Microsoft® Dynamics CRM 2011 Administration Bible

Chapter 17. Working with CRM Entities

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Understanding entities

• Relational database basics

• Customizing existing entities

• Creating custom entities

Entities are the heart of Microsoft Dynamics CRM. The ability to customize entities and create new entities plays an important role in fine-tuning Dynamics CRM to work the way your sales, marketing and service organizations work. Moreover, this functionality enables you to create entirely new applications in Dynamics CRM. Because entities can be customized without having to write code, your organization can develop applications and automate processes more quickly and inexpensively than ever before.

By customizing entities, you can format forms to include exactly the fields and functionality that your users need. Views can be developed to enable your users to see only the information that they need in order to quickly connect with the right customers and prospects. Charts can be delivered to users to help them quickly make business decisions. And your organizational terminology can be incorporated into Dynamics CRM to provide a comfortable and familiar experience.

The information in this chapter provides an important foundation for upcoming chapters. Although an understanding of the configuration tools in Dynamics CRM is important, a successful CRM project relies upon a clear CRM strategy and a proven methodology for implementation (these concepts are covered in Chapter 1). Familiarity with the user interface (Chapters 10 to 15) and ...