Introduction
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is an all-in-one business management solution that helps organizations streamline their processes and increase efficiency. It provides a range of features and tools for managing various aspects of the business, including sales, marketing, finance, operations, and customer data.
In today's digital world, customer data is the lifeblood of every business. It helps organizations to understand their customers' needs, preferences, and behaviors, which in turn can be used to improve sales and marketing efforts. However, managing customer data can be a daunting task, especially if it's scattered across different departments, systems, or platforms. This is where a centralized customer data management system comes into play.
Objective
The Customer Data Management project is a system that enables organizations to manage their customer data in a centralized location within Business Central. It involves creating pages, tables, and codeunits to store, update, and validate customer information. By doing so, other modules within Business Central such as sales and marketing can access accurate and up-to-date customer information. The objective of this project is to provide a centralized location for storing and updating customer information, which can be used by other modules within Business Central such as sales and marketing.
To achieve this objective, the project can involve the following Business Central objects:
Tables
Tables in Business Central are used to store and organize data in a structured manner. Each table represents a specific entity in the system, such as customers, vendors, or products. In the context of the Customer Data Management project, the following tables are used:
Customer data: This table stores all the customer information entered into the system, such as name, address, contact information, credit limit, payment terms, and discount terms. It is the primary table used for customer data management.
Customer Address: This table stores the address information for each customer, such as street address, city, state, and zip code. It is linked to the customer table, so each customer can have multiple addresses.
Pages
Pages in Business Central are the user interface screens that allow users to interact with the data stored in the system. Pages are designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, with fields and controls that allow users to enter and view data easily. In the context of the Customer Data Management project, the following pages are used:
Customer List: This page displays a list of all customers in the system, with their basic information such as name, address, and contact information. It allows users to search, sort, and filter customer data based on specific criteria.
Customer Card: This page displays detailed information about a specific customer, such as their contact details, credit limit, payment terms, and discount terms. It also allows users to update or edit customer information as required.
Customer Statistics: This page displays various statistical information related to customer data, such as the total number of customers in the system, average credit limit, payment terms, and discount terms. It may be used to learn more about the preferences and behaviour of customers.
Validations
The customer data entered into the system can be validated to ensure accuracy and consistency. Some of the validations that can be performed on customer data include:
Checking for duplicate customers: Ensuring that no customer is entered twice in the system.
Ensuring that all required fields are filled in before saving customer data: This ensures that all essential customer data is captured in the system.
Enforcing credit limit and payment term policies: This ensures that customers are not given more credit or lenient payment terms than the organization can afford.
Codeunits
Codeunits in Business Central contains the application logic that performs various tasks, such as data validation, business logic, and data processing. In the context of the Customer Data Management project, the following codeunits are used:
Customer Management: This codeunit contains the logic for managing customer data, such as adding new customers, updating existing customer information, and deleting customer data as required.
Cstomer Validation: This codeunit contains the logic for validating customer data entered into the system, such as checking for duplicate customers, ensuring that all required fields are filled in before saving customer data, and enforcing credit limit and payment term policies.
Queries
Queries are used to extract data from the database and present it in a structured format. a query is a search that returns a specific set of data based on user-defined criteria. It is a powerful tool for analyzing business data and identifying specific information that can be used to make informed decisions. They can be used to create reports or as the basis for building other objects in the system, such as pages or codeunits.
Queries in Business Central can be used to filter data based on a variety of criteria, including customer type, payment status, date range, and more. They can be customized to include specific data fields and formatting options, and can be saved for future use.
You can create the below two queries in this project
Query to view customers with high credit limits: This query would be used to identify customers who have been granted a high credit limit. This information can be useful for managing credit risk and ensuring that the organization's credit policies are being followed. The query can be set up to filter the customer list based on the credit limit field and can be saved for future use.
Query to view customers with overdue payments: This query would be used to identify customers who have not made their payments on time. This information can be useful for managing cash flow and ensuring that customers are meeting their payment obligations. The query can be set up to filter the customer list based on the payment status field and can be saved for future use.
Reports
Reports in Business Central can be generated from a variety of sources, such as pages, queries, and codeunits. They can be printed or displayed on the screen, and they can be customized to include specific data fields and formatting options.
Business Central provides a range of standard reports that can be used out of the box, as well as the ability to create custom reports to meet specific business needs. Reports in Business Central can be filtered and sorted based on specific criteria, such as customer type, date range, or other relevant parameters.
Customer List Report
The Customer List report is a type of report that presents a list of all customers in the system. This report can be used to provide an overview of the customer base and can be used to filter customers based on specific criteria, such as customer type, location, or credit status.
The report typically includes columns for customer name, address, contact information, and any other relevant information that is stored in the customer table. This report can be customized to include additional information as needed.
The Customer List report can be generated from the Customer List page in Business Central, or it can be built using a query that extracts customer data from the database.
Credit Limit Report
The Credit Limit report is a type of report that provides an overview of customer credit limits in the system. This report can be used to monitor customer credit status, as well as to identify customers that may be exceeding their credit limits.
The report typically includes columns for customer name, credit limit, current balance, and any other relevant information related to customer's credit status. This report can be customized to include additional information as needed.
The Credit Limit report can be generated from the Customer List page in Business Central, or it can be built using a query that extracts customer credit data from the database.
By using the Customer List and Credit Limit reports in Business Central, organizations can better manage their customer base and make informed decisions about sales, marketing, and credit management.
Video Reference
The video provides a detailed overview of the project, including the BC objects that can be used, such as pages, tables, codeunits, and fields. It also explains the validations that can be performed on customer data, as well as the reports that can be generated to help manage customer information.
If you're interested in learning more about this project and how it can benefit your organization, I highly recommend checking out the video. The link is located in the description that follows.
Conclusion
Business Central is a powerful business management solution that provides a wide range of tools for managing customer data, including pages, tables, validations, reports, codeunits, and queries. By implementing a centralized customer data management system in Business Central, organizations can improve sales and marketing efforts, as well as credit and payment management, by providing accurate and up-to-date customer information.
2 Comments
nice work
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