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Retail

Reimagining the Modern Customer Experience for RetailEmpower your team and business by modernizing the customer engagement experience. By integrating advanced marketing analytics, connected consumer digital experiences, and client engagement technologies, you can deliver a modern experience that is both online, and in-store. Today’s retail executives are facing mounting pressure to evolve business models that make sense in a global marketplace characterized by disruptive technological innovations and fierce competition for consumer dollars. What once worked to entice consumers, such as loyalty programs, no longer guarantees a sale. Not only do they have endless choices at their fingertips, they have a voice. They can post a review—and one in five consumers do. In this era of the customer – where technology has transformed the social fabric of how we engage, connect and interact with one another. It is critical for businesses to gain insight into their customers’ needs in order to deliver experiences that build lasting relationships. Operating in today’s digitally connected world impacts businesses in so many ways, that adapting to customer preferences with agility and speed is essential.Microsoft Dynamics gives organizations an exceptional customer focus by being able to take advantage of cloud services, run agile operations that exceed customer needs, and help engage customers on their terms across the Web, social, apps and mobile fronts. It introduces a new end-to-end apps and services framework, allowing businesses to develop and distribute modern apps for specific scenarios andmobile devices that can easily and securely connect with Microsoft Dynamics for people at work and on the go. Offering Omni Channel Retail Transformation Insights and Marketing Automation Mobility IoT for Retail Omni Channel Retail Transformation Consumers have never been as empowered as today. They have greater choice over what to buy and where, and they expect to be able to look up items and view product prices and offers quickly and easily – no matter whether online or in a brick-and-mortar store. For retailers, keeping all the information up-to-date could range from challenging to a pure nightmare.But no more. The Omni-Channel Experience E-commerce, m-commerce, in-store: sell across all touchpoints With LS Nav, web, mobile and in-store commerce  services are totally integrated, giving you total visibility over your whole operation. E-commerce Site Offer your customer an e-commerce platform with exceptional levels of transaction flexibility and seamless fluidity. The platform is re sponsive to offer a first-class shopping experience, no matter if it’s accessed via computer, tablet or mobile. LS Nav can be easily integrated to websites built on nopCommmerce, magento and popular platforms. Mobile Loyalty App Customers can use the mobile app to shop, check product availability and stock levels, see product images and read descriptions, receive personalized offers, use coupons, find store locations and more. Connect the Channels Allow your customers to get their products when and where they prefer. The click & collect feature reconnects your channels: customers can create an order on the e-commerce web site on an on a mobile device, and choose whether they want to have the products sent home, or collect them in one of your stores. Always Up-to-Date All information on items, price and discounts is maintained centrally in LS Nav and distribute to all touchpoints. This means that product information, prices, offer and product availability are always up-to-date in the e-commerce websites and loyalty app. Insights and Marketing Automation Analytics and Insights are a crucial element of smart all channel retailing. To grow your business, one needs to know the business. Trident Insights and Marketing automation helps retailers with customer acquisition, retention, promotion planning, effective retail operations and better merchandizing. Personalization: Provide personalized shopping experience to the customers with right product recommendations, price and promotions. This solution helps the retailer to challenge showrooming problem and improve conversions.Micro Segmentation: Segmentation 2.0 based on activities, social influence and sentiment data product and company associations (e.g. likes or follows, online comments and reviews, customer service records) Dynamic Pricing: Ability to identify Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) on price changes, receive alerts on competition price intelligence and act on pricing opportunities Social Engagement: Get actionable insights from social conversations in form of dashboards & reports – Customer Service Dashboard, Social Engagement Dashboard, Brand Reputation Dashboard and Competitive Intelligence & Benchmarking Dashboard  Mobility Mobility is at the core of digital transformation. Mobile devices have transformed from just enabling business emails and data on the move to mobilizing enterprise applications, driving innovation and changing the way companies do business. Today, mobility solutions and services help companies leverage contextual, real-time data to reach out to customers, employees and partners anytime, anywhere. Consumer Applications For:• Engagement• Social loyalty• Commerce• Support Enterprise Applications for:• Mobile Sales Force• Service Field-force productivity• Workforce automation• Collaboration• Dashboards for insights and action   IoT for Retail Enhance the customer experience by using Internet of Things (IoT) retail solutions to connect your business— from storefronts to hospitality establishments to entertainment venues. Inventory Management     RFID Tags can capture data including GPS location, temperature, pressure and other information, Helping retailers track inventory access the supply chain and restock shelves to meet demand. Food Loss Temperature sensors trigger alerts if food reaches an unsafe temperature preventing spoilage Energy Use With data from occupancy sensors smart HVAC and lighting can automatically adjust to variations. In need between peak and non-peak hours. Preventive Maintenance By analysing equipment performance indications such as temperature , vibrations or power consumption, retailers can predict when equipment will fail before it does.   Block Chain Using blockchain technology, retailers can provide customers with indisputable proof of the provenance and authenticity of their products at every step in the supply chain.   By ensuring business transactions, substantially reducing fraud and increasing the efficiency of business partnerships, blockchain would free significant resources that can be redirected to more innovative and valuable ways of working across the value chain. Que Management Using heat maps of shopper density and location, retailers can offer timely services and re allocate staff to meet demand in real time. Fleet Management GPS Location and weather

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Business Intelligence Software

Transform your Data into Actionable InsightDiscover a transformative line of business application built using Microsoft big data and advanced analytics. BI is best practices that enable access to and analysis of information to improve and optimize decisions and performance. Advance Your Analytics Journey BI (Business Intelligence) and analytics within your company with Trident Data Analytics. Starting out with the right solution from Trident which enables your organization to rapidly accelerate from Reporting to Monitoring. Trident’s Data Analytics Solutions connects to the applications that you have deployed today, including Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Operations and legacy Dynamics AX 2012. Insights include historical trending, drill-down reporting, and improved insights into your operational and financial business needs. With Trident Data Insights, there is a single source of the truth for your analytical data.  Offerings To help clients meet the demands of today and plan for tomorrow, we offer the following services: Business Strategy and Enterprise Metrics: Enterprise information management strategy and roadmap development, business information health assessments, business case development, platform and tool evaluations, architecture definition and enterprise metrics management Business Process Application: Event monitoring, BI adoption, organizational deployment and user empowerment BI Capabilities: BI rationalization and consolidation, data visualization and analytic applications development, BI Center of Excellence, cloud reporting Analytic Applications: Enterprise analytics services, industry solutions and web analytics Information Infrastructure: Data modeling, data architecture, data integration Center of Excellence, master data management, metadata management, data quality management, data warehouse performance improvement, design and development, quality assurance and auditing and data governance Assess Analytics Maturity & Develop Roadmap Analytics maturity assessment acrose categories such as Organisation, infrastructure, Data management, Analytics, Governance Data Exploration & Preparation Data discovery & mapping exercises. Establishing data governance rules for initial rolls out of BI. Trident Data Insight Foundation Deployment and configuration of ADI semantic layer. (ie: Data warehouse, power BI Content packs). Designing and development of initial BI focus for a specific areas of your business. Trident Data Insights Analytics Specifically targeted predictive and prescriptive insights. Focused on business outcomes. Data Visualisation Organizations are building huge stack of data but the key to unlock the data is through visualizations like reports, metrics, KPI’s and dashboards. Trident’s  Business Intelligence and Analytics visualization services are giving shape to the data and turning data into metrics which can be tracked at various levels by CXO’s and managers. Trident’s visualization service is tailor made based on your organization sector which decides the key KPI’s essential for your organization. We are Delivering real-time solutions to organizations which enables them to make informed decisions. Build End-to-End Framework From Big Data Platform to Solutions Engineer, Monitor and Maintain We can help you with the right skills, tools and expertise to turn your business problems into business insights. Our data engineers analyse and integrate all your data (both structured and unstructured ) and try to make it tangible for your business. Our expertise in cloud computing platforms including AWS, Google, Azure, IBM and Oracle enable us quickly build bespoke Big Data platforms that can be up and running within hours, and not days. Predictive Analysis With the techniques like data mining, statistical algorithms, modelling, machine learning and artificial intelligence, we identify the likelihood of future outcomes basis the historical and existing data lying in your data warehouse. We help you understand Beyond What Has Already Happened and provide the best assessment of what will happen in the future. We build and deploy predictive modelling directly into your business processes using our multi-faceted predictive analytics capabilities in a single solution. We amplify your analytics without losing control with R, Python and more. Specific industries use Predictive Analytics to reduce risks, optimize operations and marketing to increase revenue Banking and Financial Sector Detect and reduce fraud, measure credit risk, maximise cross-sell/ up-sell opportunities and retain valuable customers. Retail Sector Use predictive analytics to determine which products to stock and to measure the effectiveness of promotional events and offers. Health Insurance Sector Detect fraud insurance claims, identify patients with maximum risk of chronic diseases and interventions needed and to identify those not adhering to prescribed treatments Manufacturing Sector Identify factors leading to reduces quality and production failures and to optimise part service resources and distributions systems. Staying Ahead of the Curve with Advanced Analytics Our in-house data scientists can assist you with developing unique algorithms that can predict and prescribe for you.  Some examples of how we have help customers: Data Mining – finds patterns in data to predict behaviors and future trends Text Mining – enables the enterprise to derive high quality information from textual and unstructured data Complex Event Processing (CEP) – initiates actions by analyzing multiple data streams in real-time Business Process Simulations – provides a dynamic view of the business’s future by leveraging statistical and business process simulations Voice of the customer / employee Social media, Sentiment analytics and Competitive intelligence Demand forecasting Predictive maintenance Optimization – prescribes methods to optimize operations for generating maximum business value Leading Food Service Provider – POWER BI India ‘s Leading Food service provider leverages Microsoft Power BI to gain insights and manage Retail Operation and Supply Chain Operations efficiently. Our Customer is a major Indian sweets and snacks manufacturer based in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India. The company has manufacturing plants in Nagpur, New Delhi, Kolkata, Bikaner. View Case Study READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEPS WITH TRIDENT’S IOT SOLUTIONS Contact us today to schedule a quick chat about your project, or sign up for one of our monthly demos! Request For Demo

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Digital Transformation Mobility

Enterprise Mobility ServicesTrident mobility solutions will help you create new efficiencies with mobile-driven business processes. You can realize these efficiencies faster with our pre-built micro apps and components, which reduce your time to market. Empowering Enterprises to Maximize the Return on Digital A complete suite of mobile and cloud first solutions Mobility is enabling digital transformation. Mobility when done right can transform enterprises with the greater customer experience, improve employee productivity and enable workers to stay connected on any device, anytime, and anywhere.  In an era when many organizations are relying on bring-your-own-device policies, focusing on digital strategies is an opportunity for businesses to generate high returns on investments and improve communications, accessibility, portability, and productivity. Trident embraces Xamarin platform to build engaging cross-platform and native apps for iOS, Android that connects business data to mobile workers anytime, anywhere, maintain data security and seamlessly integrate with ERP, CRM, and other line-of-business systems – whether on premises, in the cloud, or in a hybrid environment. Basis various stakeholders, as the users of our digital solutions, we have categorized them under 3 major tenets: Engage Your Customers Today’s enterprise are undergoing a paradigm shift, driven by digital transformation, to deliver meaningful customer engagement. These companies need to advance beyond agent productivity and capitalize on technology’s ability to deliver key customer insights and predictive analytics that can unlock revenue growth. Key Issues: Lack of consistent customer experiences – with products creates brand confusion. Disparate processes and systems across functions and channels – create inconsistent customer experiences across marketing, sales, and service. Consumer demands and expectations are causing manufacturers to move from only product offerings to products and services offerings. Optimize Your Operations Globalization has changed the innovation process, supply chain, distribution model, and ways that organizations sell to and service customers. Unfortunately, a large number of companies work with outdated or obsolete IT that limit their ability to address key challenges and opportunities in today’s digital world. Key Issues: Disconnected data across regions and products – makes accurate analysis difficult and time consuming. Systems that are not designed to handle – the volume and complexity of digital data and machine-generated signals inhibit the ability to use IoT data in the customer engagement processes. High operational costs – negatively affect margins. Inefficient collaboration and analysis capabilities – delay decision-making and hinder productivity. High infrastructure development costs – prevent companies from building up IT infrastructure scale and software capabilities globally. Empower Your Employees As the talent pool shrinks, employees cultivated to be tech-literate and customer-obsessed will be more valuable than ever. By reinventing productivity and enabling a data-driven culture, companies who focus on empowering employees will be in the best position to hire and retain workers. Key Issues: Lack of support for mobile workers – decreases productivity potential and reduces innovation. Customer data residing in silos – prevents the sharing of customer information between functions. Limited analytics capabilities – result in incomplete insight into customer behavior and intent. Lack of industry, customer, and product insights – inhibit the ability to make informed strategic decisions. Potential threat of losing intellectual property – inhibits efficient collaboration. Service Offerings/Key Features Trident Enterprise Mobility Strategy and Consulting Service helps our clients to develop mobility strategies, mobility business, technology plans and design mobility solutions to drive additional enterprise and customer value. Our approach to helping our customers develop and implement successful Enterprise Mobility Programs is based on the following key steps: Strategy & Consulting Vertical Solution Solutions & Architecture Framework Testing Management Development Enterprise Mobile App Development Strategy & Consulting Strategy & Vision Governance, Compliance & Security Enterprise Mobility Architecture Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) Enterprise Mobility Support Enterprise Mobility Application Roadmap Vertical Solution Field Service Mobile ApplicationOur customer is a leading global provider of technology solutions for the energy industry. They design,READ MORE ManufacturingSeveral factors are converging to enable manufacturers to gain competitive advantage through..READ MORE RetailWith mobility redefining the way retail industry is currently operating, there is no exaggeration that..READ MORE Transportation & LogisticsTransportation and logistics companies operate in a complex market. Travelers expect top-notch…READ MORE Faster Invoicing and Well-Informed Technicians“We had handwritten manual systems,” explains Damian Hudson, head of IT for SPP Pumps. “When..READ MORE Solutions & Architecture Framework Testing Management Development Enterprise Mobility Testing (VnV) Services Trident ensures end-to-end Validation and Verification Services for Mobile Applications on any Mobile Platform in a well-equipped test lab by subject matter experts leveraging various available tools and solutions. (EMM) Solution is comprised of a single solution comprised of: Mobile Device Management (MDM/BYOD) Mobile App Management (MAM) Mobile Support Management Mobile Operations Management Mobile App Analytics Enterprise Mobile App Development Trident deliver mobile apps quickly and consistently without a hiccup keeping the development cost low, reducing time-to-market, and adding significant value in the overall outcome. Develop native apps for iOS and Android Develop cross-platform mobile apps using Xamarin and Cordova Help to secure and migrate data Platform Expertise   READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEPS WITH TRIDENT’s MOBILITY SOLUTION Contact us today to schedule a quick chat about your project, or sign up for one of our monthly demos! Request For Demo

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Internet of Things

When You Connect Your Business With IoT, The Opportunities Are EndlessBring your business together in new insightful ways with the Internet of Things (IoT) – from increasing process efficiencies to delivering better customer experiences to generating new revenue steams. Preferred IoT Consulting Partner for Enterprises Globally Our team helps Enterprises build Systems of Intelligence using IoT Platform to extract real-time insights from their business. We leverage our IoT services expertise to connect thousands of physical assets with Cloud, Mobile devices & backend ERPs/CRMs. Thus, enabling them to harness their enterprise data for creating differentiated competitive advantage, higher business value & highly improved customer satisfaction. Connected Enterprises with IoT Create real-time interactions with your customers, field force and physical assets Anytime, Anywhere Data access Mobilize your Enterprise, making it securely accessible to employees & consumers Accelerate Business outcomes Use your data to derive business intelligence, enabling enhanced decision making Industry Focused IoT App Development Services Upgrade from ‘Go Digital’ to ‘Being Digital’ with our industry focused Internet of Things services Retail Add new revenue channels, deliver superior customer experience & optimize Supply Chain Management with IoT development services for retail. Retail Supply Chain Achieve competitive advantage & magnify profits in retail supply chain by optimizing customer retail experience at every square foot of brick & mortar stores. Smart Shelves Real-time visibility of stock levels, shelf life of perishable goods & proactive reorder alerts at all levels of manufacturing, distribution & supply Delivery Operations Redraw point-to-point delivery mechanisms with smart sensors that reduce carriage distance, delivery span & improve fuel efficiency. Warehouse Automation Build automated warehouses that utilizes data from embedded sensors in equipment & bins to optimize stock movement & product assembly. Interactive digital signage screens Set up digital signage in the store to attract visitors and help them navigate through your products, discounts, and loyalty programs. IoT-enabled beacons For retailers, beacons can prove to be an effective advertising tool that boosts the power of personalization, provides insightful data and increases app engagement and retention. Manufacturing Breed a whole new range of heavy machinery that work with IoT solution enabled intelligence. Product Asset Management Prevent wastage of inventory, energy and man hours through predictive product asset management that sustains best health of assets throughout the production cycle. Connected Factory Refresh your factory operations by integrating embedded controller technology consisting of sensors & actuators for remote equipment management, better workforce safety & productivity. Performance Optimization Build an ecosystem of connected machinery that work together in collaborative environment to achieve automated production & quicker production cycles at same or reduced cost levels Safety / Security Improve employee safety, reduce toxic byproduct production and control several other manufacturing safety issues through sensors that work at levels of the manufacturing unit. Construction Imbibe IoT technology grounded management into buildings for a better living experience. Inventory Replenishment In a business where time is of essence, ensure that your equipment and construction inventory is always at optimal levels with next-gen IoT sensors. Remote Operation Connect, control & manage critical construction equipment from a unified control base. Monitor key metrics like temperature, pressure, vibration, etc. for corrective actions. Tools & Equipment Tracking Manage & measure health and vital stats of equipment scattered across vast expanse of construction sites on a real-time basis using sensor based geopositioning Equipment Servicing & Repair Schedule maintenance, predict downtimes and remedy performance inconsistencies by analysing & consolidating a deluge of sensor data created by all equipments. Logistics Transport and logistics with integrated IoT for sensing and shaping demand and building & adapting supply chain that will result in improved capacity, efficiency, reliability & lower cost. Fleet Management & Monitoring Optimize fleet management & vehicle monitoring through onboard sensors that collect onroad information about vehicle & driver behaviour. Connected Vehicles Build Vehicle of the future that can merge into their immediate surroundings by reading & transmitting data through sensors. Remote Vehicle Diagnostics Empower cognition for vehicles that can remotely diagnose mechanical stats, comfort settings & entertainment consoles Vehicle Tracking In-vehicle hardware & software embedment that give real-time insights on vehicle movement, location, health stats & other contextual data. Energy Rethinking energy management, billing and asset maintenance with internet of things development for Energy. Smart Metering Smart metering that will eliminate manual inaccuracies in billing this rewarding cost savings for customers. Also prepares energy grids for peak time usage through meter data capture. Asset Performance Management Preset conditions based maintenance that help reduce asset wear & tear, energy wastage & improves energy generation, transmission & distribution across vast geographical expanses. Energy Distribution Connect, control & manage complex energy grids from a single console with a network of connected devices. Predict peak times, prepare for downtimes and sustain consistent energy delivery. Industries Manufacturing Sandvik Cormorant combines human and digital intelligence into a predictive analytics solution Hospitality Technology Specialists For Food Service Enterprises, Globally. We enable the use of Enterprise mobility.. Transport & Logistics A premier Logistics service provider goes cutting-edge with IoT based Fleet management solution to delight its customers Report IoT and Analytics: Better Manufacturing Decisions in the era of Industry 4.0. Increasingly, Best-in-Class firms are.. READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEPS WITH TRIDENT’S IOT SOLUTIONS Contact us today to schedule a quick chat about your project, or sign up for one of our monthly demos! Request For Demo

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How Microsoft Business Central is Powerful & All in One Business Management Solution

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Run your business anywhere with Microsoft Business Central Choose cloud or on-premises. Business Central runs where you need it, offering the same user experience no matter how you deploy. Take your business on the go.  The mobile version supports both cloud and on-premises users with a consistent experience across Windows, Android, and iOS devices. Remove language barriers. Business Central supports 25 languages to help increase your productivity. Store and transmit data across your systems. Help protect your data from unauthorized access with automatic Microsoft datacenter encryption Read more about Business Central Capabilities  Manage your financials Make informed decisions using connected data from reports, charts, and Microsoft Power BI dashboards across finance and accounting, sales, purchasing, and inventory. The late payment prediction extension helps you reduce receivables. View charts and reports in real time through built-in reports, Excel, or Power BI. Use unlimited dimensions for your data to identify patterns and trends. Accelerate financial closing and reporting by using the integrated accounts receivable and payable capabilities. Streamline the process with approval workflows and Microsoft Power Automate integration. Track financial performance with custom general ledger (G/L) and account schedules reporting. Evaluate cost, revenue, or profit reporting in the cost accounting module. Learn more about financial management capabilities  Optimize your supply chain Predict the best time to replenish stock using built-in intelligence. Use sales forecasts and expected stock-outs to automatically create purchase orders. Get a holistic view of your inventory, and use the same costing method or different methods for your inventory items. Freely move items between locations, and control the quantity on hand using cycling counting. Engage with your suppliers proactively and cost-effectively. Register potential suppliers, send inquiries, and convert the best offers to orders. Configure required approvers to help ensure compliance with internal and external policies. Use system-generated suggestions to replenish inventory based on actual and forecast demand and availability. Learn more about supply chain management capabilities  Accelerate your sales process Prioritize leads based on revenue potential. Keep track of customer interactions and get guidance on the best upsell, cross-sell, and renewal opportunities throughout your sales cycle. Optimize revenue and address customers’ needs, with flexible pricing and discount structures for individual customers and customer groups. Keep an overview of agreements with sales order and blanket sales order processes. Quickly give customers details about prices, discounts, delivery dates, product availability, and fulfillment status. Address customer returns with sales return order management, including credit notes, repairs, or replacements. Learn more about sales management capabilities  Deliver projects on time and under budget Create, manage, and track customer projects using timesheets and advanced job costing and reporting capabilities. Develop and modify budgets to ensure project profitability. Manage resource levels by planning capacity and sales. Track customer invoicing against planned or actual costs on orders and quotes. Make effective decisions using real-time insights on project status, profitability, and resource-usage metrics. Learn more about project management capabilities  Run your warehouse efficiently Optimize your storage facilities by setting up bins and zones in Business Central to reflect the layout of your warehouse and its racks and shelves. Streamline receiving and storage by using a template to determine the best placement of items based on type, size, and bin capacity. Get recommendations on where to move items to optimize the space and the picking process. Speed up shipments and reduce friction caused by cross-docking. Use real-time data on every item’s zone, bin, and quantity to better fulfill your customers’ orders. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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8 tips to build a successful restaurant experience in times of crisis and beyond

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Digital transformation is no longer a choice. That’s the key message from the experts who spoke at “How to build a successful restaurant experience in Covid times,” an online event organized by LS Retail and Microsoft. The panel included industry experts from Microsoft and LS Retail as well as Leon DeWet, a CIO with decades of experiences in the F&B industry. The group discussed how restaurants can build competences and resilience to maintain customer loyalty and thrive, now and through the next crisis. This blog is mainly for Restaurant management software & tips for Successful restaurant  experience Restaurant Management Software Here are 8 tips from the experts to help you approach this digital transformation, so that you can ride the next wave of change instead of being crushed by it. 1. Rethink every step of the journey Yesterday, you had to deliver convenience and hospitality; today, you must also guarantee customer and employee safety. Many restaurants have added quick fixes, such as covering payment devices in plastic, so they can easily be sanitized. “How often does the reader on the contactless device not work, now that it’s covered in plastic?,” Minicola asked attendees, adding “And how often do restaurants ask me to touch the screen anyway to provide a tip?” The boom of contactless payments, home delivery, drive-thru and curbside is not temporary. Restaurants must step back, rethink the whole journey, and implement solutions that are effective and designed to last long-term. Two examples that were mentioned of additions that will bring a benefit now and tomorrow: Menus that can be accessed via a QR code are useful now – paper menus are hard to sanitize – and will provide a value later on, as they enable restaurants to make quick menu changes without wasting time or printing costs. Software to manage tables and seating plans can help you easily redesign your floor plan, with safely distanced tables and clear tracking of who is seating where and when for contact tracing purposes. In the future, table management software can help you optimize seating space, track the status of each table (who is waiting to order, who has been served) and easily accommodate last-minute guests, all the while keeping your service flawless. 2. Focus on mobility Mobility should be a priority in any digitization project. Running your Point of Sale on mobile devices helps you manage the flow of guests and staff inside the restaurant premises. Your server can take an order from a group sitting on the terrace, and then go to another table, take their card payment and see them out. Service is faster and more convenient for your guests, who can stay seated throughout. At the same time, you reduce the risk of contagion by reducing needless walking around and queuing at the till, and by letting servers using a personal device instead of sharing a standard till. And if your POS offers a two-way connection to the display systems in the kitchen, you get a whole set of extra benefits. “With our restaurant software, when you punch in an order at the POS, the order is sent automatically to a digital display at the correct kitchen station. Your front-of-house staff is spared all the needless back and forth from the table to the kitchen and to the register. The result is less risk of contact, and less time wasted,” said Eric Miller, Regional Director at LS Retail. But this is just scratching the surface. Mobile POS, especially when part of an interconnected technology platform, also enables more precise communication between front of house and kitchen, reduces the risk of production mistakes, and helps speed up table turns. Michael Mento, Surface specialist at Microsoft, described how eagerly restaurants have adopted the Surface tablet devices, which also come with accessories specifically designed for use on the restaurant floor. 3. Build your experiences on a strong technology platform Customers demand consistent experiences, and these can only be achieved through a unified approach to technology. Unified software solutions are increasingly replacing traditional fragmented IT setups. The benefits are well known: Managers geta 360-degree view of the organisation, with all business and customer data accessible in one place. Decision making is faster, as managers can get actionable reports, accounts and statistics exactly when they need them. Implementation and management costs are lower, as you don’t need to integrate separate systems and to maintain these integrations. You can transmit information quickly across the company, from the dishes on today’s menu to recipes, prices and nutritional content. So everyone can always perform at the top of their abilities. And if you run your unified software in the cloud, you can grab opportunities as they arise. As the pandemic hit, companies that run their software in the cloud, and who were not burdened by traditional on-prem infrastructure, investments and timelines, have been able to add innovative technology and transform their business models faster. “For many restaurants, the ability to add systems for pickup, delivery, and curbside made the difference between success and closing up doors,” Miller pointed out. Leon DeWet, former CIO at F&B enterprises Cracker Barrel and O’Charley’s, reminded business to consider how well the selected software and hardware work together. “If one works, but the other one doesn’t deliver, the project fails,” he noted. “Look for a solution that is proven for software and hardware working together.” Mento, from the Microsoft Surface team, echoed DeWet’s words. 4. Track changes in customer behavior With people working from home and stuck in lockdowns, restaurants have seen tremendous changes. They have lost old customers, gained new ones, and seen regulars approach them at different times, with new needs. These are changes businesses must pay attention to. “You need to capture this data, or you have no way to build your strategy on driving loyalty now and into the future,” said Minicola. “You cannot establish and foster loyalty without data,” she added. Access to data that is both reliable and timely is necessary for action. You need to clearly see what is happening to react, and prevent issues and waste. “During the pandemic, many restaurants have had problems sourcing specific ingredients,” said Miller. “With our software, you can do predictive cost analysis, and experiment varying prices, menus and recipes. The system helps you find the sweet spot with optimum benefits. You can then use this knowledge to

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Customer Story : CRANE Worldwide Logistics centralised their sales platform with Microsoft Dynamics 365

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As it approached its 10-year anniversary and its first billion in revenue, global logistics and freight company Crane Worldwide Logistics looked for a modern platform that brought all its sales tools into one place. With the Microsoft Relationship Sales solution, which brings together LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Sales, its salespeople have the tools to drive more meaningful engagements with customers, convert opportunities faster, and create more revenue. Just by getting the team using the platform, we’ve seen an uplift in activity in all areas. We’ve had record growth since implementing Microsoft Relationship Sales—the last quarter was excellent for us. John Jergens: Vice President of Global Sales Crane Worldwide Logistics A global sales team From a startup created in the risky business climate of the 2008 recession, Crane Worldwide Logistics has become a major player in the global transport and logistics industry, on track to hit USD1 billion in revenue in 2019. Created by former Eagle Global Logistics executives and headquartered in Houston, Texas, Crane Worldwide aims to provide customers with full transparency into its supply chains by coupling talented people with game-changing technology. But with salespeople spread across the globe, Crane Worldwide found itself with a visibility problem. “We weren’t all working on a common platform, so we were lacking in visibility,” says John Jergens, Vice President of Global Sales at Crane Worldwide. “We knew we had a vast sales pipeline out there, but there wasn’t much data available on it—so we couldn’t see how robust it was.” From data silos to connected visibility A key part of the Crane Worldwide ethos is providing customers with meaningful interactions—and that relies on having a customer relationship management (CRM) solution that salespeople can use to build and maintain relationships and convert opportunities more effectively. But, with a seven-year-old siloed CRM system that it had simply outgrown, the company lacked the tools its salespeople needed. “The previous system never had very good adoption,” Jergens adds. “It just wasn’t very functional.” So, the team went looking for a platform that could replace it. With implementation support from Microsoft Partner Network member PowerObjects, Crane Worldwide deployed the Microsoft Relationship Sales solution, a powerful combination of Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Sales and LinkedIn Sales Navigator, to support personalized, meaningful customer engagements. The team was already using LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Microsoft Office 365, so Dynamics 365 for Sales was the ideal addition to the Crane Worldwide ecosystem. “We saw how Microsoft Relationship Sales could help us focus on being easy to work with from a customer’s perspective,” explains Jergens. “So this whole deployment was part and parcel of becoming easier to do business with.” Now, just six months into deployment, Crane Worldwide has 300 Microsoft Relationship Sales users in its ranks, including 150 direct sellers along with employees from its marketing and account management teams. New processes, simpler sales Using the Microsoft Relationship Sales solution, Crane Worldwide salespeople have already changed the way they work. And they’re reaping the benefits of the visibility they’ve gained into the sales pipeline. “Once we rolled out Microsoft Relationship Sales, the overwhelming response was that it’s really easy to use, and it doesn’t take much time,” says Jergens. “We created a very simple weekly routine where our sellers spend about 30 minutes adding new data into Dynamics 365 for Sales. That’s just six minutes a day to keep everything up to date.” With faster processes freeing up more time for the sales team, sellers can focus their energy where it matters most—building the customer relationships that turn into revenue. And, at the end of each week, management can analyze activity through a global dashboard, which combines CRM and customer interaction data into detailed executive reports that show how salespeople are turning relationships into revenue. “With Microsoft Relationship Sales, we can generate KPIs that tell us what a healthy pipeline should look like. We look at the number of prospects and targets, how long the sales cycle takes, and the time from when we close an account to the time it generates revenue,” explains Jergens. “And if the pipeline isn’t where it should be, we can support the sellers with the resources that they need—it’s more productive all around.” A centralized sales platform Because Microsoft Relationship Sales brings together so many sales capabilities, Crane Worldwide sellers have everything they need to do their jobs in one place. Previously, they had to manage a relationship from scoping to sale across disconnected tools and platforms, far from an efficient process. “It’s difficult to put a number on what it’s like to manage 30 or 40 customers with an email folder and a spreadsheet,” says Jergens. “Now, once the salesperson finds a prospect using LinkedIn Sales Navigator, they use Dynamics 365 for Sales to easily track those conversations. Instead of creating and referencing a lot of notes, they can quickly link activities and discussions through Microsoft Relationship Sales.” With LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Dynamics 365 for Sales together, salespeople can start building the context they need to deliver a meaningful interaction before the first contact even occurs. Insight into potential prospects’ roles, connections, and priorities through LinkedIn Sales Navigator is fed straight into Dynamics 365 for Sales—increasing conversion chances from the very start. “It’s had a direct impact on the time it takes to develop customer relationships, because we have true visibility into those opportunities now,” explains Jergens. A built-in assistant also sends prompts to help sellers accelerate the sales cycle, reminding them to contact a lead that might go cold or nudge an opportunity as it approaches its estimated close date. A roadmap for integration In businesses the world over, sales and marketing teams struggle to communicate and collaborate effectively. As the sales team adapts to Microsoft Relationship Sales, Crane Worldwide is already adopting more of the solution’s capabilities to help sales and marketing stay on the same path. “The marketing teams are able to work in tandem with the sales team to help them understand how marketing activities can help nurture their

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Dynamics 365: 2020 release wave 2 plan

Business Central Implementation /

The Dynamics 365 release plan for the 2020 release wave 2 describes all new features releasing from October 2020 through March 2021. You can either browse the release plan online or download the document as a PDF file. The PDF file also includes information about Power Apps, Power Automate, Power Virtual Agents, Power Platform governance and administration, and Common Data Model and data integration. The Microsoft Power Platform features coming in the 2020 release wave 2 have been summarized in a separate release plan as well as a downloadable PDF. 2020 release wave 2 overview The 2020 release wave 2 for Dynamics 365 brings new innovations that provide you with significant capabilities to transform your business. The release contains hundreds of new features across Dynamics 365 applications including Marketing, Sales, Customer Service, Field Service, Finance, Supply Chain Management, Human Resources, Commerce, Fraud Protection, and Business Central. Marketing Dynamics 365 Marketing improves the customer journey canvas experience and adds integration with Microsoft Teams for virtual events. Segmentation is enhanced with a new natural language experience to create and consume segments, helping eliminate the specialized skills needed to build complex segments. Sales Dynamics 365 Sales continues emphasis on simplified experiences, app integrations, gamification, a new mobile experience for quick access to customer information, and new enhancements to forecasting to natively create and manage bottom-up sales forecast processes. Dynamics 365 Sales Insights continues investments across multiple areas: sales acceleration, conversation intelligence, relationship intelligence, and advanced forecasting and pipeline intelligence with predictive lead and opportunity scoring to help sales teams uncover top deals. Dynamics 365 Product Visualize empowers sellers and accelerates complex sales processes by showcasing and customizing products in their real-world environment. Sellers can place a 3D digital twin of a product in their customer’s environment and make detailed notes about their requirements. Service Dynamics 365 Customer Service expands agent productivity capabilities enabling agents to engage in multiple sessions simultaneously. Omnichannel for Customer Service is enhanced with additional extensibility options to enable integration with mobile applications, Microsoft bot framework, and outbound messaging channels. Dynamics 365 Customer Service Insights adds new capabilities to help agents using similar case suggestions to resolve customer issues quickly and easily. A new analytical view for customer service managers helps them focus on key support areas that need attention. These highlights will also be included directly in the core Customer Service Hub app so that users can get insights in context without having to switch between applications. Dynamics 365 Field Service continues to add intelligence capabilities including a new Field Service dashboard for monitoring key KPIs and work order completion metrics. There are many user experience enhancements to enable proactive service delivery. The Field Service mobile app is enhanced with capabilities such as push notifications and real-time location sharing. This release wave also includes scheduling enhancements such as multiday manual scheduling and enhanced skill-based matching. Dynamics 365 Remote Assist expands its range of scenarios beyond calls, allowing technicians to perform activities such as capture service and repairs data, perform surveys and walk-throughs independently, and derive service insights from their service operations. Finance and Operations Dynamics 365 Finance continues to focus on automating common tasks to reduce the number of manual processes and add insights and intelligence in Finance. Asset leasing enhances the core capabilities of Finance and the global coverage for Finance continues to expand in this release wave. Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management expands planning optimization for Manufacturing to perform supply and production planning in near real time with in-memory services. Enhancements to Product Information Management include engineering change management and product versioning capabilities. Cost Management includes new features that will enable global companies maintain multiple cost accounting ledgers by allowing dual currency and dual valuation. Enhancements to the job card device include a new user experience and a new feature to enable reporting serial numbers. Dynamics 365 Guides is focusing on intelligent workflows in this release wave. By taking advantage of data and AI innovations, work instructions can be configured to adjust on the fly based on operator inputs. In addition, insights will make it easier to use time-tracking data and connect that data to your business. Dynamics 365 Project Operations unifies operational workflows to provide the visibility, collaboration, and insights needed to drive success across teams from sales to finance. Project Operations connects your sales, resourcing, project management, and finance teams within a single application to win more deals, accelerate delivery, empower employees, and maximize profitability. Human Resources Dynamics 365 Human Resources expands leave and absence and benefits management capabilities to transform the employee experience. Employees and managers will be able to manage leave and absence directly from Microsoft Teams. This release wave enables streamlined integrations to recruiting and payroll partners, thereby building a Human Capital Management (HCM) ecosystem. Commerce Dynamics 365 Commerce continues to expand capabilities enabling non-developers to easily design and manage digital commerce experiences. Customers can increase lift online and in store with “Shop similar looks” for recommendations. Customers can discover and deploy third-party services, connectors, modules, and themes from Microsoft AppSource. Dynamics 365 Connected Store adds a number of new capabilities such as integration with Dynamics 365 Commerce, front-line worker task assignment and tracing with Microsoft Teams, integrated workflows with Microsoft Power Platform, intelligent command center, store analytics, and store insights solutions such as anomaly detection, inventory recommendations, and shift management recommendations. Fraud Protection Dynamics 365 Fraud Protection adds integration with Dynamics 365 Commerce and a new “manual review” capability that allows customers to use the Fraud Protection rules experience to flag transactions for review, and then allow expert human agents to consume and adjudicate those transactions. SMB Dynamics 365 Business Central investments for this release wave include service enhancements to meet the demands of a rapidly growing customer base, improved performance, handling of file storage, geographic expansion together with support for Group VAT, top customer-requested features, and deeper integration with Microsoft Teams. Customer data platform Dynamics 365 Customer Insights enables every organization to unify disparate data—be it transactional, observational or behavioral sources—to gain a single view of customers and derive intelligent insights that drive key business processes. Dynamics 365 Product Insights enables organizations to understand their customers’ journey, usage,

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How AI and AR can help retailers stay in business in moments of crisis

Retail ERP Software /

Store closures and social distancing have caused a rise in demand for virtual tools and technologies that bring the shopping experience into consumers’ homes. Beauty brands, which were among the first to try out AI and AR to enhance the consumer experience, are increasingly using the technology to suggest products based on people’s preferences and unique characteristics, including skin tone and face shape, as well as to help customers virtually try on products before committing to a purchase. Even before the Covid-19 crisis, the technology had already proved its worth. Figures from Perfect Corp, which develops virtual makeup technology, show that virtual try-on technology generated 2.5 times higher e-commerce conversions for brands and decreased return rates by more than 8%. Trident is offering Cloud Based Retail ERP Software to manager retail operations effectively As the technology develops and becomes more sophisticated, consumers are progressively trusting in AI to help them make purchase decisions. “Consumers trust AI to curate a choice of products, services and experiences that reduce complexity and make life more fulfilling,” writes Andrew Cosgrove, Global Consumer Knowledge Leader & Lead Analyst at EY. “AI knows its “owner” so well that it suggests new and unexpected product ideas or experiences they love.” Digital suddenly finds itself one of the main commerce channels for retailers. We expect AI and AR are here to stay, as more consumers become aware of their virtues when it comes to convenience, and as these technologies can help retailers to continue trading regardless of what happens in the real world. Here are four ways to make AI and AR work for your business: 1. Bring the in-store shopping experience to your customers’ homes AI and AR take online shopping to a whole new level by making it possible for consumers to choose from selected products picked out just for them, try out new experiences and test products in ways they wouldn’t have been able to previously – all from the comfort of their homes. Early pioneers of AI- and AR-powered online shopping include opticians, who realized that consumers still want the option to try on glasses and see what styles suit them before committing to a purchase. Virtual fitting technology has made this possible, with some retailers further elevating the experience using AI to automatically suggest the perfect frame to suit your face. Indeed, AI lends itself to verticals where consumers may find themselves bogged down in complex choices. Instead of having to scroll through hundreds and hundreds of beauty products, for example, new services such as My Beauty Matches use AI-powered algorithms, and using the consumer’s previous searches, purchases, and known preferences, they suggest items from large databases (in this case, there are over 400,000 products) that couldn’t be easily browsed by the consumer. Advances in machine learning help brands to identify consumer styles and preferences to gain a granular level of customer understanding, so they can optimize each customer’s individual journey. “In one of the worlds we modeled, consumers valued time much more than money,” Andrew Cosgrove, Global Consumer Knowledge Leader & Lead Analyst at EY, said. “Their personalized AI learned about their unique preferences and used those insights to buy most of the things they needed. This allowed them to spend their time shopping only with brands that reflected their values and purpose.” 2. Find the right items across infinite aisles of products The most successful AI and AR experiences today tend to be delivered by retailers that have large item assortments and the ability for consumers to personalize their choices. Home goods and furniture retailers are a clear use case, with many using the technology to help customers choose products that will fit beautifully into their homes and match their existing décor. Online furniture retailer Wayfair is known for using AI to target customers with personalized recommendations. The company’s search algorithm extracts the customer’s style preferences from their search history to present a selection of furniture that is likely to appeal. Another service allows customers to take a photo of a furniture piece they like and match it to a similar item in the Wayfair inventory, which holds millions of products. AR then takes this a step further by giving consumers the ability to virtually see how products will look in situ before committing to a purchase. Returns on investment have been demonstrated with increased conversion and reduced returns. AI is proving its worth in fashion too, helping customers choose clothing that will fit them best by analyzing previous purchases and suggesting sizing based on their profile. Iconic jeans brand Levi’s uses an AI-based chatbot to help customers find the perfect pair of jeans. It asks consumers their preferences when it comes to fit, rise, amount of stretch and wash, and asks what size they are in another brand to determine the best size in Levi’s and suggest the right pair. And in beauty, brands are using the technology to offer services such as instant foundation shade matching and advanced skincare analysis, as well as matching consumers with products and looks that will suit their complexion, style and occasion. 3. Anticipate consumer demands One of the major benefits that retailers can draw from AI and AR experiences is the amount of data they can collect about their consumers along the way. This data, if collected appropriately, can be used to improve the accuracy of stock and inventory requirements forecasts throughout the year. “As consumers browse, test features and make purchases, they are providing retailers with an entirely new set of data points,” writes Hamaad Chippa on Retail TouchPoints. Retailers can then use this information to rethink product assortments for a better shopping experience, or to develop highly targeted marketing campaigns that lead to greater conversion rates. For example, a customer who just bought a whole load of supplies from a pet store for their new kitten is likely to want to sign up for home deliveries of cat food. AI can also help retailers target consumers with promotions that are more likely to lead to purchases based on past browsing and purchase history.  “Whether that is 10% off online, 15% in-store or free shipping, customers automatically receive the

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How Manufacturing Industry Transformed using Microsoft Dynamics 365

Uncategorized /

The future of manufacturing will be defined by the quality of investments companies are making today In the not too distant past, efforts in manufacturing to optimize productivity and increase customer satisfaction were viewed as separate endeavors. Today, the convergence of physical and digital trends is disrupting these kinds of assumptions. Manufacturers today care about integrated digital and physical systems, improved visibility, increased efficiency, additional flexibility, and lower costs. They want to connect equipment and factories, leveraging data from the factory floor to the customer call center to improve every aspect of their operations. But this is just the beginning. Digitization is fundamentally changing the way manufacturers do business, enabling a customer-centric approach while optimizing operations. Digitally empowered manufacturers engage customers throughout the product lifecycle from design to field service. They sell value-add services to complement the product sales, opening new revenue streams and strengthening their customer relationships. And they are revolutionizing delivery of these differentiated services, using technology like augmented reality to combine the eyes of a technician in the field with the insights of an expert back at headquarters. Capitalizing on these trends isn’t limited to large, well-resourced manufacturers. Across all kinds of manufacturing operations, the opportunity to digitize and transform your business has never been more accessible. Imagine your business transformed The Microsoft vision for supporting digital manufacturing embraces the seismic shifts in the industry today. We’ve created solutions that provide a unified and flexible approach across front office and production floor processes. Our approach enables transformation in six ways: Optimize supply chain operations through better visibility and collaboration By collecting, integrating, and visualizing global supply chain data worldwide, manufacturers gain better visibility into their operations from production to sales. For example, one of the world’s largest industrial automation firms found that by automating the collection and analysis of data from remote installations across the petroleum supply chain, they strengthened their competitive advantage with a faster time to market. Improved access to supply chain data is also the basis for better collaboration across production, supply, service, and sales.  Streamline the management of assets, products, and production With a consolidated view that unifies process oversight and provides real-time insight, manufacturers can institutionalize efficiency gains and use connected devices to monitor and resolve issues remotely. One leading manufacturer of industrial robots enabled 24-hour continuous uptime using this approach. The additional insights into production and customer usage also allow manufacturers to provide value-added services like ongoing monitoring and proactive support. Engage customers in powerful new ways To deliver personalized and contextual engagement across any channel, manufacturers must provide customers with more visibility and build trust through fast and convenient responses. This engagement approach is built on a combination of predictive analytics, the ability  to deliver value-added services at scale, and guided or self-directed service that’s relevant to customer needs. With the implementation of a connected platform for sales through service, a leading home technology manufacturer not only solved potential problems remotely before customers ever felt the impact, but provided custom differentiated offerings based on unique customer usage and purchasing history.  Transform service centers into profit centers Thanks to the ever-decreasing cost of IoT sensors, sophisticated mobile devices, and cloud-based data aggregation, manufacturers can improve service quality and margins by offering remote monitoring and proactive maintenance services that supplement break/fix support. By more intelligently coordinating technicians equipped with mobile and virtual reality tools, companies can leverage existing expertise and minimize costly engagements. A leading tire service and manufacturing company found that by combining customer records, technician availability, and back-end inventory in a single mobile-friendly system, it could provide a seamless user experience as well as improve its service delivery. understand their business more deeply, from customer usage through supply chain sourcing and production. With IoT-enabled parts, assets, and products, manufacturers can gain the insights needed to innovate. Data from connected products and equipment can empower developers, engineers, and technicians to collaborate. For example, teams can identify overengineered or faulty components and track product usage in the field to improve future designs. When a leading information and communication technology company implemented remote monitoring, they decreased time to production as well as accelerated the cycle of innovation using a data-driven approach. Empower employees to work more effectively When a company can provide 360-degree views of customer assets and work order history, technicians are empowered by a better understanding of not only the job in front of them, but of other similar and successful field service engagements. This goes hand in hand with empowering service agents to provide instant feedback, using machine learning to find and follow similar cases for successful troubleshooting, and scheduling a visit or evaluation. A leading auto manufacturer wanted to save money by unifying their siloed customer service and customer engagement while providing employees with better tools to understand customer sentiment. To accomplish this, it implemented a system to connect production and project management with their customer relationship management systems in order to deliver personalized service and recommendations to their customers.  Introducing Microsoft Dynamics 365 For manufacturers, Microsoft Dynamics 365 ends the artificial divide between CRM and ERP systems and supplements necessary capabilities with rich analytics, embedded intelligence, and the convenience people expect from consumer apps on their phone or tablet. Dynamics 365 unites the front office and the back office with a single end-to-end system for managing every aspect of your business, at the pace and scale that’s right for you. Digital transformation isn’t accomplished overnight and leveraging current investments is a key component of any successful approach. With Microsoft, you can optimize across all your processes while laying the foundation for connecting advanced technology in the future. Blog reference: https://cloudblogs.microsoft.com/dynamics365/bdm/2017/05/30/manufacturing-transformed-microsoft-dynamics-365

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