Microsoft Dynamics 365 Project Operations

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Project Operations

by Robert Houdeshell
Released May 2021
Publisher(s): Packt Publishing
ISBN: 9781801072076

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Book description

Discover the endless capabilities and end-to-end project management functionalities of Dynamics 365 Project Operations to drive your firm's project success and ensure rapid business growth in the competitive digital economic world

Key Features

  • Deliver successful projects via improved collaboration, visibility, and teamwork using Microsoft Project Operations solutions
  • Gain real-time data insights to modernize business strategies to increase market share
  • Build the right project operations models to meet business needs with an optimized budget

Book Description

Dynamics 365 Project Operations is a game-changing solution set for project-driven businesses that allows you to deliver commercially successful projects in a timely and cost-effective manner, keeping the project teams productive and collaborative. With this book, you'll find out how you can bring more value to the business by winning new projects and driving exponential revenue growth.

Starting with the key principles of Project Operations, you'll understand how it improves project planning and execution. You'll then learn how to successfully deploy Project Operations along with different integration strategies and get to grips with the best approach for sales through project opportunities, project contracts, and pricing workflow implementation. This book will guide you through setting up direct staffing and centralized staffing models and enable you to manage project changes confidently by getting hands-on with project timeline management, pricing management, resource assignments, and modifications. In the final chapters, you'll find out how to use Project Operations effectively for project accounting and finance.

By the end of this book, you'll have gained the confidence to deliver profitable projects in a well-connected organization through efficient decision-making and successful customer-client relationships.

What you will learn

  • Configure key elements of Project Operations to drive improved collaboration with your customers
  • Discover how Project Operations is interconnected with Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365 Platform
  • Understand the Project Opportunity-to-Quote-to-Contract workflow and its implications for selling
  • Find out how to set up and utilize direct staffing and centralized staffing models
  • Explore Project Timeline Management using Task, Board, and Timeline views
  • Find out how information flows to finance and operations in Project Operations

Who this book is for

This book is for project managers, project leads, business consultants, and business leaders who want to gain a competitive edge by delivering successful projects in a shorter time span with the help of effective operations and workflows across different teams within projects. Knowledge of Microsoft 365 and a sound understanding of business acumen and sales through the delivery process is necessary to get the most out of this book.

Table of contents

  1. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Project Operations
  2. Contributors
  3. About the author
  4. About the reviewer
  5. Preface
    1. Who this book is for
    2. What this book covers
    3. To get the most out of this book
    4. Code in Action
    5. Download the color images
    6. Conventions used
    7. Get in touch
    8. Reviews
  6. Section 1: Foundation and Framework of Project Operations
  7. Chapter 1: Introducing Project Operations
    1. Key principles and concepts for project managers
    2. Project businesses at a glance
    3. The value of the Microsoft Project Operations solution
    4. Understanding an end-to-end solution with Microsoft Dynamics 365
      1. Customer relationship management (CRM)
      2. Work breakdown structure
      3. Statement of work
      4. Project Operations' impact on profitability
      5. Team member time and expense entry
      6. Project accounting and ERP functionality
    5. Data analysis and presentation
    6. Bottom-line benefits for the company
    7. Summary
    8. Questions
  8. Chapter 2: Using the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Framework for Success
    1. The Microsoft 365 framework
      1. Learning about the history of Microsoft 365
      2. The licensing of Microsoft 365
    2. The Microsoft Power Platform framework
      1. Power BI
      2. PowerApps
      3. Power Automate
      4. Power Virtual Agents
    3. Microsoft Dynamics 365 CE
      1. Let's rewind to 2003…
      2. Fast forward to today…
      3. Microsoft Dynamics 365 CE – sales functionality
    4. Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations
    5. The Unified environment – Project Operations apps
    6. Summary
    7. Questions
    8. Further reading
  9. Chapter 3: The How-Tos of Setting Up Project Operations
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Understanding the deployment approach
      1. Microsoft 365 framework question
      2. Microsoft Dynamics questions
      3. Organizational questions
    3. Non-dynamics integrated approach
      1. The CE Sales and Project Operations scenario
      2. The third-party CRM and Project Operations scenario
    4. Upgrade path for existing customers
    5. Setting up Dynamics 365 CE Sales
      1. Advanced settings
      2. System Settings
      3. Security setup
      4. Navigation notes
      5. Personal settings
      6. Sales entities
    6. Setting up Project Operations
      1. The Resource Manager view of Project Operations
      2. The Sales/Account Manager view of Project Operations
      3. Project Operations system settings
    7. Dynamics 365 CE – Sales customizations
      1. Customizations and configurations
    8. Data import
    9. Integration strategies
    10. Summary
    11. Questions
    12. Further reading
  10. Section 2: Project Sales through Delivery
  11. Chapter 4: The Account Manager – Project Selling
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Understanding the lead to opportunity workflow
      1. Creating a new lead
    3. Maximizing project opportunities
      1. Business process flow
    4. Collaboration and document management
    5. The quoting process
      1. Creating a quote
    6. Summary
    7. Questions
  12. Chapter 5: Project Contracts and Pricing
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Understanding the workflow from opportunity to project contract
    3. Implementing project contracts and contract lines
      1. The project contract
      2. Project contract lines
      3. Not-to-exceed limit
    4. Developing price lists and custom price lists
      1. Selling rates
      2. Costing rates
    5. Exploring roles and role types to control pricing
      1. Non-chargeable roles
      2. Complimentary roles
    6. Summary
    7. Questions
  13. Chapter 6: Practice Manager Functions – We Won the Contract! What Now?
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Understanding direct staffing models
      1. Working with backlog tracking
      2. Building resources and roles
      3. Skills and certifications
    3. Understanding centralized staffing models
    4. Direct versus centralized staffing models
    5. Using resource forecasting
    6. Using revenue forecasting
    7. Resource utilization tracking
    8. Summary
    9. Questions
  14. Chapter 7: Resource Manager – Staffing for Success!
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Staffing projects for success
      1. Generic resources
      2. Specific patterns
      3. Generating requirements
      4. Submitting a request
    3. Generating bookings
      1. Direct bookings
      2. Booking types
      3. Booking statuses
      4. Booking allocation methods
    4. Maximizing the Schedule board
      1. Configuration and settings changes
      2. Requirement for bookings
    5. Resource utilization management
    6. Summary
    7. Questions
  15. Section 3: Project Delivery through Operations
  16. Chapter 8: Managing the Project to Success!
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Managing the project timeline and activities
      1. Project Summary tab
      2. Tasks tab
    3. Substituting resources
    4. Changing orders to costs and selling price
    5. Managing risks, status reports, and change orders
    6. Collaborating through Microsoft Teams and Outlook
    7. Time entry considerations
    8. Summary
    9. Questions
  17. Chapter 9: Team Member Activities
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Entering time
      1. Requirements of time entry
    3. Using Teams and Outlook time entry
      1. Time entry – Outlook
      2. Time entry – Teams
    4. Entering expenses
    5. Submitting and recalling time and expenses
    6. Summary
    7. Questions
  18. Chapter 10: Approvals and Exceptions
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Understanding the approvals and actuals process
      1. The approval process
    3. Recalling time and expense
    4. Using time corrections and exception handling
      1. Time corrections
      2. Exception handling
    5. Summary
    6. Questions
  19. Chapter 11: Project Accounting and Operations
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Recap of our learning
    3. Getting an overview of the billing process
      1. Billing methods, contract types, and invoicing
      2. Finance and Operations integration
    4. Learning about reporting and analysis
      1. Project Operations Dashboards
      2. Power BI Reporting
    5. Summary
    6. Questions
  20. Assessments
    1. Chapter 1
    2. Chapter 2
    3. Chapter 3
    4. Chapter 4
    5. Chapter 5
    6. Chapter 6
    7. Chapter 7
    8. Chapter 8
    9. Chapter 9
    10. Chapter 10
    11. Chapter 11
    12. Why subscribe?
  21. Other Books You May Enjoy
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Product information

  • Title: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Project Operations
  • Author(s): Robert Houdeshell
  • Release date: May 2021
  • Publisher(s): Packt Publishing
  • ISBN: 9781801072076