Microsoft’s April 2019 release notes describe all new features coming to Dynamics 365 and the Power Platform some of the features are available to preview in February. Overall Microsoft has continued its drive for better usability and a vast range of updates. This set of release notes are 315 pages long and that is just the summary! Most of the updates will be released on 5th April 2019 with some taking a few months before being made available.

As expected, Microsoft is continuing with two main themes – artificial intelligence (AI) and user experience (UX). There is embedded AI capability and access to AI features across the different apps and the platform. They are extending their dedicated AI applications with a new application, Dynamics 365 AI for Customer Service, they now have 3 dedicated AI applications – AI for Customer Service, AI for Sales and AI for Market Insight. For user experience there is a continuous set of updates from keyboard shortcuts, more intuitive processes to the look and feel of certain features all designed to improve the overall experience and usability of the platform.

The April ’19 release signifies a key milestone for Dynamics 365. It is the first major update where all customers across Dynamics 365 will be on the latest version and on a consistent update schedule. This is something Microsoft has been setting up for a while and will be the model they look to progress going forward, where users will be forced to move to the latest version.

Some of our key highlights from the April release notes are:

  • Dynamics 365 for Customer Service – live chat and SMS has been added to Customer Service adding more digital channels for managing customers.
  • Power Platform – major improvements to the Power Platform to support higher quality reports, apps and workflows.
  • Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations – the solution has received a wide range of additional capability, with over 40 areas of improvements including better global availability, inventory performance optimisation and more.
  • Dynamics 365 for Talent – You can now apply for jobs posted through Dynamics 365 for Talent straight from LinkedIn. With “LinkedIn easy apply”, candidates can submit their LinkedIn profile instead of filling out lengthy application forms.
  • Dynamics 365 Business Central – additional data replication support has been made available from Dynamics GP 2018 R2 and Dynamics NAV 2018, allowing customers to replicate almost all of their on-premise tables.
  • Artificial Intelligence – AI is a core theme across all of the platforms but a new application for AI for Customer Service will be generally available in April 2019.