Dynamics Hotdish

This is the third episode in our series on Azure DevOps (ADO) and we’re diving deep into one of the most challenging topics: how do you get your team to use it? We share ideas on how to get your teams to buy into ADO and how it benefits your team on using it effectively on projects. It can be hard to convince people to “do extra work” by logging hours on tasks or closing work items as they’re comp...

In the second episode of our series on Azure DevOps (ADO), we discuss the importance of determining a sprint cadence for your project or product and how that sprint cadence can be used within ADO. Sprints are a great way to determine how much time you have to get work items complete. You’ll learn a lot about your team and how to structure sprints by monitoring burn down rates and how many story po...

Azure DevOps (ADO) is the ultimate tool to help you stay organized on projects or for the lifecycle of product management. We LOVE using ADO because it gives your whole team insights into what’s happening on projects, what’s coming next, and overall helps everyone stay organized. In the first part of our series on ADO, you’ll learn about some commonly used Work Items and how to navigate through th...

It’s hard to believe the inaugural Microsoft Power Platform Conference was just last year! It began with a BANG where industry professionals flocked to Florida to learn all about the capabilities of the Power Platform. It’s time to start thinking about Power Platform Conference again this year since it’s coming up quick in Las Vegas. Asif Rehmani joins us this week to give some insider info and ti...

Aaron Back, Chief Content Officer from Dynamic Communities, joins us to tell us about what we can expect from Summit North America. Summit will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina October 15-20 and has a lot of fun and exciting new stuff this year! Everything from a NASCAR simulator, to local NC moonshine, and a new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) showcase has us buzzing with excitement ov...

In this episode, we explore the future of the Power Platform, AI, and low code development. Our special guest, Julia Kasper, a Program Manager at Microsoft, joins us as we uncover the most recent advancements and what’s on the horizon. Julia shares her insights and perspectives, highlighting the importance of embracing a growth mindset and fostering a culture of continuous learning and innovation...

In this first of two episodes recorded at the Microsoft Build conference in Seattle, Liz interviews Bob Serr, VP of Azure Communication Services at Microsoft. They delve into the world of Azure Communication Services (ACS), discussing its real-time communication features like voice calling, video calling, SMS messaging, and chat functionality. The episode also unveils exciting new AI announcements...

Wrapping up our three-part mini series on the user-focused side of technology transformation, this week we talk about Change Management. We're focusing on the people side of change and how you (or your organization) can guide their team through a technology or process change. Training ties in closely to change management and helps ensure your teams know how to do their jobs following the chang...

We have a secret for you. You can build the best possible tool for your end users, but they won’t know how to effectively use it without adequate training. Technology tools need to be intuitive, but training on these tools still needs to be comprehensive enough so your users know where to go as soon as they access the tool for the first time. In our last episode, we hinted (ahem, declared) that UA...

User Acceptance Testing (UAT) can be ran in many different ways - from small single feature tests, to gigantic enterprise platform releases. We discuss how there are many different views on how to plan and execute successful UAT sessions, and highlight important aspects regardless of your project size. There’s so much more to UAT than just identifying bugs vs. features, though sometimes that can b...

DynamicsCon Live is coming up on May 22-25 in sunny Scottsdale, Arizona! Whether you're a conference veteran or a conference newbie, DynamicsCon is a great choice to learn all about Dynamics 365 and the Power Platform. Going into its third year, the Dynamics User Group (DUG) has made some changes that will make this the best year yet. Join us this week as we discuss what you can expect at this...

Join us as we discuss all things Omnichannel for Customer Service! There are many new and exciting things in Omnichannel and we're delighted to discuss all the capabilities with you. Omnichannel in Dynamics 365 is truly amplifying the way businesses interact with customers by bringing all the different ways customers can reach out to a business into a single work area. In this episode, we take...

We have some exciting news to share this week!  A familiar voice and a new voice are joining the permanent crew of the podcast. Meet Ali, who is a Functional Consultant at Stoneridge Software and actually likes  going to the dentist.  Liz is back and is thrilled to be talking about a topic that's been all over the media recently: ChatGPT. Join us as we discuss what ChatGPT is and ho...

For this week's episode, we cover a few news-worthy items, including some notes on the upcoming Wave 1 release, the events we're looking forward to in 2023, and an announcement. For more information, visit https://www.dynamicshotdish.com.

This week we talk about how Customer Service has improved over time and some of the coolest features available today. We go down a short rabbit hole on Power Virtual Agent but it ties back up into the omnichannel capabilities Microsoft has built out over the years. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments! Visit https://www.dynamicshotdish.com for more information.

This week we talk about a Dynamics 365 module we haven't spent much time on in the past - Project Operations! Ashley's been working with it recently so we discuss some cool features, potential limitations, and why you need a lot of data setup to make it work.  Leave your thoughts or experiences in the comments! Visit https://dynamicshotdish.com for more information.

This week's episode kicks off 2023 with an extension of our user adoption and training content with Marquis Caldwell from ClickLearn. We discuss user learning styles, how different types of learning materials and content supports these different styles, and where ClickLearn can help.  We also just generally have a great conversation with Marquis! For more information, visit https://www.dynami...

This week we jump into the Dynamics 365 Marketing module to talk at a high level about the capabilities Marketing brings to the table. We focus specifically on the outbound features and customer journeys, which allow organizations to set up automated marketing plans that customers progress through by time or action. If you're using Marketing, let us know your experiences! For more information, vis...

A frequent question from companies implementing a software system is "how do we manage this thing after go-live?" This week, we share our perspectives on how best to administer and maintain your Dynamics system after the consulting team walks away, leaning heavily on Ashley's experiences as an administrator. If you've found anything that works well for you, please share a comment! For more informa...

At the conferences this fall it seemed like AI Builder is all the rage, so we thought we might cover an introduction for this episode. We discuss what it is and isn't, how it fits into the overall Azure Cognitive Services picture, and consider use cases where it could add business value. If you're using AI Builder in your organization, tell us how you're using it! (And yes, our episode image was A...

User adoption is always a hot topic, and this week we have a guest speaker who is passionate about user adoption, and has been advocating for its importance for years. Asif Rehmani is the CEO of VisualSP, a tool built to help drive user adoption in web-based apps like SharePoint and Dynamics 365, and we get his perspective and expertise this week for the Hotdish! Visit www.dynamicshotdish.com for...

In this week's episode, we dive into one of Ashley's passion areas - business process flows! While Microsoft (and partners) sell BPFs heavily during demos, it seems that users don't often find much value in using them. We discuss why that might be and consider best practices to make BPFs more useful (and used). Visit https://www.dynamicshotdish.com for more information.

We've talked about canvas vs model-driven apps in the past, but we admit that we generally try to solution in model-driven apps because it's our comfort zone. This week, we discuss some areas where model-driven isn't the right answer, or simply won't work, and expand on how canvas apps can help. Have a scenario you're trying to find the right solution for? Leave us a comment! Visit https://www.dyn...

For our first episode under our new format, Ashley and Merlin wanted to discuss a few exciting Wave 2 updates coming for the Power Platform and Dynamics 365 as a way to ease back into the Hotdish. We also go through an important draft (listen/watch to learn more). Feel free to comment your own exciting Wave 2 feature!

We kick off our return from summer vacation with an interview, hosting Liz Hallen from Dynamics User Group (DUG) to discuss DynamicsCon Live (happening next week!) and all other things DUG-related. Thanks for tuning back in!