Microsoft Dynamics 365 integration tools like Microsoft Azure Logic Apps have a rich history behind their evolution.
Over many decades, companies have realised the importance of data and data handling to improve performance. Subsequently, software systems have been developed to support these efforts and ambitions.
From the first mention of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) in the 1960s and the early age of Decision Support Systems (DSS) in the 1970s to the first steps of Data Warehousing in the 1980s, these led to the rapid development of ERP and the explosion of other systems such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Supply Chain Management, Big Data, and Marketing automation in the 1990s.
The emergence of e-commerce in the 2000s was followed by Business Process Management systems (BPM), Knowledge Management systems (KM) or ECM (Enterprise Content Management) systems.
As these business solutions grew, so did the need for seamless integration. Connecting systems to let them work as one rather than as silos of data was the next sensible step.
In this article, we will analyse the integration of Microsoft Dynamics 365 using Microsoft Azure Logic Apps, compared with template-based IpaaS solutions like Rapidi.
WHAT IS MICROSOFT DYNAMICS 365 CRM?
In 2002, Microsoft entered the business solutions market by acquiring Great Plains and Navision, on-premise solutions. With this series of acquisitions, they added some of the market’s top ERP solutions, including Great Plains, Navision, and Axapta, to their growing Microsoft CRM application to form what would become Microsoft Business Solutions.
Microsoft has since renamed and relaunched its Microsoft Business Solutions to Microsoft Dynamics 365. While marketed as one solution, Microsoft Dynamics 365 is actually a series of 10 applications, each performing specific tasks to help companies streamline their entire operation:
- Dynamics 365 Sales
- Dynamics 365 Customer Data Platform
- Dynamics 365 Service
- Dynamics 365 HR
- Dynamics 365 Finance
- Dynamics 365 Supply Chain
- Dynamics 365 Commerce
- Dynamics 365 Project Management
- Dynamics 365 Marketing
- Dynamics 365 Small and Medium Business
With Microsoft Dynamics 365, Microsoft offers companies a range of applications that work together, bringing them an end-to-end, 360-degree view of their business. However, keep in mind that these applications do not integrate seamlessly by default - you will need a data integration tool for that.
WHY INTEGRATE WITH MICROSOFT DYNAMICS 365?
Integrating Dynamics 365 with other applications allows you to automate repetitive tasks and create optimised workflows across your business. Microsoft Dynamics 365 integration eliminates manual data entry, allows you to unify data from various locations, and creates an overall cohesive business environment.
Once you have an integration tool at your service, you can integrate these applications seamlessly, as they don’t integrate by default, as mentioned above.
INTEGRATING MICROSOFT DYNAMICS 365 WITH OTHER COMPLEMENTARY MICROSOFT APPLICATIONS OR PLATFORMS
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a comprehensive platform in itself, though it might not always cater for all the requirements of every organisation. Microsoft Dynamics 365 can be integrated with other Microsoft solutions and platforms to expand on the amount of features available for users. For example, organisations have the option to integrate with it with:
- Power BI
- SharePoint
- Office
- Outlook
- OneNote
- Viva Engage
Power BI
Integration with PowerBi enables companies to turn unrelated data sources into coherent, visual insights These simplified visual representations of big data allow businesses to make sense of their customer and competitor data.
SharePoint
A company that needs to store a large amount of documents related to their sales, procurement and other business opportunities would benefit greatly from an integration with SharePoint.
Microsoft Office
Various administrative tasks are made easier with Microsoft Office. You can create and edit text and image documents, work with data in spreadsheets and databases, and create presentations. Integration with Microsoft Outlook is also widely popular among organisations.
OneNote
Integration with Microsoft OneNote is a great fit for organisations which have multiple teams needing to collaborate on opportunities, orders, contracts or other projects.
Viva Engage
Teams who require a consolidated communication and community platform would benefit from an integration with Microsoft Viva Engage.
All these integrations focus on making organisations more efficient and focused in order to better serve their customers and optimise their outputs.
INTEGRATING MICROSOFT DYNAMICS 365 WITH OTHER THIRD-PARTY APPLICATIONS
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is basically the result of bringing together the previously acquired solutions such as Navision (later known as Microsoft Dynamics NAV and more recently Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central) and Axapta (later known as Microsoft Dynamics AX and more recently Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance) together with Microsoft 365 Sales (earlier known as Microsoft CRM) and other Microsoft applications. While Microsoft Dynamics 365 is marketed as one solution, the reality is that some of these applications still need to be integrated with each other.
Often, companies will have to add extra effort (and budget) to integrate the ERP and CRM applications of Microsoft Dynamics 365 as they do not come integrated as one, at least not at the time of writing.
Many companies opt to use other CRM applications besides Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales (earlier named as Microsoft CRM). Those who are already using Microsoft Dynamics ERP have the option of integrating it with other CRM software like Salesforce. Integrating Microsoft Dynamics with Salesforce and other third-party applications will typically require the use of a data integration tool to ensure a smooth integration.
Some providers like Rapidi offer tools and solutions that enable simple and robust Microsoft Dynamics 365 integration.
For example, Rapidi assists with pre-configured templates that allow you to integrate Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP with third-party applications effortlessly in a short amount of time. You don’t need to be a code expert to customise it. No additional programming or code is required for customising your integrations.
WHAT IS MICROSOFT AZURE LOGIC APPS?
Microsoft Azure Logic Apps is a cloud service that Microsoft provides and recommends if you want to integrate Microsoft Dynamics 365 with other applications. Microsoft Azure Logic Apps is a consumption-based billing service, so you will need an Azure subscription to build and run logic apps.
The Microsoft Azure Logic Apps service offers a range of connectors (some built-in, some “managed”) to other applications. The connectors can be compared to “pre-built APIs” that you can use to integrate with other systems.
MICROSOFT AZURE LOGIC APPS REQUIREMENTS FOR SALESFORCE-DYNAMICS 365 INTEGRATION
To integrate Salesforce with Microsoft Dynamics 365 using the Microsoft Azure Logic Apps service, you will need the following:
- An Azure subscription
- Subscription to logic apps, power automate, or power apps
- Access to a Salesforce account
- Knowledge of how to create Microsoft Azure Logic Apps, even if you are using the managed connector
MICROSOFT AZURE LOGIC APPS LIMITATIONS
The Microsoft Azure Logic Apps service has many attractive features. It is fairly cost-effective, and its drag-and-drop design allows you to easily create workflows.
It also has some practical limitations, however, namely:
- Azure Logic Apps is a “cloud-only” solution. If you want an “on-premise” solution, it will require Microsoft BizTalk and a data connection gateway.
- There is a restriction on the number of fields.
- Custom fields of type "Picklist (Multi-Select)" are not supported by "Create record" and "Update record" operations.
- It requires processing within the Logic Apps.
- It offers no external monitoring of the integration.
- You must pay per use based on a very complex pricing model.
WHAT IS RAPIDI?
Rapidi is a cloud data integration solution that offers pre-configured template-based integration between Salesforce and any of the Microsoft Dynamics ERP (365 Business Central and 365 Finance, Finance & Operations, NAV, AX, GP) and CRM. Rapidi features cutting-edge technology to provide data integration solutions that are fast yet flexible, simple, robust and secure. Rapidi can integrate Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales (former Microsoft CRM) and ERP applications using the same technology.
Rapidi was designed to support the most common integration scenarios between Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics 365:
- Account - Customer
- Contact - Contact
- Product - Item
- Item Price - Product Price
- Quote - Order
- Sales Order - Sales Order
- Sales History (invoices and credit memos)
- Payments
If you need other or additional transfers, you can easily configure them using the same logic as for the above-mentioned transfers. The Rapidi data integration solution is based on deep knowledge of both Microsoft Dynamics 365 solutions and Salesforce CRM. It is fast and simple to implement, and you can be up and running in a matter of days.
Rapidi comes with pre-configured templates that allow you to integrate Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP with third-party applications effortlessly in a short amount of time. You don’t need to be a code expert to customise it, either. Rapidi’s intuitive solutions ensure that no additional programming or code is required for customising your integrations.
RAPIDI VS MICROSOFT AZURE LOGIC APPS
Both Rapidi and Microsoft Azure Logic Apps services are great solutions; choosing between the two will depend on your requirements, setup, needs and goals.
Rapidi is a brilliant solution if you value simplicity and wish to only have one subscription, rather than the multiple subscriptions required with Microsoft Azure Logic Apps. The Rapidi pricing model is simple and straightforward, while the Microsoft Azure Logic Apps pricing is somewhat more complex, based on usage (triggers), data, and API calls.
Microsoft Azure Logic Apps will be a suited solution for you if you have the skillset and resources to build the integration and transfers from scratch independently With Rapidi your services will be configured from start to finish by the team who will also advise you on best practices based on decades of experience.
Both solutions offer a custom-made, tailored integration solution. A couple of things you need to remember when you make your decision:
- The Rapidi subscription includes active monitoring, and you’ll always know if/when/where your integration stops working. Microsoft Azure Logic Apps offers more basic monitoring.
- If you have tried to integrate with Dynamics 365 Finance, Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations or Dynamics AX, you know that timestamps handling can be a major headache. Rapidi uses the unique Rapidi Mirror Technology to solve this issue seamlessly.
- Microsoft Azure Logic Apps doesn’t allow data compression, which could be a challenge if you have a lot of data. Rapidi uses a proprietary protocol to enable communication between the tools that efficiently reduces the amount of data and compresses it before sending, resulting in the most optimal rate of data transfer.
- Microsoft Azure Logic Apps is not the best option if you need an on-premise solution, as it is complicated and requires adding extra Microsoft applications. Rapidi, on the other hand, supports any solution without any problem or limitation—whether it is cloud-based, on-premise, or hybrid.
While Microsoft Azure Logic Apps offers a strong solution for Dynamics 365 integration, specialised data integration providers like Rapidi are worth considering. Rapidi focuses on seamless Dynamics 365 connectivity, offering pre-built templates that significantly reduce implementation time and cost. Whether you're looking to connect Dynamics 365 to external applications like Salesforce or streamline internal communication between Dynamics 365 modules (ERP and CRM), Rapidi’s data integration solutions can be a valuable asset for achieving efficient and affordable integration.
You can learn more about how to use Rapidi to integrate Salesforce with Microsoft Dynamics 365.
If you use Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP and Dynamics 365 Sales read more here about our Microsoft Dynamics 365 - Sales data integration solution.
Don’t forget to join our webinar on how to integrate Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP and Dynamics 365 Sales.
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