High-performing tools and systems can make the running a business much less stressful, and ensure you achieve the best results. In many cases, these solutions become integral parts of your daily operations.
When it comes to business technology, Microsoft is an industry-leader. They offer innovative solutions that enhance performance, foster collaboration and improve processes.
We list five of the best Microsoft tools that will support your business.
1. Microsoft Teams
In the post-pandemic era, teams rarely work from one location. Whether in the office, at home or on-the-go, it is crucial everyone can still communicate and collaborate to deliver business objectives.
Teams is the go-to solution to bring your team together across multiple locations. It allows employees to have online meetings, share files, chat and even create project channels to discuss ideas and plans.
Teams can also be used for your customer, supplier and stakeholder meetings. You may even choose to host webinars and online events, making it compatible with a wide range of business needs.
2. Dynamics 365 Business Central
Sitting under the Dynamics 365 suite of business applications, Business Central is an Enterprise Resource Planning platform. It is designed to give SMEs a comprehensive solution to manage operations, finance, sales and customer service.
Key features include its accounting capabilities, stock-level monitoring, project delivery tracking and the ability to store pricing structures. It makes it easier to understand what’s going on in your business and focus on delivering outstanding quality to customers.
By bringing your core operational functions together, you can identify opportunities to streamline your processes. It also offers real-time insight in these areas to aid smarter decision-making, improved strategies and greater cohesion as a business.
3. Dynamics 365 Sales
Another useful Dynamics 365 tool for businesses is the Sales application. It is specifically developed to empower your sales team to find leads, close deals and keep track of their pipeline.
Using Dynamics 365 Sales, you can stay on top of customer relationships, analyse behaviour and learn where your next sales will likely come from. It also encourages your salespeople to share insights and context in order to deliver a unified approach across customer interactions and improve close rates.
With greater visibility across sales, you can fuel growth across your business by improving retention rates and driving revenue.
4. Power Automate
Time often seems in limited supply when running a business. Automating processes can reclaim working hours, meaning you can focus on value-adding work that encourages growth rather than menial admin.
Power Automate is Microsoft’s answer to easy business automation. Using it, businesses can build intelligent workflows that allow tasks to be completed consistently, accurately, quickly and without manual intervention.
It is also simple for small businesses to set up automated workflows, with no need for advanced technical skills or development resource. Its automation possibilities are endless, enabling you to reduce repetitive work and drive staff productivity.
5. Copilot
Although a popular topic in recent years, AI will be new to many businesses. If used correctly, it can deliver significant advantages.
Copilot is Microsoft’s AI-powered assistant. It is embedded in many of Microsoft’s products or there is the free chat version, which is a great starting point for businesses new to AI. Unlike some other AI tools, it safeguards your data so there’s no risk of confidential information being leaked to those outside your business.
There are several ways to use Copilot, including summarising documents, asking questions to research a topic, generating copy for emails, polishing presentations or getting inspiration for sales tactics. Better yet, Copilot gives you answers within seconds and can save hours of work.
As you use Copilot more, you will likely find specific use cases for your business, helping you to increase the value to your operations.
