within Office 365 and how users can be enabled to locate items for attention, take necessary action and move the items on in the work flow, while maintaining a full control audit at the highest level. What Data Do We Need? Following on from that we should consider - What data should a business be concerned with Where that data should be stored How that data should be stored. Start with Simple Stuff To start we can consider a customer name, address and contact details. This is the sort of data that may be captured by a sales person working from the office making cold calls or following warm leads, or maybe at the customers premises using a mobil...

 O365: SharePoint Searching in Office 365 and Teams See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Earlier posts have discussed the huge advantages of centralising documents, files and communications in SharePoint and Office 365. One of the strongest functions in Office 365 is the ability to search all content so that locating data is easy. However, the search tools in Office 365 are not always obvious. Teams Search Teams is becoming really popular, not least due to the fact that it makes SharePoint very easy to deploy, use and control. At the top of each Teams General Tab is a search box This is multi function. Type / into the box and you will see a list of commands that will perform all sorts of Teams functions    The /Files option will return files you have recently accessed. Great, if the file or document you are looking for is actually in the recent file list. What if the information you require is in an older file, or in a different location? Location Search Also in Teams ...

 O365: Automation - The First Step See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Making SharePoint Lists and Libraries is a simple process and these act as data containers for information passing through your business. We can capture data into the containers by creating the content from within the list or library, by scan and by import. In most businesses, once the information, whether it is a document or data, is stored in SharePoint it will need to be followed through to ensure that it is made available to the right personnel and is acted on in a timely fashion. The traditional method of ensuring this workflow is to send out email reminders and/or to place the information where the affected users can find it. There is a better way. Simple Work Flow  The simplest work flow is to equip each List and Library with a column for status. Using a SharePoint Library created to store customer orders The status column can be seen to the right of the customer column To add a status column ...

O365: Moving Stuff Around See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Earlier Posts have demonstrated how to make SharePoint data containers (Lists and Libraries), how to populate them and how to use the data across the business. We've also touched on collecting data via mobile phone and tablet and how the data can be used both on site, at the computer desk, and off site via mobile or tablet. This is all the same live data with little duplication and only occasional need to synchronise between devices.  That's fine for static or semi static data like contact names and addresses. These only change when something changes in the real world and the data need updating to reflect the new reality. Dynamic Data However, some data needs to change because it is by nature dynamic. For instance, a sales query may become a quotation, and then an order and then a delivery note and then an invoice. A telephone conversation with customer may become an email confirmation, which may become dormant. But,...

O365: Make Life Simple. Grab Data on the Go. See also -  Other Office 365 Posts Earlier Office 365 posts have pointed towards simple ways to make SharePoint List and SharePoint Library data containers, simple ways to populate these with data that is useful to business and simple ways to filter that data for useful output commination like invoices and reports. Reading back through those posts it becomes obvious that the more data you collect, the more you can do with it. This is probably best highlighted in the CRM example, where all communication between company representatives and individual customers is captured and used across the business. The great thing about modern technology is that even when visiting a customer the person representing the business can access the same data that is available when sitting at a computer in the office. In addition, updates can be made to the data without a return to the office being necessary. Accounting The same can be said of accounts and exp...