Utilizing Microsoft Learn for the Design of an Online Course ...

Kaarle Koljonen

Utilizing Microsoft Learn for the Design of an Online Course on Dynamics 365

Metropolia University of Applied Sciences Bachelor of Engineering

Industrial Management

Bachelor’s Thesis

Abstract

Author Title Number of Pages Date

Kaarle Koljonen Utilizing Microsoft learn for the Design of an online course on Dynamics 365 61 20 December 2021

Degree Bachelor of Engineering

Degree Program Industrial Management

Major Double Degree

Instructor(s)

Nina Hellman Head of Industrial Management, Senior Lecturer Sonja Holappa Senior Lecturer Frank Kneip Prof. Dr.

The objective of this thesis was to identify what Microsoft Learn materials can be used in an online course in the Degree Programme of Industrial Management. The outcome of this thesis is a proposal for an online course and how to implement it. The study was carried out for Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. The study is based on interviews conducted with a representative from Metropolia UAS as well as experts from a related field. The extensive research was done in the Microsoft Learn environment to identify the best materials to use for the online course. In addition, existing literature was studied to support the implementation of the online course. The interviews proved that there is a great need for skilled workers in the field related to Dynamics 365. This means that the online course on Dynamics 365 created in this thesis will be useful. Based on the interviews and the research the online course should be rolled out as soon as possible and the potential to use Microsoft Learn more broadly in future course implementation should be researched.

Key words Dynamics 365, online course, Microsoft Learn, business system, online teaching, online learning

Tiivistelmä

Tekijä Otsikko Sivumäärä Päivämäärä

Kaarle Koljonen Microsoft Learnin hyödyntäminen verkkokurssin suunnitellussa Tuotantotalouden koulutus ohjelmalle 61 20.12.2021

Tutkinto Insinööri

Tutkinto-ohjelma Tuotantotalous

Pääaine Kaksoistutkinto

Ohjaajat

Tuotantotalouden tutkintovastaava, Lehtori Nina Hellman, Lehtori Sonja Holappa Professori Frank Kneip

Tämän insinöörityön tavoite on selvittää, kuinka soveltaa Microsoftin Learn ympäristön materiaaleja verkkokurssin suunnitellussa. Tuotantotalouden koulutusohjelmalle. Tämän insinöörityön lopputuloksena on ehdotus verkkokurssille, ja insinöörityön on tilannut Metropolian Ammattikorkeakoulu. Insinöörityön pohjana käytettiin haastatteluita, jotka pidettiin Metropolian edustajalle, sekä alan asiantuntijoille. Selvitys toteutettiin Microsoftin Learn ympäristöstä, jonka avulla kartoitettiin hyödyllisimmät opintomateriaalit, sekä nykytiedosta, jonka pohjalta verkkokurssi suunniteltiin. Haastatteluista selvisi tarve osaajille Dynamics 365:sta. Se tarkoittaa, että tämän insinöörityön lopputuloksena syntyvälle ehdotukselle verkkokurssista on tarve. Haastatteluiden perusteella verkkokurssi pitäisi Saada opetukseen mahdollisimman nopeasti. On myös tärkeää setvittää muita tapoja soveltaa Microsoftin Learn ympäristöä opetuksessa. Tämän insinöörityön lopputuloksena syntyy ehdotus verkkokurssille, jota voidaan soveltaa tuotantotalouden insinööri opinto-ohjelmassa.

Avainsanat Dynamics 365, verkkokurssi, Microsoft Learn, liiketoiminta järjestelmä, verkko-opetus, verkko-oppiminen.

Contents

Abstract

Tiivistelmä

List of Figures

List of Abbreviations

1 Introduction 8

1.1 Business Context 8

1.2 Business Challenge, Objective and Outcome 9

2 Methods and Material 11

2.1 Research Design 11

2.2 Project Plan 12

2.3 Data Collection and Analysis 14

3 Current State Analyse 16

3.1 Current needs for the online teaching 16

3.1.1 Six Strategic Priorities in IM Degree Program 16

3.1.2 Goals and Vision in Teaching and Learning 17

3.1.3 Previous Experiments with MS Learn and D365 18

3.1.4 Needs for the Online Course and how to utilize MS Learn Materials 18

3.2 Initial Research of MS Learn Materials and Structure 19

3.3 Summary of the current state analyse 21

4 Available Knowledge and Best Practices of Building the Course 22

4.1 Overview of Available Knowledge and Best Practices stage 22

4.2 Competences needed for Implementation of ERP 22

4.2.1 Technical skills 23

4.2.2 ERP Foundation, Transaction processing & reporting, Implementation and Configuration skills 25

4.2.3 General Skills 26

4.3 What are the challenges in an online course? 28

4.3.1 Student 28

4.3.2 Faculty 29

4.4 Core Competence for teaching and participating in an Online course 30

4.5 Traits of a Successful Online Course 30

4.6 Summary of Available Knowledge and Best Practices stage 31

5 MS Learn Fundamentals courses 33

5.1 General Introduction to the Learn Study Paths 33

5.2 Dynamics 365 Fundamentals ERP 35

5.3 Dynamics 365 Fundamentals CRM 36

5.4 Experience in How Much Learn Materials help in Certification Exam 37

6 Expert Insights 38

6.1 Analyse of the Industry Expert Interviews 38

6.2 Recruiters Interviews 39

6.3 Summary of the Interviews 40

7 Proposal for the Online Course 41

7.1 Objectives 42

7.2 Content 43

7.2.1 Features of ERP 43

7.2.2 Features of CRM 45

7.3 Study methods/Mode of Delivery/Teaching method 46

7.4 Implementation Methods 47

7.5 Further Information for the Teacher 47

7.6 Further Information for the Students 47

7.7 Study/Learning Materials 48

7.8 Prerequisite 48

7.9 Assignments 48

7.9.1 First Assignment 49

7.9.2 Second Assignment 49

7.9.3 Third Assignment 49

7.10 Students Workload and ECTS Distribution 52

7.11 Learning Outcomes of the Course 53

7.12 Evaluation/ Assessment Methods and Criteria 53

7.13 Application of the Research to Chapter 4.2 & 4.3 53

7.13.1 Competences needed for ERP Implementation 53

7.13.2 Problems Related to chapter 4.3 54

8 Validation of the Initial Proposal 55

9 Summary and Conclusion 56

9.1 Executive Summary 56

9.2 Next Steps of the Proposal 57

9.3 Thesis Evaluation 57

9.4 Final Words 58

References 59

List of Figures

Figure 1. Scope of the Thesis ........................................................................... 10

Figure 2. Research design of the study ............................................................ 11

Figure 3. Timetable for the study ...................................................................... 13

Figure 4. Details of the data used in the thesis ................................................. 15

Figure 5. Interview questions ............................................................................ 16

Figure 6. Strategic Priorities of IM Degree Program ......................................... 17

Figure 7. Certification Path (Microsoft, 2021) .................................................... 20

Figure 8. Requirements of the Course .............................................................. 21

Figure 9. ERP Competence (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 174) .......................... 22

Figure 10. Microsoft D365 Fundamentals study paths (Microsoft, 2021) .......... 34

Figure 11. Skills measured in the exam ............................................................ 35

Figure 12. Skills defined by the theory versus defined by experts .................... 40

Figure 13. Responses to the Requirements ...................................................... 42

Figure 15. Content of ERP (Microsoft, 2021) .................................................... 45

Figure 16. Content for CRM (Microsoft, 2021) .................................................. 46

Figure 17. Alternative Options for the Students ................................................ 52

Figure 18. Proposal for ECTS Credit Distribution .............................................. 52

List of Abbreviations

CE: Customer Engagement

CRM: Customer Relationship Management

DC: Digital Competence

D365: Dynamics 365

ERP: Enterprise Recourse Plan

F&O: Finance and Operations

ICT: Information and Communication Technology

MS Learn: Microsoft Learn

SCM: Supply Chain Management.

SDLC: System Development Life Cycle

STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering. Mathematics

PP: Power Platforming

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1 Introduction

In today’s world information and tools are evolving at an accelerating pace. To

ensure high quality teaching it is mandatory at regular interval to check, whether

there is more material to recover and update old knowhow to the present day.

One of the core parts in teaching industrial management in Metropolia UAS is

teaching about enterprise resource plan (ERP) systems.

There are many business management information systems that are focused on

different parts of business. They have been usually divided in two parts, customer

relationship management (CRM) systems and ERP systems. The boundary

between these two has been blurring and firms are starting to use more integrated

systems. System providers are giving companies a chance to have all in one

package which is easy to customize to the end user. (Jiang, 2009)

Microsoft is a key provider when it comes to the business management systems.

The system that they are offering to the customers is Dynamics 365 (D365). D365

can be divided to Finance and Operations (F&O) and Customer Engagement

(CE) apps. F&O apps address ERP solutions and CE apps focus more on CRM.

1.1 Business Context

The study was carried out for Metropolia University of Applied Sciences.

Metropolia is the largest University of Applied Sciences in Finland, and it is

located in Helsinki metropolitan area. Studies in Metropolia can be divided in four

fields: culture, business, health care and social services, and technology.

The study was conducted for the degree program of industrial management. The

Industrial management program produces engineers that have diverse expertise

in business and technical applications. The program accepts 100 students per

year, and it has three majors: ICT management, SCM and double degree.

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In Metropolia´s strategy for 2021- 2030 one of the themes is digitalisation.

Metropolia is actively trying to find ways to add tools and courses to its selections.

That can be better utilised by the students and therefore it is strengthening its

digital capabilities to meet the needs of the companies and society (Metropolia

UAS, 2021).

1.2 Business Challenge, Objective and Outcome

Business Challenge

Metropolia strives to offer as diverse education as possible and because of that

it needs a comprehensive set of courses. Metropolia already has courses that

deal with the ERP area and more specifically the system called SAP. But it is

missing a different study path if the student wishes to choose a different system

(D365) to study and to obtain study points regarding that system. There is also a

need from the companies to get graduates who have knowledge of D365.

Objective

The objective of this study was to propose a pre-designed entity that can

be applied as an online course.

Outcome

The outcome is a proposal for a pre-designed entity that can be applied as

an online course. It consists of a course plan that incorporates MS Learn

modules for D365.

Thesis Outline

The scope of this thesis is limited to estimating what MS Learn materials could

be implemented in a basic course of Microsoft Dynamics 365 and what methods

could be used to build that online course. If successful, this work will give a pre-

10

designed entity that can be used by a person responsible for it. The online course

is a rough proposal and needs to be refined by the person who is going to oversee

it.

Figure 1. Scope of the Thesis

The process of the implementation can be divided in two phases as seen in figure

1. phase one is covered by the thesis. It gathers the information and suggests

what methods and materials could be implemented in the teaching. Phase two

comes after and it is the implementation phase. In this phase the proposal that is

the outcome of the first phase is fine-tuned to suit the needs of the IM-degree

program and the final version is published for the students.

Phase 1

• Current State Analys

• Gatehering Existing Knowledge

• Building the proposals

• Validation

Phase 2• Rollout of the First D365 Online Course

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2 Methods and Material

This chapter is divided to three sub-chapters. In chapter 2.1 below research

design of the study is introduced. Research design illustrates the research

strategy which was implemented in this study. In sub-chapter 2.2 below the

project plan is laid out as seen in Figure 3. In last sub-chapter 2.3 below the

collection of the data is introduced in the Figure 4.

2.1 Research Design

This thesis was conducted in five steps that are illustrated in Figure 2. The figure

visualizes the data sets used in the study and the outcomes that the stages bring.

Figure 2. Research design of the study

In the first step as seen in Figure 2 above is the objective. The objective is formed

from the business challenge. The Business challenge in this case is, how to utilize

MS Learn and especially D365 in IM studies. Objective is the more

detailed/narrowed description of the business challenge. In this case it is a

proposal for a course for D365.

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After the objective is defined the current state needs to be analysed. The current

state will be estimated by doing interviews for people in the Metropolia and

examining what kind of study modules there is in MS Learn and the outcome is

current needs for the online teaching, as seen in Figure 2.

The third step is to study the existing knowledge. The literature research to the

existing knowledge will give answers for questions like what the best practices

are to teach ERP systems and what kind of competencies are needed, as well as

best practices in building an online course. In this section also the knowledge on

D365 is deepened.

In the fourth stage the outcomes from the stage two and three are used, as well

industry expert interviews and my own experiences. On their bases the proposal

is build. The outcome of the fourth stage is going to be an initial proposal for the

online course which is going to be used in the last stage.

In the last stage five, the initial proposal for the online course is going to be

validated, and with the feedback of that validation the final proposal for the online

course is going to be formed.

2.2 Project Plan

This thesis was conducted as a bachelor’s Thesis in Helsinki Metropolia

University of Applied Sciences as part of Industrial Management program. The

project plan is designed using gate model as a bases the gate model is utilized

by the Metropolia IM study program (Holappa, 2020). In Figure 3 below the

project plan and its phases can be seen.

Week 1 Gate 1 — Business challenge, objective, and outcome

Week 2 Gate 2 — Methods and materials

13

Week 3

• Project plan

• Research design

• Data Collection and Analysis

Week 4 Gate 3 — Current state analyse

• Current needs for the online teaching

Week 5

Gate 4 — Available knowledge and best practices

• Structure for the online course Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Gate 5 — Building the proposals

• Initial proposal for the online course Week 9

Week 10

Week 11 Gate 6 — Validation

• Proposal for online course

Week 12 Gate 7 — Final version

• Finished thesis

Figure 3. Timetable for the study

Figure 3. Timetable for the study, and how the weeks are divided between the

stages of the work. In the week 1 the business challenge, objective and outcome

are defined (Gate 1). After that in the weeks 2 to 3 methods and materials are

decided (Gate 2). In the week 4 the current state is analysed (Gate 3). From

weeks 5 to 7 the available knowledge and best practices are sorted out (Gate 4).

In the weeks 8-10 the proposal is built (Gate 5). In the week 11 the proposal for

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the online course is validated (Gate 6). Lastly in the week 12 the final version of

this thesis is produced (Gate 7).

2.3 Data Collection and Analysis

The data is collected through interviews at three points for this thesis. In Figure

4 below the details of the data are defined.

Participant Data type Description of the

topic

Date Documented

as

Data 1, for the Current State Analyse Gate3

1. 1 Senior

lecturer

Online

interview

Current state of

Metropolia

regarding usage of

D365 in teaching

Week

4

Field notes,

recording

Data 2, for Building the Proposal

2. Four

recruiters

from different

firms

Online

interview

Interviewing

recruiters and

mapping the needs

for the online

course.

Week

4

Field notes

3. 4 Six Industry

experts from

three different

firms

Online

interview

Discussion what are

the qualities and

skills for good

consultant

Week

7

Field notes

4. 5 Own

experiences

Own experiences

how well did MS

Learn materials

prepare for the

certification exam.

Week

7

Field notes

Data 3, from Validation

15

5. 6 Senior

lecturer

Open

feedback

Open feedback

based on the initial

proposal of the

online course

Week

11

Field notes

Figure 4. Details of the data used in the thesis

As seen in Figure 4 above, data is gathered in 3 different stages. In the first stage

the interviews are conducted. The interview is used to form a picture of the current

state. In the second stage. In the second stage data is gathered from three

different sources: from three recruiters, six industry experts, and from my own

experience. In the last stage the proposal is sent to the representative of

Metropolia and their open feedback is used to fine-tune the proposal for the online

course.

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3 Current State Analyse

In this section, the current state analysis is carried out. The section is divided in

two parts. In the first part the interview is carried out and analysed. Based on the

interview the current needs for the D365 are defined and clarified. In the second

part the initial review for the materials in the MS Learn is done.

3.1 Current needs for the online teaching

A senior lecturer from IM degree was interviewed. The Interview progressed as

a discussion and the questions used in the discussion are seen in Figure 5 below.

Figure 5. Interview questions

3.1.1 Six Strategic Priorities in IM Degree Program

According to the senior lecturer in IM program, the program´s six strategic

priorities are knowledge management and analytics, IT service management,

development of operations and processes, ERP and SCM, STEM and

engineering problem-solving, communication and teamwork skills. First to are

What are the priorities in IM teaching?

What are the goals in teaching ERP systems?

Has MS Learn been applyed before in IM teaching?

What are Metropolia´s needs for the D365 onlinec ourse?

How do you imagine MS Learn materials can be applied in teaching?

Has anyone before made a course about D365 or has anyone before teached it?

17

focused more by ICT development and management major and two after them

are focused more by supply chain management major. Last two are strategic

priorities that are taught to all the students in the IM degree program. Visualisation

of these strategic priorities and their relationships are visualised in the Figure 6

below.

Figure 6. Strategic Priorities of IM Degree Program

3.1.2 Goals and Vision in Teaching and Learning

The goals that came up in the interview are as follows: Students need to gain an

eye for the bigger picture in the enterprises. They need to have knowledge of

what does operation and process management mean. The thing that was

underlined by the senior lecturer in this topic was that there is no

operation/process management without business system these days.

The vision affecting the business system teaching is that students have a basic

knowledge in at least one business system and if a student chooses, they can

obtain more knowledge in the field. Example of this is, when a student has already

studied SAP and wants to study D365 on top of that. The knowledge in business

IM Degree Program

STEM and Engineering

Problem-Solving (All)

Communication and Teamwork

Skills (All)

ICT Developement and Management (Major)

• Knowledge Management and Analytics

• IT Service Management

Supply Chain Management (Major)

• ERP and SCM

• Development of Operations and Processes

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systems stack and previous knowledge can be used in other systems as well.

The skills in different systems will further students’ possibilities in the work

markets.

One aspect that came up in the interview was that IM degree program must not

be product dependent.

3.1.3 Previous Experiments with MS Learn and D365

In the interview with the senior lecturer, it came up that there have been pilot

experiments in using MS Learn and D365. MS Learn has been tried out in a pilot

course for second year students. In that course the objective was to learn the

usage of MS Power Platforming. In the end of the course there was an objective

for the students to build an application using Power Platform. One remark regard

that course is that there was a big gap between MS Learn materials and practical

application.

D365 has been tried out in IM teaching as well for the SCM students. The

students used the MS Learn materials and made a learning diary, then they

conducted discussions with the D365 experts. The remark from that was that

there was lot of no shows with the experts. Students did not attend the agreed

discussion times with the experts.

3.1.4 Needs for the Online Course and how to utilize MS Learn Materials

The Senior Lecturer interviewed told that Metropolia needs different study paths

regarding business systems. In the ideal course the IM student gains knowledge

on the business system as well can apply that knowledge in the real-world

problems. Making easy applications with the gained knowledge and have bases

where to build further.

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The senior lecturer saw two ways how to utilize the MS Learn materials in IM

teaching. Fist way is to use MS Learn modules in existing courses. The modules

could be used as tasks to do in these courses. But if the module is in use in some

IM course it cannot be used in another. For example, online course for D365.

In the second way logical learning paths are sought in the MS Learn materials for

the D365. From these materials an online course is built as an entity in its own.

The online course could be assessed as fail/pass bases and to earn more study

points students could learn more modules as well pass certification tests for

D365.

3.2 Initial Research of MS Learn Materials and Structure

In this sub-section an analysis is carried out for the MS Learn materials. Its

purpose is to find how the materials are structured and what materials could be

used for the D365 teaching. As well what kind of certifications Microsoft offers

and what exams person need to take to achieve them.

The materials in the MS Lean environment can be divided in different ways. The

smallest part of the study material is a unit. Modules contain multiple units and

learning paths contain more than one module. To gain the knowledge to

participate certification exam multiple study paths need to be covered. MS Learn

utilizes role-based division as well. Microsoft uses Role-Based divisions to help

people to recognise what materials could be useful for them. There are fifteen

roles in total and roles that are associated with D365 are business owner,

business user, developer, functional consultant, solution architect, student.

In Figure 7 below, all the certifications associated with D365 can be seen. They

are divided to three groups based on their skill level fundamentals, associate, and

expert. The fundamentals contain three obtainable certifications, associate ten

and expert has one. The certification paths can be divided to two paths CRM and

ERP. Only the ERP path has an expert level certification in the end.

20

Materials in Power Platforming/ERP/CRM fundamentals are recommended by

Microsoft to be studied if a person wants to proceed further in to associate level

in their studies. Power Platforming is used in regular bases in the D365 and that

is why knowledge of it is mandatory for any person wanting to proceed in their

career/studies.

Figure 7. Certification Path (Microsoft, 2021)

To obtain a certification a person needs to complete an exam. Exam codes for

the certifications can be seen under the name of the certifications in Figure 7.

Exams are typically numbered with three digits indemnifier and a pre-fix which

specify the category. For example, to obtain the associate level certification

Dynamics 365 sales functional consultant person needs to complete two exams

PL-200 and MB-210. MB being a pre-fix for Dynamics 365 (MB presumable

stands for Microsoft Business apps), and PL for Power Platform.

21

3.3 Summary of the current state analysis

As interviews in previous chapter stated there is a need for D365 knowledge in

the job markets. The lack of it has pushed firms to requite candidates that need

additional training to work with D365. And there is an undertaking from Metropolia

to cover that need.

The MS Learn offers ready maintained online materials that can be utilized in the

teaching. The biggest strengths in it that Microsoft maintains them and keeps the

materials up to date. They have forums as well to answer the questions that

people have from the materials.

The requirements that need to be planned and considered when making a course

are:

Figure 8. Requirements of the Course

How is the course going to support the learning of a student?

What MS Learn modules are going to be used in the teaching?

What will be the practice tasks in the course?

How is the course going to be conducted and valuated?

How much time does every step of the course take?

How many credits are going to be signed to them?

How MS Learn materials are going to be incorporated?

How are the materials going to be accessed by the students?

How the certifications are going to be incorporated to the course

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4 Available Knowledge and Best Practices of Building the Course

4.1 Overview of Available Knowledge and Best Practices stage

In this chapter existing knowledge is searched to answer questions e.g., what are

the skills competencies/skills associated with ERP implementation, what are the

challenge with an online course, what is a core competence for students and

teachers considering online course, and what traits a successful online course

has.

4.2 Competences needed for Implementation of ERP

The competences needed to successfully implement ERP can be divided in two

as can be seen in the Figure 9 below. There are general skills that can help a

person in any IT related project and then there are ERP specific skills. Even if

many general skills can be considered supportive skills, are they mandatory when

considering some of the positions in an ERP project. i.e., For a functional

consultant communication and problem-solving skills are equally important than

other ERP specific skills. (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 174)

Figure 9. ERP Competence (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 174)

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ERP specific skills are divided to four categories ERP technical skills,

foundations skills, transaction processing & reporting skills, and implementation

& configuration skills. From these categories ERP technical skills are divided to

four more sub-categories for clarity. General skills are divided to five categories

which are Interpersonal skills, strategic skills, problem-solving skills, business

skills, management skills. In the next sub-characters, the ERP specific skills and

general skills will be examined in more details. (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 174)

4.2.1 Technical skills

ERP technical skills are divided in four sub-categories that are data and

information management, architecture & Infrastructure, ERP application

management skills, and ERP security management skills. (Yashvinee, et al.,

2020, p. 174)

In the first sub-category data and information management all the technical

skills are centred around data management. Yashvinee et al put a lot of

empahazis to data manegament beacause:

“ERP systems may have to retrieve, manipulate and send data to external systems for further processing. These skills are therefore required by the technical team to be able to manipulate data and present them in different formats for decision making.” (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176)

More precisely some of the skills listed under the sub-category of data and

information management are data warehousing, business intelligence, and data

integration & migration (Calitz, et al., 2015, p. 40).

The second sub-category in the technical skills is architecture & infrastructure.

It is made up from three skills that are server management, technology

management, and networking knowledge & skills. Yashvinee et al describe each

of the skills more accurately in their study, and tight them up to the sub-category.

i.e., when system architecture is designed the infrastructure is important, and

specifically servers and networking need to be considered. Server and

24

networking capabilities can limit ERP functionality/availability. But for a person

who is well versed in technology management it is not a problem. Technology

management skills give person wider variation of options to leverage other

technologies to ensure the end results. e.g., a cloud solution can offer more

scalability to the computer processing power and/or resiliency in networking

(Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 177)

The third sub-category is ERP application management skills. It contain abilitys

to manage ERP development, interfacing, deployment, maitanence & support,

and change request & updates. The study from Yashvinee et al gives good

descriptions of these cases. e.g., that in case of code customisation, risks and

depencencies should be assessed. And in case of ERP implimentation, ERP

integration with other systems is often unvoitable. In the deployment phace the

technical implimentations as well as people using the ERP solution should be

considered. Even if the examples seem very diversed, they all fall under the sub-

category of ERP application management (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 177).

The Fourth sub-category contains ERP security management skills. These

skills are internet and e-business security knowledge, the ability to setup

application security, and the ability to evaluate the current security of an

organization (Scholtz, et al., 2011, p. 89). Yashvinee et al (2020, p. 177) explain

these skills in their study as:

“Knowledge of ERP security threats is important to ensure than unauthorised access is properly controlled. Moreover, ERP systems are web-enabled, cloud-enabled and can offer mobile ERP versions. This requires skills to protect the organisation against internet and mobile security threats. ERP systems are usually interfaced with other applications which should also be properly managed to prevent attacks.”

The global cybersecurity market has been growing steadily and is forecasted to

grow even more in coming years (Statista, 2020, pp. 88,89). It will come harder

and harder for companies to manage security solutions and with so many security

solutions available companies are struggling where to focus. Often managers

25

result going with quantity over quality option, which in this context means that

they try to answer every threat, even those that cannot affect their business. In

this sense security management skills are useful. They can be used to focus

resources where it really maters (Baker & Wallace, 2007, p. 36).

4.2.2 ERP Foundation, Transaction processing & reporting, Implementation and Configuration skills

ERP foundation skills are described by Yashvinee et al (2020, p. 176) in theyr

study as:

“ERP foundation skills are important to be able to differentiate between SDLC” System Development Life Cycle “and ERP Life cycle. ERP implementations require thinking from an enterprise-wide and business perspective rather than focussing on specific departments or problems.”

In other words, in SDLC an application is made for the user requirements. In ERP

life cycle the business process must be changed to fit the best practices of an

ERP software. The foundation skills are more specifically knowledge of ERP

theory and concepts, knowledge of ERP architecture, and knowledge of

information system concepts. (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176).

ERP transaction and reporting skills are described in the study by Yashvinee

et al (2020, p. 177). In their study they state that:

“Business process knowledge is required to be able to perform transactions in the ERP systems. This includes transactions such as purchase order creation and goods receipt in the procurement modules. Knowledge about the different types of reports which can be generated from the ERP is important to be able to advise customers on the reports which can be used for decision making”.

Lastly there are ERP implementation and configuration skills. The

implementation and configuration skills are tightly linked to each other. To have

smooth implementation the ability for custom configurations is a key, same

applies vice versa, a person needs to have a clear picture of implementation to

26

know how heavily the system needs to be configurated (Yashvinee, et al., 2020,

p. 177).

4.2.3 General Skills

Interpersonal skills are important when considering skills for ERP

implementation work. A person needs to be ready to communicate with the team

members as well with the clients. Some of the skills that are associated with

interpersonal skills are listed by Boyle &strong (2006, p. 405) and include the

ability to deal with uncertainty, write effective reports, deliver effective

presentations, and be sensitive to the organizational culture.

Other writers have emphasized on other skills as well. Scholtz et al (2011, p. 90)

list ability to listen, team work, and problem solving to interpersonal skills. One

aspect to notes about categorication and skills is that, because of different in

categorycation some writers have classified skills difrently. Scholtz et al

categorices problem solving skills as part of interpersonal skill category, as

Yashvinee et al (2020, p. 176) use it as one of their separate cathegory when

making the skill classification as can be seen in next paragraph.

Problem solving skills listed by Yashvinee et al (2020, p. 176) are skills like

ability to learn, attension to details, creativity, crithical thinking, and reaserch

skills. Yashvinee et al highlite ability to learn and describe it as:

“Ability to learn is an important skill that cannot be taught to someone. This makes the person working on the ERP an independent learner and apt to learn the various concepts. This skill is important to solve any underlying problem” (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176).

They also write about creativity that “Creativity is the ability to use proper

imagination to create something.” and “Team members should have this skill to

use original ideas to solve complex problems. Creativity and critical thinking can

help to find solutions to these unsupported functionalities.” (Yashvinee, et al.,

2020, p. 176).

27

Another thing that Yashvinee et al write about when they consider problem

solving skills, is research skills. They write as follows:

“Research skill can identify arising problems, address the problem by collecting information and develop an effective solution. Research skills together with creativity and critical thinking will help to identify possible solutions for further expansions.” (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176)

Strategic skills are core skills when considering how ERP can support

entreprices strategic goals in longterm. Strategic goals direct a firm when they

are making the future decisions and by understanding these strategic guidelines

ERP specialists can make more acurate assumptions when planning ERP

implimentation projects (Boyle & Strong, 2006, p. 405).

Business skills are important when considering consulting skills for ERP. The

user satisfaction and organizational impact are affected by how well the business

system can support the business (Ragulan, 2021, p. 4). Peslak (2005, p. 149)

writes that “ERP is based not on business function but on business process, but

business process relies on an understanding underlining business function”. As

based on that it is important for a person working in an ERP implementation

project to have understanding about traditional business function areas such as

operations, accounting, and finance (Boyle & Strong, 2006, p. 404).

Management skills are focused on keeping the project on schedule, and taking

care of relationships i.e., communicating with stakeholders. Some of the

management skills are change management, the user relationship management

(Calitz, et al., 2015, p. 41), project management skills, and outsourcing

management & working globally (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176).

Yashvinee et al describe management skills well in their study, writing as follows:

“Effective Management skills will ensure that good working relationships are maintained with the customer (ERP adopter). This extends over communication skills and change management” (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176).

28

They highlight project management skill as well stating that it is in central role for

ERP implementation and that “It includes ability to perform risk management,

change management, planning, budgeting, scheduling, team management and

task management.” (Yashvinee, et al., 2020, p. 176).

4.3 What are the challenges in an online course?

There are problems when implementing an online course/teaching. These

problems have two main sources. One of the sources is students who are in the

courses and another one is faculty, more precisely members who have adapted

the online teaching in their toolkit, and those who have not yet done so. (Nilson

& Goodson, 2017, p. 3)

4.3.1 Student

The problems that students face according to multiple studies is centred around

the fact that success rate for the completing an online course is 10 – 20 % lower

than if a student takes more traditional face-to-face on-site course. (Nilson &

Goodson, 2017, p. 3) Nonetheless according to the Barshay´s (2015) report

where Barshay summarizes five studyes, states that the students in higher tier

colleges have same sucsses rate regardles of, are they taking an online course

about the topic, or more traditional face-to-face teaching. In her report Barshay

writes as well that students in higher tier colleges tend to have more solid

academic backhing and might have greather motivation.

It seems obvious that students that haw greater motivation and academic

bacround are doing better in online studyes. But the something worth noticing is

that Barshey (2015) states in her report that top tier students are doing the same

regardless the deployment of course, other not so much. It could be stated that

additional studyes and courses that are not mandatory for the students could be

deployed in the online enviroment because students who choose these courses

29

have greather internal motivation and are more willing to manage theyr time

according to the extra course. (Barshay, 2015)

4.3.2 Faculty

One of the problems that faculties face is that they put more emphasis on

technical implementation on the online course rather than pedagogical

implementation. They make a course that is good in the technical side but does

not take accord what kind of students are taking that course. In the course that is

face-to-face teacher can accommodate the teaching to suite different learner but

in many cases online course is an entity with limited flexibility. (Hirumi, 2005, pp.

315-316, 326)

Another problem that rises is that faculties are lacking sufficient resources to

make an online course. Persons in charge of these courses may be lacking

sufficient education on how to apply online tools in the education. Without

sufficient recourses online course cannot compete with onsite course with results.

(Nilson & Goodson, 2017, p. 4)

The opinions of the faculty members can be obstacle as well. In the study

contacted for the faculty members in 2014 majority of the faculty members

thought that online courses yield lower results then on class courses. Notable in

that studies result was that members who already had used online tools in the

teaching had more favourable standing then those who had not experience on

online teaching (Straumsheim, 2014). The study conducted few years later

yielded same kind of results as the previous study on the topic. A participant in

the Straumheim´s (2016) study, who had taught online courses said:

“it is more difficult to interact with students outside of class, reach at-risk students and maintain academic integrity in online courses than in face-to-face courses.” (Straumsheim, 2016)

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4.4 Core Competence for teaching and participating in an Online course

Digital Competence (DC) is the core skill for students and teachers to have, when

considering what is important for an online course. It is essential that faculty

members have DC when they are implementing online teaching. The knowledge

of on DC will free their time, so they can focus on pedagogical implementations

in their courses. When considering benefits of DC with the students, the studies

have shown increased focus in the learning, and students have gained autonomy

when they are doing decisions on their studies, because DC liberates students

from traditional way of learning and lets students guide their professional

development more independently. (Guàrdia, et al., 2021, pp. 178-179)

4.5 Traits of a Successful Online Course

Glazier & Harris (2020, p. 15) found out in their study that in the online course the

instructions are more important than instructor. When they made comparisons

with face-to-face classes and online classes, searching the best traits in both,

they found out that if a student evaluated the course worst, in case of face-to-

face course it centralized with an instructor and with an online course to

instructions. Kidd & Keengwe (2010, p. 537) state that after the major

componences e.g., course description, specific course objectives, course

competencies, evaluation criteria, and teaching strategies have been defiened,

faculty may adress other challenges in an online course.

Even if engagement and building rapport is not a centre of an online course, study

indicates that it has positive affect in the outcomes for the students. The success

rates and grades are improved when the instructor has increased the amount of

rapport in the class (Glazier, 2016). Another study by Kidd & Keengwe (2010, p.

537) support the claim that it is critical for faculty to have meaningful

communication with students throughout the online course.

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4.6 Summary of Available Knowledge and Best Practices stage

The diversity of the competences needed for ERP implementation was very

versatile. Some of the competences could be useful any situation i.e., teamwork.

For others it was specific i.e., ERP transactions. With some cases the new

technologies could free ERP specialists from the need of that specific knowledge

i.e., maintaining the servers. A cloud solution could free the client from that kind

of need.

The diversity of the competences for ERP implementation was very versatile.

Some of the competences could be useful any situation as seen in the list:

• Teamwork

• Change management

• User relationship management

• Project management

• Communication

• Problem-solving skills

• Creativity

For Other cases it was more specific, and competences mentioned were directly

linkable to ERP related technologies like:

• ERP Transactions

• ERP Implementation & configuration

• Base knowledge of ERP

• ERP Security management

• ERP Application management skills

• ERP Development, interfacing, deployment

• ERP architecture & Infrastructure

In-depth knowledge of certain technologies may not be necessary in the future

for instance, cloud solutions can release resources from networking and

maintaining servers.

32

The biggest challenge with online course with the students is how to keep less

successful students on board the course. With online course they are more likely

to dropout then on premises teaching. With the students that are already doing

excellent with their studies it seems like it does not have affect how the course is

conducted. The problems with the faculty are cantered with a balance with

technical and pedagogical implementation of the online course, as well with

recourses linked to that course. Faculty members put a lot of emphasis on

technical implementation of the course rather than pedagogical implementation.

When considering the competences DC is very important for students and

teachers. It frees time for both of the parties and gives students more

opportunities to guide their own learning. With the online courses clear and well

build instructions are a must, and if an instructor wants to affect success rates in

an online course should they increase rapport and communication with

participants. It appeared at the time of the research that there was not much

material on the topic of the competences needed for the online teaching.

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5 MS Learn Fundamentals courses

In this chapter materials in the MS Learn are analysed and they are introduced.

First there is general introduction to the study paths and then the individual

fundamental materials are presented. Finally, this chapter describes how much

MS Learn materials were seen to help in the certification exam.

5.1 General Introduction to the Learn Study Paths

Both MS Learn courses contain five learning paths that introduce the learner to

five features in that specific subject. In Figure 10 below these paths are illustrated.

Each learning path contains modules that introduces a learner to the specific

aspects of the learning path. In these modules the abilities of each part of D365

are outlined and the most used processes are introduced in step-by-step manner.

The materials in MS Learn are organized in a logical structure. And if a person

who is doing the studies has signed-in with their MS account, they can easily

follow what they have studied and what is left to go through. Material can be easily

read with any device, but for the lab exercises a computer is best suited.

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Figure 10. Microsoft D365 Fundamentals study paths (Microsoft, 2021)

In both subjects (ERP/CRM) learners can leverage sandbox versions provided

by Microsoft. In these try-out versions the user can freely explore different

functionalities and processes. For the free try-out versions, the user needs to

register in the Microsoft page and request for it. The try-out version is set in the

cloud and can be accessed for next 30 days. Try-out versions can be accessed

by any-platform with internet connection. The difference with the try-out versions

with F&O and CE apps is that F&O try-out version allows the user to make use

of all the wide features of those apps with one subscription. But with the CE apps

one subscription is not enough. For example, a person can have one subscription

that lets them explore sales app, but to explore customer service apps features

that person needs to make another subscription to that specific app. (Try out

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versions can be found through this link: https://dynamics.microsoft.com/en-

us/dynamics-365-free-trial/)

In the certification exam a person’s knowledge in all the fields is tested with a set

of questions. The questions vary but every subject is covered. There can be

different emphasis by the fields in the test, but they do not exceed the limit values

that are seen in Figure 11 below.

Skills Measured CRM Skills Measured ERP

• Describe Dynamics 365 Marketing (10-15%)

• Describe Dynamics 365 Sales (15-20%)

• Describe Dynamics 365 Customer Service (15-20%)

• Describe Dynamics 365 Field Service (15-20%)

• Describe Project Operations (15-20%)

• Describe shared features (15-20%)

• Describe Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management (25-30%)

• Describe Dynamics Finance (20-25%)

• Describe Dynamics 365 Commerce (10-15%)

• Describe Dynamics 365 Human Resources (5-10%)

• Describe Project Operations (10-15%)

• Describe shared features (10-15%)

Figure 11. Skills measured in the exam

5.2 Dynamics 365 Fundamentals ERP

The study path of ERP fundamentals introduces the learner to the finance and

operation of D365, and their features. The learning paths it contains be seen in

Figure 10 above. These study paths are SCM, finance, commerce, HR, project

operations.

Every learning path is set in similar structure. In the start there is a module that

introduces student to the finance and operation apps. The module is the same in

every learning path, after a person has done it first time it will be marked as done

in every learning path. After the introduction section a person is taken to examine

the different aspect of that specific learn path. For example, in the financial

leaning path´s modules a person needs to explore topics/functions as general

36

ledger, finance core capabilities and expense management. In the explore

modules topics are introduced and exercises are executed with click-by-click

bases or labs. There are some videos as well that introduce features. Every path

ends with a knowledge check and summary.

The lab exercises can be done in two ways: launching a virtual machine mode

from the browser that opens a new window or doing the exercises previously

mentioned try-out version. The virtual machine takes a few minutes to open and

can be unreliable. Sometimes the browser window does not open, and it took

more than few minutes to launch. Virtual machine has a time limit in it as well and

after it has been exceeded it will be shut down. It can save time to subscribe to

free try-out version and making the exercises there.

5.3 Dynamics 365 Fundamentals CRM

The study path of CRM fundamentals introduces the learner to the CE apps and

their features. Learning paths that it contains can be seen in Figure 10 above.

These study paths are marketing, sales, customer service, field service, project

operations.

The structure of the learning paths in the CRM are same as in ERP. CRM learning

path also contain same kind of labs and exercises. The major difference between

them is how a person can do the exercises. In the ERP learning path, to do the

exercise, a person needs to launch a virtual machine in the Azure cloud from their

computer. But in the CRM learning path the exercise can be done in a sandbox

environment that can be launched from the browser. The limit of creating

sandboxes is limited to ten per day and there is a time limit how long the sandbox

is open. In this case too it can be easier and more reliable to subscribe for a free

try-out version.

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5.4 Experience in How Much Learn Materials help in Certification Exam

This chapter is based on the personal experience of the thesis writer in studying

the MS Learn materials and doing the certification exam.

Between the MS Learn materials and the certification exam is a gap, in my

opinion. Learn materials do not prepare a person well enough to the certification

exam and a person needs to find more materials that prepares them to succeed

in the exam. The certification exams in the Dynamics 365 Fundamentals

ERP/CRM are relatively new so free material for them has not been yet created.

For example, Metropolia student can use MetCat library services to search

materials for the Power Platforming Fundamentals exam PL-900. And they will

find Exam Ref for it published by Microsoft Press. Exam Ref help person to

prepare them self for the certification exam, but because certification exams for

ERP and CRM are so new there is not yet material published.

In my opinion MS Learn materials are great in giving a person overview about the

D365 and teach step-by-step manner the most common used functions in it. I

studied three fundamentals course materials D365 ERP, D365 CRM, and Power

Platforming. And because they are technically linked to each other’s the

knowledge will stack.

According to MS Learn D365 fundamentals for CRM take approximated eleven

and half hours and fundamentals for ERP nine hours. For me both took ten hours

each. To succeed in the certification exam, I studied six hours more in both fields

specifically focusing materials that were targeted for people who were planning

to take the exam.

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6 Expert Insights

In this chapter the interviews that were conducted with industry experts are

analysed. The interviews were conducted asking three questions and these

questions were: What are the basic skills that consultant is good to have, where

should person start if they want to gain experience/knowledge in D365, with which

kind of skills/traits/things can person stand out from the mass. The interviewed

persons were asked to think the answers from the perspective that the person

who would read the answers is a student, who is thinking of consulting and more

specifically D365.

6.1 Analysis of the Industry Expert Interviews

The interviewees were from three different well-known firms that are working with

D365 solutions. The titles of the interviewees were, consultant, D365 CRM

consultant, talent acquisition specialist, unit lead. The working time in the sector

ranged from six months to ten years for the experts interviewed.

When asked what the basic skills are for the consultant’s strong communication

skills were mentioned. A person needs to be ready to listen to customers

problems and when needed have skills to communicate messages/information to

the customer. Another answer that was central in the interviews was that a

consultant needs to be analytical and equipped with problem solving skills. A few

other skills that were mentioned in the interviews were: proactive approach and

information search, people skills and resilience.

With the second question that was, where should person start if they want to gain

experience/knowledge in D365, the answers varied more than with the other

questions. In one interview the knowledge of Power Platforming and

understanding MS Dataverse were seen as the most useful skills to have before

starting to gain deeper knowledge from D365 applications. Another interviewee

answered that a person needs in the start to gain a holistic view of the basic

39

functionalities and out of the box features in the start. The last interviewee said

that if a person is interested in CRM applications the Sales app should be the first

to focus, because in many firms’ sales is the core of the CRM and other apps and

functionalities are built around it.

With the last question with which kind of skills/traits/things can person stand out

from the mass concrete proof of skills came up, either by suitable work history or

by studies. If a person can obtain a certification, it is a concrete proof of

knowledge, another could be a thesis that shows that a person has knowledge

on a topic. Working proficiency level language skills were advantages as well and

a personalised resume/CV shows that an applicant has put extra effort to this

workplace.

6.2 Recruiters Interviews

With the recruiters interviews the need to have more competent workforce came

up with all interviewees. Many put emphasis on the fact that there is not any

school that is teaching D365 to the students. Many of the newcomers in the

consulting for D365 are students with appropriate background, lacking only the

platform knowledge of D365 or people with the user experience from the D365,

who needed to be taught consulting skills. Many firms have programs

implemented to train people to obtain appropriate skills because the necessary

training is lacking from the higher education institutions.

When asked how much the recruiters put emphasis on the fundamental

certifications from the potential recruit. The common answer was that the

certification proves that the applicant for the occupation has a base level

knowledge of a system, it proves that they have already put some work on the

subject, and they are more secure recruitment. Because they already have some

experience on the subject, and they do not rely on mere assumptions.

40

6.3 Summary of the Interviews

The interviewees put much emphasis on the people skills that manifests as

communication skills and skills listen to other people. Core skills for consultants

are problem solving and analytical way of thinking who can structure and

understand large entities. Although with the answers in the second question the

answers where diverse gaining practical experience was seen as the most

efficient way of learning and getting into the system. Lastly concrete proof of

knowledge and skills are desired.

Figure 12. Skills defined by the theory versus defined by experts

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7 Proposal for the Online Course

In this chapter the proposal for the online course is compiled using the knowledge

gained in the previous chapters. Figure 13 below shows the relationship between

the requirements, response/input from chapters & areas, and output. The sub-

chapters below are formed using Metropolia´s guide to the course structure.

The requirements were defined in chapter 3.3 above (Figure 8. Requirements of

the Course). The requirements were then used to guide the research and in

Figure 13 below. The requirements are tight together with responses/inputs and

outputs. Under the heading “Response/Input from Chapters & Areas” are the

chapters that are used to answer the requirements defined in the column

“Requirements”. The answers processed from the previous two columns can be

found in column “Output”.

Requirements Response/Input from

Chapters & Areas

Output

How is the course going to

support the learning of a

student?

3.1. Current needs for the online teaching

4.2. Competences needed for Implementation of ERP

4.3. What are the challenges in an online course?

7.1. Objectives

7.3. Study methods/Mode of Delivery/Teaching method

7.7. Study/Learning Materials

7.11. Learning Outcomes of the Course

7.13Application of the Research

to Chapter 4.2 & 4.3

What MS Learn modules are

going to be used in the

teaching?

5. MS Learn Fundamentals

courses 7.2. Content

7.7. Study/Learning Materials

What will be the practice tasks in

the course? 5. MS Learn Fundamentals courses

6. Expert Insights

7.9. Assignments

42

How is the course going to be

conducted and valuated?

4.5Traits of a Successful Online

Course 7.5. Further Information for the Teacher

7.6Further Information for the Students

7.12. Evaluation/ Assessment

Methods and Criteria

How much time is every step of

the course take and how many

credits are going to be signed to

them?

3.2. Initial Research of MS Learn Materials and Structure

5.MS Learn Fundamentals

courses

7.10. Students Workload and

ECTS Distribution

How MS Learn materials are

going to be incorporated? 3.2. Initial Research of MS Learn Materials and Structure

5. MS Learn Fundamentals

courses

7.9. Assignments

How are the materials going to

be accessed by the students?

5. MS Learn Fundamentals

courses 7.4. Implementation Methods

7.8. Prerequisite

How the certifications are going

to be incorporated to the course

5.4. Experience in How Much

Learn Materials help in

Certification Exam

7.9. Assignments

Figure 13. Responses to the Requirements

7.1 Objectives

In the interviews with the recruiters and the industry specialists there came up

issues/matters that were used to define the objectives. The recruiters

emphasised that the schools do not teach even the basics in D365. Industry

specialists said that practical application knowledge is most useful when

considering useful skills, and both thought that from the point of view of recruiting

to the employing firm and working in the client firm certifications are useful,

because they show the base line of skills. They both underlined as well that

Microsoft updates its services continually, so it is important for people to actively

research and update their skills.

43

There are four objectives in the online course. The first objective is to give

students fundamental knowledge in D365 ERP/CRM and additionally Power

Platforming. The second objective is to teach students apply that knowledge in

practical use. The third objective is to prepare students for the certification exam.

The fourth objective is to teach students how to use MS Learn in continues

learning.

7.2 Content

The contents in the course can be divided in three areas: D365 ERP, CRM, and

Power Platforming. But because Power Platforming is out of this thesis scope

only ERP and CRM are going to be defined in this chapter. Microsoft’s

certification skills outline from MS Learn was used in defining the content for ERP

and CRM.

7.2.1 Features of ERP

A detailed description of the ERP features can be seen in Figure 14 below. These

features are SCM, finance, commerce, HR, project operations, and lastly sheared

features of all the previous ones. All of these are high-level concepts, and they

consist of several parts.

44

• Identify general capabilities

• Describe manufacturing types including discrete, lean, and process manufacturing

• Describe production control elements including bills of materials (boms), formulas, kanban’s, resources, and routing

• Describe product master records and product variants

• Describe warehouse and inventory management capabilities

• Describe costing methods including standard costing, weighted averages, last-in-first-out (LIFO), and first-in-first-out (FIFO)

• Describe use cases for warehouse management system (WMS)

• Describe purchase orders, item arrival journals, and cross-docking

• Describe inventory reservations, picking and packing, replenishment, and shipments

• Describe inventory counting and inventory on-hand concepts

• Describe quality management capabilities

• Describe warehouse configuration options including layout, stocking limits, and location profiles

• Describe manufacturing strategies

• Describe manufacturing strategies including make to order (MTO), make to stock (MTS), and configure to order (CTO)

• Describe item tracking and tracing processes

• Describe tools that can be used to manage shop floors

• Describe enterprise asset management capabilities

• Describe enterprise asset management concepts

• Describe the work order lifecycle including work order scheduling, preventative work orders, corrective work orders, and inspections

• Describe vendor warranty agreements including full and partial agreements

Describe Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

• Describe manufacturing strategies including make to order (MTO), make to stock (MTS), and configure to order (CTO)

• Describe item tracking and tracing processes

• Describe tools that can be used to manage shop floors

• Describe enterprise asset management capabilities

• Describe enterprise asset management concepts

• Describe the work order lifecycle including work order scheduling, preventative work orders, corrective work orders, and inspections

• Describe vendor warranty agreements including full and partial agreements

Describe manufacturing strategies

• Describe the dynamics 365 finance features

• Describe use cases for legal entities

• Describe how dynamics 365 finance handles regional tax reporting requirements describe cost accounting concepts

• Describe general ledgers

• Describe charts of accounts including main accounts, balance sheets, and income statements

• Describe financial dimensions and dimension set concepts

• Describe periodic financial processes

• Describe accounts payables and accounts receivables

• Describe core accounts payable components including vendors, purchase orders, and vendor invoices

• Describe vendor payments and settlements including three-way matching concepts

• Describe core accounts receivable components including customers, customer invoices, and free text invoices

• Describe credit and collection processes

• Describe related finance components

• Describe cash and bank management concepts

• Describe expense management including cash advances and mobile workspaces

• Describe fixed asset management, and fixed asset creation, acquisition, and depreciation

• Describe budgeting capabilities

Describe Dynamics Finance

• Describe dynamics 365 commerce capabilities

• Describe retail channels including call centers, cloud point-of-sale (CPOS), and modern point-of-sale (MPOS)

• Describe channel management concepts

• Describe distributed order management (DOM)

• Describe product assortments

• Describe customer loyalty concepts

• Describe how dynamics 365 commerce uses dynamics 365 customer insights to create personalized customer experiences and provide product recommendations

• Describe how dynamics 365 commerce uses retail analytics to provide centralized retail data management

• Describe dynamics 365 fraud protection

• Describe how dynamics 365 fraud protection evaluates purchase transaction to reduce fraud losses and increase bank acceptance rates

• Describe how dynamics 365 fraud protection prevents unauthorized account creation, account takeovers, and fraudulent account access

• Describe how dynamics 365 fraud protection prevents loss related to fraudulent returns and discounts, identifying the risk of loss to a business, and identifying anomalies in merchandise discounting and returns

Describe Dynamics 365 Commerce

• Describe core capabilities

• Describe compensation and benefits capabilities

• Describe compliance features

• Describe performance management capabilities

• Describe personnel management capabilities

• Describe self-service capabilities

• Describe leave and absence capabilities

• Describe employee training and certification features

• Identify integration options between dynamics 365 human resources and linkedin

Describe Dynamics 365 Human Resources

• Identify project operations capabilities

• Describe project-based services

• Describe project sales capabilities

• Describe project contract capabilities

• Describe project pricing capabilities

• Describe the project lifecycle including project invoicing and revenue recognition

• Describe project planning and execution capabilities

• Identify project features including contracts, stages, team assignments, and fixed price versus time and material estimates versus retainer contracts

• Describe project team management capabilities including allocation methods, resource scheduling, and skills

• Describe project schedule management capabilities including tasks, subtasks, assignments, and project plan management

• Describe project cost tracking capabilities including time and expense costs

Describe Project Operations

• Describe reporting capabilities

• Describe built-in reporting capabilities including workspaces

• Describe options for exporting data to microsoft excel

• Describe options for analyzing data by using power BI

• Describe integration options

• Describe microsoft teams integration capabilities

• Describe use cases for integrating with microsoft excel and microsoft word

• Describe options for managing documents by using sharepoint online

• Describe email integration capabilities

Describe shared features

45

Figure 14. Content of ERP (Microsoft, 2021)

7.2.2 Features of CRM

A detailed description of the CRM’s content can be seen in Figure 15 below.

These features are marketing, sales, customer service, field service, operations,

and lastly sheared features of all the previous ones. All of these are high-level

concepts, and they consist of several parts.

• Identify dynamics 365 marketing capabilities

• Describe how to target customers by using segments and subscription lists

• Describe the lead generation and qualification process including lead scoring

• Describe customer journeys

• Describe event management features and capabilities

• Describe related marketing apps

• Describe the capabilities of linkedin campaign manager

• Describe the capabilities of dynamics 365 customer voice

• Describe the capabilities of dynamics 365 customer insights including audience insights and experience insights

Describe Dynamics 365 Marketing

• Describe the dynamics 365 sales lifecycle

• Describe leads and the process for qualifying leads

• Describe the opportunity management process

• Describe the quote lifecycle

• Describe use cases for orders and invoices

• Describe processes and tools used for forecasting sales

• Describe related sales apps

• Describe capabilities of dynamics 365 sales insights

• Describe capabilities of linkedin sales navigator

Describe Dynamics 365 Sales

• Describe dynamics 365 customer service components

• Describe cases, queues, and entitlements

• Describe knowledge management

• Describe service-level agreements (slas)

• Describe related customer service apps

• Describe omnichannel for customer service

• Describe connected customer service

• Describe customer service insights

Describe Dynamics 365 Customer Service

• Describe the work order lifecycle

• Describe the lifecycle of a work order including work order creation

• Describe sources for work orders including cases, opportunities, iot device sensor alerts, and agreements

• Describe capabilities for the inspections feature

• Describe scheduling capabilities

• Describe resource management capabilities including skills, and proficiency models

• Identify available universal resource scheduling (URS) scheduling options including schedule assistant, resource schedule optimization (RSO), and geolocation for technicians

• Describe how dynamics 365 field service uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help organizations become more efficient

• Describe inventory and asset management capabilities

• Describe inventory management transaction types

• Describe customer asset management and preventive maintenance processes

• Describe options for performing proactive customer asset maintenance by implementing iot

Describe Dynamics 365 Field Service

46

Figure 15. Content for CRM (Microsoft, 2021)

7.3 Study methods/Mode of Delivery/Teaching method

Exploring current knowledge showed that it is important to build rapport and keep

in touch with the students in the online environment. My suggestions how to do

that are maintaining constant contact with the students throughout the course and

organizing a voluntary meeting time available.

The constant contact with the student could be organized through automated

messaging e.g. by using email to send messages once a month asking students

how they are doing in the course and is there anyway the course teacher could

help the student with their problem. Another way to make a student feel that they

are not alone with their problem is to have a meeting once a month where the

student can discuss possible problems. In my opinion the email should be send

a week before the online meeting, so the students have a chance to organize

time to attend and figure out do they need help and with what.

The course is going to be conducted as independent study where students study

the materials from the MS Learn and do the exercises from there. Depending

• Identify common customer engagement features

• Describe customers and activities

• Describe the product catalog

• Describe price lists, discounts, and currencies

• Describe cases

• Describe resources

• Describe reporting capabilities

• Describe built-in reporting capabilities including dashboards, charts, views, and report wizard

• Describe options for exporting data to microsoft excel

• Describe options for analyzing data by using power BI

• Describe integration options

• Describe microsoft teams integration capabilities

• Describe use cases for integrating with microsoft excel and microsoft word

• Describe options for managing documents by using sharepoint online

• Describe email integration capabilities

Describe shared features

• Identify project operations capabilities

• Describe project components including contracts, stages, assignments, and fixed price versus time and material estimates versus retainer contracts

• Identify views and reports that aid a project service company in making decisions

• Describe project sales capabilities

• Describe the process for converting leads into projects

• Describe opportunity management and quote management for project-based and product-based quotes

• Describe use cases for project contracts

• Describe project planning and resource management capabilities

• Describe allocation methods, tasks, subtasks, and assignments

• Describe time and expenses entry, and entry approvals

• Describe resource skills and proficiency models

• Identify interactive gantt charts, kanban boards, resource utilization boards, and schedule boards

Describe Project Operations

47

what students want to learn the study path can be modified accordingly. I.e., a

student could only do study path regarding CRM and obtain ETCS liked to that.

The teacher who oversees the online course is going to send an email at least

once a month inquiring how the students’ studies are going and asking if they

need help and inviting them to introduce possible problems in a meeting.

7.4 Implementation Methods

The course could be set in Moodle. The proposition is for the course to be free to

choose course for the students. Communication is going to be handled through

email and MS Teams.

7.5 Further Information for the Teacher

If the teacher in-charge of this online course is new in working with MS Learn

interment it is useful for them to visit MS Learn site and do the study paths

designed for the educators (link: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-

us/learn/roles/educator). There one can find materials useful for developing the

online course further. E.g., implementing certification in academic programs (link:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/academic-program-certifications/)

and teach forward: best strategies for hybrid, remote, and blended learning (link:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/modules/teach-forward-best-strategies-

hybrid-remote-blended-learning/).

The teacher on charge of the course must check at regular intervals has Microsoft

Press published Exam refs for exams MB-910 or MB-920 and inform students

where they can find them after publishing (More info in chapter 7.7 below).

7.6 Further Information for the Students

In practice a student can do parts/assignments of the in the order they prefer. But

I recommend that they do it following a set order. Since they need to know the

48

fundamentals before taking the certification exam and with the knowledge from

assignment one and two it is easier to plan and execute the assignment three.

7.7 Study/Learning Materials

Learning materials are proposed to heavily lean on MS Learn materials and other

materials that are offered by Microsoft. Microsoft Press publishes (e)books that

can be used in learning as well. From MetCat (Metropolia´s library service)

students can read those eBooks. This means that there is an exam ref for PL-

900 Microsoft Power Platform fundamentals. It is an exam reference that focuses

on the critical skills and knowledge as measured by Microsoft certification exam.

There is not yet an exam ref for MB-910 or MB-920 certification exams that

measure knowledge in ERP and CRM, because they are relatively new

certification exams. The teacher on charge must check at regular intervals has

material been published and guide students to use the material.

7.8 Prerequisite

The proposition is that the online course does not have other pre requirements

than a computer and internet connection, because all the materials are found

online and most of the exercises require a computer to function. Furthermore, the

communication between the students and the teacher is based on email/Teams.

7.9 Assignments

Assignments in the online course are divided in three categories. First is, doing

a fundamental learning path in MS Learn. The second assignment is to pass a

certification exam in a chosen topic, and the last assignment is to pick and do

practical implementations in a chosen subject.

49

7.9.1 First Assignment

In this assignment the student logs in to the MS Learn environment using schools

credentials and does all the tasks on the topic of their choosing. To prove to the

teacher in charge of the course that they have done all the required assignments

for the ECTS they will take a screenshot of their profile containing the information

of doing all the tasks related to the chosen topics study path.

7.9.2 Second Assignment

In the second assignment students take a certification exam related to D365

CRM, ERP, or Power Platforming fundamentals. Students can use MS Learn

materials to prepare for the certification exam and/or exam refs published by

Microsoft Publishing. After they have received a certification from the test centre,

they need to send it to the teacher in charge of the course and after it has been

checked the ECTS credits can be granted to a student.

7.9.3 Third Assignment

In the third assignment a student chooses more advanced topic/s from the MS

Learn materials regarding a functionality in a chosen topic. In Figure 16.

Alternative Options for the Students. Different options for the students to choose

are precented. Figure 16 is only proposal and students can pick something else

if it is challenging enough. I.e., after doing the first assignments about D365 CRM

a student has acquired an interest in sales and marketing functionalities.

First, they will search the MS Learn and make a study plan what they are going

to learn and why. This study plan should contain at least fifteen hours of learning

in MS Learn. In this case a student could choose a learning paths “Working with

Dynamics 365 Sales” and “Work with core features in Dynamics 365 Marketing”.

Their total number of hours exceeds the set minimum of fifteen hours. In these

learning paths there are multiple labs and practical exercises for a student.

50

Then a student will send the teacher the study plan containing the learning paths

and modules of their choosing and MS Learns time estimations. After a teacher

has confirmed this plan to be okey they can start doing the tasks in MS Learn.

They will keep learning diary at the same time where they will tell what they have

studied and learned. In the end of the diary, they will write small self-reflection

how they performed with the tasks and how could this tasks help them in the

future.

In the end they will return the study plan, learning diary, and self-reflection texts

as a PDF to the teacher overseeing the course. After the teacher has inspected

the PDF text, and trophy screen shot can the ECTS credits be granted to the

student.

Enviroment Applicable Functionality

Learning Path Name in Learn Time

CRM Sales

Working with Dynamics 365 Sales 7h 41min

Work with Dynamics 365 Sales Professional

4h 24min

Marketing

Set up Dynamics 365 Marketing and configure advanced settings

2h 37min

Work with core features in Dynamics 365 Marketing

7h 38min

Manage events in Dynamics 365 Marketing

4h 4min

Customer Service

Create surveys with Dynamics 365 Customer Voice

4h 18 min

Field Service

Implement Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service

6h 22min

Universal Resource Scheduling in Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Field Service

7h 27min

51

ERP SCM

Configure and work with warehouse management in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

7h 28min

Configure and manage procurement and vendors in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

13h 31min

Master planning in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

6h 35min

Use warehouse management in manufacturing in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

9h 47min

Configure and manage sales, and customers in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

9h 8min

Finance

Work with accounts payable in Dynamics 365 Finance

6h 15min

Configure and manage fixed assets and Asset leasing in Dynamics 365 Finance

6h 49min

Work with accounts receivable in Dynamics 365 Finance

7h 10min

Configure and use cash and bank management, and sales tax in Dynamics 365 Finance

7h 31min

Commerce

Configure and work with omnichannel prerequisites in Dynamics 365 Commerce

7h 2min

Manage customer engagement and shopping experience in Dynamics 365 Commerce

4h 30min

All Configure your organization in Finance and Operations apps

12h 17Min

Migrate data and go live with Finance and Operations apps

4h 18min

Configure and work with analytics and reporting in Finance and Operations apps

2h 7min

52

ERP, CRM, Power Platforming

ALL Create relationships, business rules, calculations, and rollups in Dataverse

2h 21 min

ERP/CRM Project Operations

Work with Expense management in Dynamics 365 Project Operations

5h 45min

Deploy Dynamics 365 Project Operations

4h 27min

Figure 16. Alternative Options for the Students

7.10 Students Workload and ECTS Distribution

The ECTS credits are distributed for the assignments according to the

estimations how long the assignments will take. The distribution can be seen in

Figure 17 below.

Course Fundamentals Learn Module

Certification

Practical implementation

Study plan, diary, and reflection task

Total ECTS

Power platform

0.5 0.3 0.7 0.5 2

Dynamics CRM

0.5 0.3 0.7 0.5 2

Dynamics ERP

0.5 0.3 0.7 0.5 2

Figure 17. Proposal for ECTS Credit Distribution

According to my own experience, the time estimations in the MS Learn for the

study materials are accurate. So as the first and third assignment are directly set

in the MS Learn environment can their ECTS be set accurately. Completing the

fundamental learning path, a student will be rewarded with 0.5 ECTS. In the third

assignment, after writing the study plan, diary, and reflection task and doing the

practical tasks, will the students earn 1.2 ECTS. The time it took me to pass a

certification exam equalled 0.3 ECTS credits to prepare and take the certification

exam.

53

7.11 Learning Outcomes of the Course

Learning outcomes will be different according to the parts that the student will

choose in this online course. After the first assignment they will gain fundamental

knowledge in D365 CRM, ERP, or Power Platforming. After the second

assignment they will have a certification to prove their knowledge on a chosen

topic and after the last assignment they will gain practical knowledge and a

deeper understanding in the chosen functionalities. After a student has done all

the assignments, the student knows how to use MS Learn in studying and

developing their skills and can use this skill in the future to continuously learn new

skills.

7.12 Evaluation/ Assessment Methods and Criteria

The evaluation of the students will be done as pass/failed grading. The tasks

described for the assignments in chapter 7.9 above need to be done before the

credits can be granted to a student. If a student has passed certification exam

can the credits be rewarded from assignment one of the related topics.

Certification proves that the student has obtained the knowledge of assignment

one.

7.13 Application of the Research to Chapter 4.2 & 4.3

In this sub-chapter there are important points and insights on how to apply

important chapters.

7.13.1 Competences needed for ERP Implementation

When doing the research on chapter 4.2—Competences needed for

Implementation of ERP—I noticed that the lack of information on the studies

about solutions that cloud solutions can bring. In my opinion some of the technical

requirements which were seen as required technical skills in ERP were outdated.

54

For example, hard-line server management and upkeeping, as well as network

upkeep skills are not anymore so required. If an ERP solution leans on the cloud

solution, i.e., infrastructure as a service, it can free an enterprise from the need

to run its own servers on premises. And in any case, it seems like ERP venders

are providing ERP solution that ran in the cloud. E.g., SAP S/4HANA Cloud,

Dynamics 365, NetSuite. But even if the expert level knowledge of cloud is not

required. An ERP specialists must know the basics on infrastructure, because in

many cases, even if the maintenance is not required, in the implementation

process the knowledge is useful.

The general skills were so generic that I felt they would be handy in any situation

or project. I.e., teamwork skills are required almost all the jobs post that I have

read, and many times people work in group setting in the work life as well as in

personal life.

7.13.2 Problems Related to chapter 4.3

The first core problem stated in chapter 4.3 is that when the success rate of online

course is measured, the students tend to perform worse than in a traditional face-

to-face teaching. The success rate does not fluctuate with top-tier students. That

is why the building of rapport is important. The outcome in chapter 7.3 is

important. The emails are a way to connect with students and give them away to

contact the teacher and in the monthly meeting they can get in-person help.

The second problem in chapter 4.3 is cantered around the fact that faculties tend

to focus their resources to a technical implementation of an online course rather

than pedagogical. One way to handle this is to share recourses more evenly

trough out the course life cycle. In the beginning of the course only portion of

recurses is allocated to both technical and pedagogical implementation and as

the online course is released it will be developed through feedback and

experience.

55

8 Validation of the Initial Proposal

The senior lecturer of the IM study program inspected the initial proposal for the

online course and gave her feedback in an open conversation and as comments

in the text. A major remark was that in chapter 7.9.3 there should be examples of

what kind of study paths the students could choose as assignment three. The

answer for this remark is Figure 16 where there are alternative options from to

choose. Another remark was how the proposal was written. The tense and the

format should be more coherent.

56

9 Summary and Conclusion

9.1 Executive Summary

The purpose of this thesis was to find out how the online course about Dynamics

365 could be implemented using Microsoft Learn environment. In this study the

related learning paths and modules and how they are related to the topics and

certification were clarified. Chapter 7 consists of the proposal for the

implementation of the online course.

The background for the solution came from the interviews and the research. In

the interviews with recruiters, it became obvious that there is a great shortage of

skilled workers and recruiters emphasized that higher education institutes are

lacking educational paths to meet the demand. With the industry expert interviews

the questions were more about the skills related to consulting industry. When

asked about basic skills for the consultant the answer was interpersonal skills.

When asked where a person should start when starting in Dynamics 365

unexpectedly Power Platforming was a common answer, as well Dataverse. The

study to Microsoft Learn materials seems to support this. More about expert

interviews can be found in chapter 6.

From the literature research the main remark is the importance of building rapport

in the online course. It seems that persons who do well in school will succeed

regardless of the learning environment, whether face-to-face or online. For

people who do not cope so well in their studies online teaching affects adversely.

The negative effects of online courses can be compensated with active

communication and possibilities to get help at a low threshold. More about the

topic can be found in chapters 4.3.1, 4.5, and 7.3.

The outcome of this thesis is a proposal for an online course that can be deployed

very quickly. The proposal of the online course leans heavily on Microsoft’s own

materials and self-learning, the practical implementation of the course is very

easy. The final proposal for the online course can be found in chapter 7.

57

9.2 Next Steps of the Proposal

The next steps in the proposal are to roll-out the online course for the students

and communicate to the faculty and students what is the content of the online

course and how can it help students in the working life. The teacher overseeing

the online course should as well monitor the materials added in the MS Learn

and published by the MS publishing. Some of them could help students to prepare

themselves in the online course as well for the working life. The teaching about

the Power Platforming should be explored more. The MS learn materials and

expert interviews underlined the fact how important it is when considering D365.

9.3 Thesis Evaluation

The objectives were in line with the results. The objective defined in chapter 1.2

was achieved. The objective consisted of providing a pre-designed entity that can

be used as an online course for learning Microsoft Dynamics 365 for IM degree

program. The thesis work was completed within the set timeframe.

The validity and reliability of this thesis can be evaluated as good considered the

time and recourses allocated to the thesis. Starting the research by interviewing

the representative of the Metropolia UAS set the guidelines for the thesis and

research questions what should be answered in the thesis. The expert interviews

underlined the need for this thesis and helped to focus on the topics that are

valued in the business world and research of existing knowledge helped in the

building of the online course. Some actions that would have been valuable in the

thesis consists of interviewing more broadly the stakeholders like students in

Metropolia and teachers, researching wider the existing knowledge, and making

a more detailed chapter about Power Platforming: But because the time and

recourses allocated to this thesis are only fifteen credits these subjects needed

to be excluded from the thesis.

58

If another person would make this thesis with the same kind of instructions, I

would believe that they would as well end with a similar kind of proposal. The

biggest difference that would be possible would be with the teacher’s participation

and input in the online course.

9.4 Final Words

In the beginning I set three objectives for myself when forming an idea for a thesis.

First the outcome should be relevant for the stakeholders in it. Secondly it should

develop my professional knowledge as well as help me in the job markets. Thirdly

it should be ready within the set timeframe designed by myself in the start of the

thesis. All of them were achieved excellently. The thesis can be applied by

Metropolia to help students gain the same kind of professional growth that I have

had while making this thesis, and it also helps to meet the demand for skilled

work force in the job markets. I have gained knowledge of D365 and related

technologies such as, Azure and Power Platforming. With these skills I was able

to achieve a consultant role where I can apply the key learnings. Lastly the thesis

was completed in the set timeframe.

59

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