This release plan describes new features that will be released from April to September 2022.
Key Dates for the 2022 Release Wave 1
January 25th 2022 – Release plans available
January 31st 2022 – Early Access Available
April 1st 2022 – General Availability
Key Points:
- Further Microsoft Teams integration with Dynamics
- Harnessing the power of data and AI
- Improving productivity through app updates and new integrations
- Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability
Marketing
For this release, Microsoft have put a focus on leveraging the power of data and AI for marketers, helping them to improve content creation. Data changes in the Dynamics 365 app can now trigger event changes, enabling marketing departments to respond at the right moment and take action from journeys in multiple ways. By using no-code conditional text, content is easily personalised and every interaction is maximised. SMS replies can now receive immediate action with personalised responses, and organisations can collaborate to create marketing content using the built-in Teams chat.
Sales
Similarly to Dynamics 365 Marketing, there will also be a focus on harnessing the power of data and AI for Dynamics 365 Sales. This will allow sales teams to forecast, compare projections, and measure performance using predictive scoring. Again, integration with Microsoft Teams improves collaboration, helping sales team members to reduce wasted time and allowing managers to track team performance. The aim here is to improve productivity and speed up the sales pipeline.
Customer Service
Dynamics 365 Customer Service will also focus on productivity, by improving the set up experience for admins with the new Customer Service app. Productivity will also be improved with updates to the agent inbox view. AI will suggest contacts and generate conversation summaries for agents through integration with Microsoft Teams.
Field Service
The Field Service mobile app will see improvements to boost technician productivity. The schedule board will also see usability enhancements, to allow for more intuitive and efficient usage, again improving the productivity of dispatchers.
Customer Insights
Linking to this release’s focus on data, Customer Insights will see features such as consent enablement, which can now be integrated with multiple sources and systems. Permissions and preferences can be used during real-time personalisation scenarios. Customers will be able to collaborate safely and privately by sharing data through privacy-enabled workflows.
Other
This release also includes a variety of updates and new features for Supply Chain Management, Finance, Operations, Human Resources, Commerce and Business Central, which can be found in Microsoft’s full release plan.
Other updates worth noting includes Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability which launches with an extensive SaaS solution. Organisations can use this to provide themselves with comprehensive, integrated, and automated sustainability management, which helps them along the path to Net Zero by efficiently recording and reporting emissions.
