The way sellers sell will change dramatically due to AI. In the ever-evolving landscape of sales, technology has consistently played a pivotal role in shaping strategies and outcomes. Each technological disruption has brought challenges and opportunities, from the shift to cloud computing to the advent of mobile work and the rise of social media platforms like LinkedIn. Reflecting on past disruptions is critical to navigating the future more effectively as we face another transformative wave with Microsoft Copilot and agents. 

See the latest offerings from Microsoft to help scale sales teams with Copilot and agents. 

The shift from on-premises to cloud computing 

The transition from on-premises solutions to cloud computing was a monumental shift that redefined the sales landscape. Companies that embraced the cloud early on reaped significant benefits, including scalability, cost-efficiency, and enhanced collaboration. However, this transition was challenging. 

Key pitfalls of the transition to cloud computing

• Security concerns. Many companies initially hesitated to move to the cloud due to security concerns. The fear of data breaches and losing control over sensitive information led to resistance and slow adoption. 
• Integration challenges. Integrating cloud solutions with existing on-premises systems proved to be a complex and time-consuming process. Companies that underestimated the integration effort faced operational disruptions. 
• Change management. The shift to the cloud required a cultural change within organizations. Companies that could have managed this change effectively struggled with employee resistance and low adoption rates. 

What shifting to cloud computing processes teaches us about AI adoption

• Address security concerns early. Like cloud computing, security is a primary concern with AI solutions like Copilot and agents. Companies should invest in robust security measures and communicate these effectively to build trust. In addition, companies will want to use language models that are not trained using company data. 
• Plan for integration. AI must integrate seamlessly with existing systems and workflows. A well-thought-out integration plan will be crucial to avoid disruptions. Using AI in the tools that organizations are already using will allow for a smoother implementation. 
• Focus on change management. AI will significantly change how teams operate. Effective change management strategies, including training and clear communication, will drive adoption. Implementing Copilot and agents within existing applications can lower the entry barrier, allowing employees to experiment without learning a whole new application. 

To help ensure successful adoption across your organization, explore the Microsoft 365 Copilot for Sales Success Kit to accelerate sales transformation with AI.

The advent of mobile work 

The introduction of mobile phones and the ability to work through apps revolutionized sales. It allowed sellers to access information, communicate with clients, and close deals from anywhere, any time. This mobility brought unprecedented flexibility and efficiency, but also introduced new challenges. 

Key pitfalls of working through mobile phones and apps

• Data security. Mobile devices became a new target for cyberattacks, and companies had to grapple with securing sensitive information on these devices. 
• Device management. Managing a diverse range of devices and ensuring compatibility with enterprise systems was a significant challenge. 
• Work-life balance. The ability to work anytime, anywhere blurred the lines between work and personal life, leading to burnout and decreased productivity. (I’m sure many of us can relate to that still today.) 

What working via mobile teaches us about AI adoption

• Enhance data security. As AI tools become more prevalent, ensuring the security of data generated and used by these tools will be paramount. 
• Standardize tools. To avoid compatibility issues, companies should standardize the generative AI tools and platforms they currently use. 
• Promote work-life balance. Generative AI can enhance productivity, but setting boundaries to prevent burnout is essential. Encourage employees to use AI tools to work smarter, not harder. 

Explore tools, practices, and policies Microsoft has created to uphold responsible AI principles. 

Selling on social media: The LinkedIn revolution 

The rise of LinkedIn transformed sales by providing a platform for networking, lead generation, and brand building. Sellers that used social media platforms gained access to new leads and opportunities. However, the platform also presented new challenges. 

Key pitfalls of using social media for sales

• Content overload. With the influx of content on LinkedIn, standing out became increasingly difficult. Companies that could have created compelling and relevant content struggled to capture attention. 
• Authenticity issues. The pressure to maintain a professional image led to inauthentic interactions, which could damage trust and relationships. 
• Metrics misalignment. Many companies focus on vanity metrics like likes and shares rather than meaningful data points such as engagement and conversion. 

What selling on social media teaches us about AI adoption

• Create valuable content. Copilot and agents can help create high-quality, relevant content that resonates with the target audience. Focus on value rather than volume. 
• Maintain authenticity. Use AI to augment and enhance, not replace, human interactions. Authenticity should remain at the core of all AI-powered communications. 
• Measure what matters. Define clear metrics for success and focus on outcomes that drive business value, such as lead generation and conversion rates. 

The opportunity for early adopters of AI 

Being an early adopter of Copilot and agents presents a unique opportunity to gain a competitive edge. Companies that embrace this technology can expect several benefits: 

• Enhanced productivity. Copilot and agents can help automate repetitive tasks, allowing sales teams to focus on high-value activities. 
• Personalized customer experiences. AI-powered insights can help tailor interactions to meet individual customer needs, improving satisfaction and loyalty. 
• Innovative solutions. Early adopters can use AI to develop creative solutions and stay ahead of the competition. 

The lessons learned from previous tech disruptors provide a valuable roadmap for adopting Copilot and agents into your sales processes. By applying these learnings, companies can avoid common pitfalls and unlock the full potential of AI to drive growth and innovation. The future of sales is bright with the power of AI, and those who learn from the past will be best positioned to lead the way and succeed. 

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2025’s Gartner® CFO & Finance Executive Conference featured sessions and hands-on product demonstrations from finance and operations providers covering growth strategies, cost management tools, and of course, AI in finance. I’ve had the pleasure of attending for a few years now, and what struck me this year was the excitement and enthusiasm for not just learning about but applying agents and generative AI to financial processes. Based on the conversations I had with customers at the event, here are the three things finance leaders should know about getting started with agents and AI.

Automate high-impact processes first

The journey to AI-powered finance doesn’t require a complete overhaul—it can start with targeted, high-impact steps that build momentum and deliver measurable value. Start with areas that are ripe for automation and deliver immediate impact to your team and bottom line. Financial close, account reconciliation, and supplier communications are ideal entry points using prebuilt agents available from Microsoft, like the Supplier Communications Agent in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, which can automatically respond to vendor emails, assess supply chain disruptions, and update purchase orders—helping to ensure continuity without manual intervention.

The breadth of agent possibility doesn’t stop with what’s available today as a prebuilt solution. Microsoft empowers finance professionals to build custom agents for ERP processes, applying automation and intelligence to critical processes, like the process at the heart of finance: record to report. Imagine the impact agents can have helping your team update tax strategies in a complex macroeconomic environment or surfacing real-time financial audits. Microsoft Copilot Studio agent builder provides a simple interface to quickly and easily build agents like the Financial Insights Agent, a tool designed internally for Microsoft to help finance professionals quickly surface and analyze key financial metrics. By using Azure OpenAI and semantic search, this agent allows users to ask natural language questions like “What’s my total operational expenditure (OPEX) as a percentage of expenses?” and receive instant, contextual answers. It can significantly reduce time spent on manual data retrieval and analysis while enhancing decision making with real-time insights. This agent exemplifies how AI can transform planning and analysis workflows, helping make finance teams more agile and strategic. Build your own agent here.

Establish a Center of Innovation to upskill your finance team

Create a dedicated team or initiative to explore, test, and scale AI use cases across finance. This “Center of Innovation” can serve as a hub for experimentation, governance, and best practices—helping ensure that AI adoption is intentional, secure, and aligned with business goals. Creating space for experimentation and testing means giving finance teams the freedom to test new tools, workflows, and ideas without the pressure of immediate perfection. It involves setting up low-risk environments, like sandboxes or pilot programs, where teams can trial AI agents, automate processes, and iterate quickly. This approach fosters a culture of curiosity and continuous improvement, allowing teams to scale what works and learn from what doesn’t.

Establishing a Center of Innovation was central to the growth and success of Microsoft’s own AI adoption. Microsoft Director of Modern Finance, Cory Hrncirik, joined the Microsoft session to share tangible examples of both AI adoption and the structures put in place to get us there.

As team members begin to shift from transactional to strategic roles, it’s imperative to equip your team with the skills required to work alongside AI. This could include training on prompt engineering for your function, data literacy, and how to manage and monitor AI agents.

Microsoft Copilot Studio offers a low-code environment where finance professionals can build and customize agents without needing deep technical expertise.

Work with IT to define your human-agent operating models to scale what works

As agents take on more operational tasks, CFOs must define how humans and AI will collaborate. This includes setting clear roles, responsibilities, and oversight mechanisms. Think of your team as a hybrid workforce—where agents handle the repetitive and analytical, and humans focus on judgment, strategy, and innovation. Due to the sensitive nature of financial material, early collaboration on security and permissions with IT will be crucial to implementation and driving outcomes.

Getting started with Microsoft and Microsoft Dynamics 365

If you’re ready to start reimagining ERP processes with agents, learn more about the pre-built agents announced in April 2025, explore how the new Model Context Protocol servers for Dynamics 365 will accelerate the ability for customers to build agents, and visit “AI-Powered ERP Solutions” for more product information.

Want to dig deeper? Learn how your organization can benefit from using Dynamics 365 Finance and Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management in a three-year projection window¹:

• 106% return on investment (ROI).
• USD8.9 million in productivity gains from unified data access, streamlined processes, and automated workflows.
• USD1.2 million in profitability improvements from real-time visibility and enhanced decision making.
• USD3.9 million in infrastructure savings by moving from legacy on-premises systems to the cloud.

These benefits are grounded in real-world outcomes and are explored deeper in a Forrester Total Economic Impact study, commissioned by Microsoft. The study’s composite organization is modeled after interviews with Dynamics 365 customers, and the report explores how teams reported significant improvements in operations.

Source:

¹The Total Economic Impact™ Of Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP, Cost Savings And Business Benefits Enabled By Dynamics 365 ERP, a Forrester Total Economic Impact™ Study commissioned By Microsoft, April 2024

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

The post Get started with agents for finance: Learnings from 2025 Gartner® CFO & Finance Executive Conference appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

Let’s face it—customers don’t just want fast service anymore. They want businesses to know what they need before they even ask. Whether it’s a reminder about a missed payment, a heads-up about a delivery delay, or a quick check-in after a dropped call, customers appreciate when companies practice proactive engagement. 
 
At the same time, businesses are under pressure to do more with less. Reducing call volumes, improving customer service representative (CSR) productivity, and delivering consistent experiences across channels are no longer nice-to-haves—they’re essential. 
 
That’s where proactive engagement comes in. It’s about flipping the script: instead of waiting for customers to reach out, you reach out to them—with the right message, at the right time, on the right channel. At the end of the day, it’s about relationships. Proactive engagement helps businesses show up for their customers in ways that are meaningful and memorable. It’s about being there before you’re needed. About solving problems before they become complaints. About turning every interaction into an opportunity to build trust. And in a world where customer loyalty is earned one moment at a time, that makes all the difference. 

The platform behind the vision 

So how does it all work? At the heart of proactive engagement is a powerful platform built on Dynamics 365 Contact Center, Dynamics 365 Customer Insights – Journeys (CIJ), and Copilot Studio. Together, they’re changing how organizations connect with customers. 
 
With this platform, you can design intelligent, automated outreach that feels personal. For example, AI-powered voice bots can handle routine calls—like reminding someone about a payment or updating them on a service issue—while seamlessly handing off to a customer service rep when the situation calls for a more personal touch. And the best part? You don’t need to be a developer to make it all happen. The platform is designed with low-code tools. Business users can build and manage customer journeys across voice, SMS, and email—all from one place. 
 
It’s flexible, scalable, and built for the real world, where customer needs change fast and every interaction matters. 

How proactive engagement works

There are two main ways to kick off outbound interaction. One is through Customer Insights – Journeys (CIJ). This is where you can build event-driven journeys that automatically trigger calls based on real-time signals—like a missed payment or a service disruption, or segment-based journeys that target customers that meet a specific criteria. The other is through the CCaaS API, which is perfect if you already have campaign tools or CRMs in place and want to plug into the platform for things like scheduled callbacks. 
 
Once the trigger is set, Contact Center takes over. It handles the orchestration. That is, it figures out the best time to call, checking if the customer is within their preferred contact window. It also manages the pacing of calls so CSRs aren’t overwhelmed. It’s a seamless handoff and it ensures that every call feels intentional, timely, and relevant. 

Dial modes: Tailored for every scenario 

One of the most powerful aspects of proactive engagement is its flexibility, especially when it comes to placing calls. Additionally, it offers dial modes optimized for different types of customer interaction. 

Copilot dial 

This is the most automated option. The system places the call, and a conversational AI bot—your Copilot—takes the lead. It’s perfect for transactional scenarios like payment reminders, service outages, or shipping updates. Copilot can handle the entire interaction. However, if it senses the need for a more nuanced conversation, it can seamlessly bring it to a CSR. It’s a major upgrade from traditional IVR systems, offering a more natural, helpful experience. 

Preview dial 

Here, the CSR is in the driver’s seat from the start. Before the call is even placed, the CSR gets a full view of the customer context—past interactions, preferences, and the reason for the outreach. Once they’re ready, the system dials the customer. This mode is ideal for high-touch engagements where personalization is key, like follow-ups on complex service issues or high-value sales conversations. 

Progressive dial 

This mode strikes a balance between automation and human touch. The system waits until a CSR is available, then places a call to a customer. If the customer picks up, the CSR joins the conversation. It’s efficient, but still ensures that someone is ready to help the moment the customer answers. You can even use Copilot to verify the customer before the CSR joins, adding an extra layer of smart filtering. 

Use cases 

The beauty of proactive engagement is its versatility. It’s a platform that spans the entire customer journey, not just for one department or one type of interaction. Think about a utility company sending outage alerts before customers even notice a problem. Or a bank reminding customers about upcoming payments. Or a retailer following up on an abandoned cart with a personalized offer.  

Whether it’s transactional, commercial, or customer-initiated, proactive engagement makes it easy to deliver the kind of service that feels thoughtful, timely, and human. 

What’s next for proactive engagement

Microsoft is continuing to invest in expanding the capabilities of proactive engagement to support even more sophisticated, scalable, and compliant outreach. One of the most exciting additions on the horizon is predictive dialing, designed for high-volume outreach—like marketing campaigns or large-scale service updates—ensuring CSRs stay productive while customers get timely responses. This mode uses AI to forecast CSR availability and customer pickup rates, allowing the system to place multiple calls per CSR to maximize efficiency.  

Also on the roadmap: 

• Enhanced regulatory compliance for commercial calling (e.g., TCPA, OFCOM) 
• Post-call outcome processing (e.g., voicemail detection, retries) 
• Conversational SMS and Conversational WhatsApp support for outbound journeys 

Learn more about proactive engagement

To learn more, read the documentation: Configure proactive engagement (preview) | Microsoft Learn

Try the preview and ensure your organization stays ahead of customer expectations. Send your feedback to pefeedback@microsoft.com.

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The schedule assistant on the schedule board receives a new feature that enables time zone agnostic scheduling. It’s designed to eliminate the complexities of time zone conversions, and it simplifies the process of scheduling resources across time zones.  

Address cross-time zone challenges 

Scheduling resources in a globally distributed team presents unique challenges. A team with members in different regions may find it difficult to align schedules because their working hours appear differently on a schedule board that is locked to a single time zone.  

By normalizing working hours to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), this feature ensures that scheduling is both accurate and effortless, enabling smoother operations for teams spread across the globe. The unified format makes it easier to focus on availability without the distraction of manual conversions. 

Book requirements across time 

Let’s check out an example. A project manager at a consulting firm manages a team of consultants which work remotely from various locations. All consultants work from 9am-5pm in their local times. Mark works in Singapore, Patrick in New York, and Sarah is based in Seattle. By default, their resource availabilities show haphazardly on the schedule board, which is set to UTC. This makes scheduling tricky. 

The new time zone agnostic schedule assistant feature solves this problem. After enabling the feature, the project manager can launch the schedule assistant and see all resource availabilities normalized to UTC. 

In other words, it visualizes all consultants to be working from 9am-5pm regardless of their time zones.  The project manager can now book the requirement in the consultants’ local time. Schedule assistant automatically converts the booking to the resources’ time zone, which is Eastern Time for Patrick.  

Get started today 

Ask your administrator to turn on the time zone agnostic scheduling assistant feature and experience the difference it makes in your scheduling workflows. For more information, see [DOCS] 

We’re eager to hear your feedback. Let us know what you think about seamless scheduling across time zones in the Community Forum and submit feature suggestions in the Ideas page. 

The post Seamless scheduling across time zones in Dynamics 365 Field Service appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

As Microsoft continues innovating and investing in cloud solutions and technologies that help customers enhance productivity and streamline business processes, we are announcing updates to Dynamics GP and Dynamics SL product availability.

Dynamics GP 

After more than 40 years of availability, in September 2024 we announced that Dynamics GP’s product enhancements, regulatory (tax) updates, and technical support will end on December 31, 2029, with security updates available until April 30, 2031. The following related changes will be effective April 30, 2031: 

• Service Plan coverage ends for Dynamics GP products. 
• Subscription licenses for Dynamics GP (via Solution Provider Agreement (SPA)/Dynamics Price List (DPL)) are no longer renewable.
• Additional perpetual users on existing Dynamics GP systems can no longer be added.
• Subscription use of Dynamics GP via Services Provider License Agreement (SPLA) licensing (not to be confused with SPA program) is expected to end.

As a reminder, the final day for new customers to license Dynamics GP subscriptions is April 1, 2026. 

Dynamics SL 

Similarly, after serving customers for 30 years, mainstream support for Dynamics SL ended July 11, 2023, and its extended support (such as security updates) period will end on July 11, 2028. The following related changes will be effective January 15, 2030: 

• Service Plan coverage ends for Dynamics SL.
• Last day to license more perpetual users on existing Dynamics SL systems.
• Expected last day to use Dynamics SL via SPLA subscriptions (this is not to be confused with the SPA program).

These dates may seem far off, but full cloud migration is not something that can be accomplished overnight, and forward-thinking organizations should begin the conversation today.

Why migrate to Business Central today?

Recently, we provided an in-depth review of the reasons, steps, and benefits of moving from Dynamics GP to Business Central. Here are some of the many reasons why customers running either Dynamics GP or Dynamics SL should consider migrating to Business Central today:

• Future-proof your business. Business Central is a comprehensive solution for SMBs, covering sales, finance, project management, manufacturing, supply chain, and service—all on a single, AI-ready platform.
• Use AI now. With built-in Microsoft Copilot capabilities and customizable AI agents, Business Central helps you automate and optimize operations today—not someday.
• Reduce technical debt. Modernizing from legacy on-premises systems eliminates redundancies, cuts costs, and improves visibility into business performance.

How to migrate to Business Central

Microsoft provides a number of tools to help support the efficient and comprehensive transfer of business data from both Dynamics GP and Dynamics SL to Business Central. The first step in a migration process is to consult with your partner on the scope of migration and implementation timeline. If you need additional support or don’t know where to start, you can engage with a Microsoft representative.

The technical steps, whether you’re migrating from either Dynamics GP or Dynamics SL, will be largely the same.

Initially, the preparation phase helps to ensure that the on-premises environment meets all prerequisites for migration. This includes planning the migration timeline, verifying data integrity, and setting up the cloud migration environment. The data replication phase follows, where data is securely copied from the on-premises Microsoft SQL Server to the Microsoft Azure SQL Database using Azure Data Factory. This phase involves creating pipelines to manage the flow of data and checking that the data is accurately replicated in the new environment.

Once data replication is complete, the data upgrade phase begins, where the replicated data is upgraded to match the Business Central online environment. This step is crucial to facilitate compatibility and functionality. Finally, the completion and follow-up phase involves optimizing the new environment, setting up user access, and decommissioning the old on-premises system. Throughout the process, validation and troubleshooting are performed to address any issues and help to ensure a smooth transition.

Transition support

You may be wondering how the transition to Business Central will impact your workflows, operations, and reporting. Our engineering team is prepared with comprehensive overviews of how each capability functions to help you get started. Here are some videos that show direct companions for common workflows:

• Compare Dynamics SL to Business Central
• Compare Dynamics GP to Business Central

Migrating from Dynamics GP or Dynamics SL to Business Central marks a pivotal step toward modernizing your business operations. This transition not only streamlines financial and operational processes but also unlocks the power of cloud-based scalability, real-time data access, and seamless integration with the broader Microsoft ecosystem.

By moving to Business Central, organizations gain a unified platform that supports remote work, enhances collaboration, and delivers actionable insights through AI and analytics. The migration also reduces the burden of maintaining legacy systems, offering improved security, automatic updates, and lower total cost of ownership.

While the journey may involve careful planning and change management, the long-term benefits far outweigh the initial effort. Whether you’re looking to future-proof your business, improve agility, or align with evolving customer expectations, Business Central provides a robust foundation for growth.

As you consider your next steps, remember that success lies in choosing the right migration strategy, engaging stakeholders early, and using expert guidance. With the right approach, your move from an on-premises solution to Business Central can be more than a system upgrade—it can be a strategic transformation that positions your organization for long-term success in the digital era.

The post Explore migration options for Microsoft Dynamics GP and Microsoft Dynamics SL customers appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.