Evergreen Dynamics 365
Harness the full potential of your Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform by using automated testing to maintain quality and performance within an evergreen release cycle.
Evergreen Dynamics 365
Much like Windows 10, Microsoft has taken a ‘one version’ approach to Dynamics 365. This allows continuous deployment of new features and the latest capabilities, giving users the best possible experience. This approach makes Dynamics 365 what is known as an ‘evergreen’ product.
Within its software-as-a-service model, Microsoft releases two major updates to Dynamics 365 each year – in April and October – as well as many more regular updates throughout the year, estimated to occur every few weeks.
This shift in how Microsoft manages its products means your business is no longer able to maintain older versions of the software. As a Dynamics 365 customer, you’ll now have no choice in adopting the latest updates and will have to embrace the evergreen nature of the applications.
But this change is a positive one, as it enables you to:
- Leverage cutting-edge features and improvements
- Avoid the costs and stress of ‘big bang’ updates
- Have confidence in a more secure product.
Evergreen does, however, pose significant challenges, specifically for large enterprises, and those who rely on heavy levels of customisation and configuration with Dynamics 365.
We Understand Your Challenge
For most users, Microsoft Dynamics 365 supports business-critical processes. This puts the pressure on IT to ensure the applications are flexible, agile, and always prepared to receive these updates without any impact on functionality or performance.
Updates will come quickly and continuously, but for an evergreen software product to be successful within your business, the IT department must adapt to a new way of thinking. To maximise the value and benefits Dynamics 365 can deliver, effort and investment are required up-front to reduce costs and mitigate the risks.
Traditionally, large-scale software updates are perceived as stressful and challenging. This is primarily because most businesses take a one-off, reactive ‘big bang’ approach, rather than a proactive one.
Nearly all organisations have legacy applications in critical areas because updates have been so drastic and transformative that adopting them proves to be more difficult than maintaining the legacy software. But if you can take a proactive approach, the repeat challenges will reduce over time and software updates will be welcomed rather than feared.
As Microsoft pushes more updates, you must take steps to ensure that the quality, functionality, and usability of your own applications will not be negatively affected.
The Solution You Need
At Testhouse, we recognise that evergreen software requires increased readiness from all Dynamics 365 users.
The most crucial capability you need to overcome those challenges is to rapidly test how changes are affecting your own unique Dynamics platform.
Our team can work with you to establish the core functionality and Dynamics 365 usage for your organisation, including the integration points, customisation, and configuration.
Our deep, specialist knowledge of Dynamics 365 allows us to quickly evaluate the high-risk areas and target the testing in the most cost and time-effective manner, while also ensuring optimum test coverage.
We can also utilise our existing assets, deploy subject matter experts to plan an effective risk mitigation strategy tailored to your needs, and provide Dynamics-focused testing services, such as:
- QA Management
- End-to-End Functional Validation
- Performance Testing
- Automated Testing
- DevOps for Dynamics
Significant effort is required to manually test the core functionality and ensure any changes have not affected business-critical processes. With that in mind, test automation is the key to managing continuous updates.
At Testhouse, we’ve recently created a bespoke Dynamics 365 Test Automation Framework, ‘Frameium’, to accelerate the creation and maintenance of test automation assets.
Outcomes and Benefits
Frameium contains a repository of pre-identified functions and controls for most page elements, along with a set of reusable functions, controls, and workflows. Utilising Frameium as part of our service has resulted in the following benefits for several existing clients:
- Time-to-Value: Increased scripting speed by 30%
- Business Coverage: Extended functional coverage
- Accuracy: Enhanced accuracy by proactive prioritisation
- Reusability: Effort reduction across cycles
- Maintainability: Uncluttered and distributed storage of test artefacts
- Faster Execution Cycles
- Reduced Manual Intervention
- Simplification: Reuse of complex controls and objects
- Data Management: Seamless handling of test data
- Error Handling: Robust error and exception handling
- Reporting: Rich and detailed reporting
All of these can allow you to embrace Microsoft’s evergreen Dynamics 365 solution in a timely and cost-efficient manner without the stress or complexity of handling the testing yourself.
Don’t leave the success of your Microsoft Dynamics 365 implementation up to chance. Get in touch with us today to discover how the experience and expertise of our certified specialists make us the leading quality assurance partner for businesses all around the world.
Request a free, no-obligation demo today!
Or tell us more about your project if you’d like us to provide a Proof-of-Concept (PoC).