Introduction
As Microsoft Dynamics 365 continues to expand its features and capabilities, particularly within the Digital Contact Center Platform (DCCP), the enduring significance of voice communications cannot be ignored. The recent addition of the Customer Service Co-Pilot aims to streamline agents' workflows and enhance both the customer and agent experience. While the global shift toward digital communication channels such as chat, SMS, and social media is undeniable, voice remains an essential channel in call centers around the world.
What sets Dynamics 365 DCCP apart is its unique suite of offerings that integrate native voice capabilities alongside chat and social media. This positions Microsoft as a singular force in the CRM landscape, unmatched in its ability to offer such a broad range of native functionalities. For organizations already utilizing other Microsoft services, such as Customer Insights Journey and Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations (F&O), the advantages of a unified platform with extensive native capabilities are unparalleled.
Why Bring Your Own Carrier?
When it comes to utilizing the native voice channel in Dynamics 365's Digital Contact Center Platform (DCCP), organizations have two primary options. The first is to rely on Azure Communication Services' PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) services, For the most up-to-date information on the availability of Azure Communication Services, you can refer to this document, which provides a country-by-country breakdown. The second option allows organizations to retain their current telecommunications provider while leveraging Azure's Direct Routing capabilities.
While Microsoft continues to expand its global reach with multi-year roadmaps for offering calling plans in various countries and regions, Azure's PSTN services do not yet have complete global coverage. Furthermore, even if an organization falls within a supported Azure Communication Services region, there are compelling reasons to retain their existing telecommunications provider. These can range from existing long-term contracts to specific operational or regulatory considerations.
Before Kicking Off the Voice Implementation: Plan for Success!
The setup of Omnichannel Voice with an external telco provider requires the configuration of different areas, each requiring a distinct skill set. The main challenge is to achieve good communication and bridges between the various teams to ensure that each one knows their responsibilities and what needs to be delivered from their end.
Imagine it like a puzzle with four main areas: SIP trunking, Session Border Controller (SBC), Azure Communication Services, and Omnichannel. While it may initially seem that Omnichannel and Dynamics 365 will be the main focus, the truth is that the other parts represent the more complicated aspects of the implementation and carry the majority of the risk.
Another critical element is a detailed fit-gap analysis. The call centre business is unique, and most centres depend on specific, well-known products that have been in the market for almost two decades. Omnichannel Voice is still a young product and has some limitations. Therefore, expectations should be set with the customer upfront, and a detailed fit-gap analysis needs to be done to avoid surprises.
Running via the below checklist should reduce the chance of having problems with Voice (Call centre) Projects:
- Does the implementation team have someone overseeing the elements required, with proper knowledge of each of them and their dependencies?
- Does the implementation team have the required skills to complete the setup & the configuration of (SBC, ACS & Omnichannel)?
- Is there a good communication channel between the implementation team, SBC provider & the telco provider?
- All the tasks should be stored in a registry (DevOps or Jira) along with a specific owner, due date, and dependency.
- The cost & the licence model for each component should be discussed before the project kick-off.
- The selection of the Telco and SBC provider should be finalized before the project kick-off. If the Organisation is interested in exploring the Voice capabilities, then starting with a trial instance using an ACS (Azure Communication Services) number might be a good initial step.
- Fit gap analysis.
Prerequisites for Omnichannel Direct Routing
The document linked below dives into the details of the prerequisites for setting up Omnichannel Direct Routing. This isn't a simple configuration; it requires a team that deeply understands telephony configurations. Session Border Controllers (SBC) are an essential component, and one of Microsoft's certified SBCs is needed for the setup. The project team may also consider engaging the SBC as a managed service to cover the telephony aspect of the configuration if necessary.
Bring your own carrier | Microsoft Learn
Define Your SBC Strategy Before You Start:
Planning your Session Border Controller (SBC) approach is a crucial step that should be undertaken before implementation begins.
| |
Pros |
Cons |
Recommended for |
| Two-Tier SBC Strategy for Production and Non-Production |
This approach allows for clear separation between production and non-production environments, facilitating easier troubleshooting and validation of changes. It also helps isolate real business data |
It will require two SBCs instead of one, and the non-production SBC configuration will be different due to it serving multiple D365 instances |
Organizations that want a balance between risk management and cost. This option provides an environment for testing and troubleshooting without affecting the production environment |
| Single SBC Framework Across All D365 Environments |
This option minimizes the consumption of Azure resources and SBC licensing costs |
The configuration becomes complex, and without a separate non-production environment, risks associated with operational activities such as fault reproduction and incident fixes are increased |
Smaller organizations or scenarios where cost is a major constraint. Keep in mind that this comes at the expense of higher operational risks, including more complicated incident management |
| Separate SBCs for Every D365 Instance |
This is the simplest and most straightforward solution, as each environment has its own dedicated SBC, making operational support simpler |
It is the most expensive option, requiring multiple SBCs, Azure resources, and carriage services |
Larger organizations that have the resources to manage multiple SBCs and where maximum isolation between environments is desired for security, compliance, or operational reasons |
In most enterprise scenarios, Option 1 often provides a good balance between cost and operational flexibility. It allows for testing, troubleshooting, and validation to occur without affecting the live, production environment, which is often crucial for maintaining a high level of service availability and quality.
Remember to consider your organization's specific circumstances when making a decision.
Migration of Omnichannel Voice configuration between environments:
For Omnichannel Voice implementation, each Azure Communication Service (ACS) instance must be paired one-to-one with an Omnichannel instance. As a result, number provisioning is specific and limited to each organization. In other words, a single ACS instance or phone number cannot be linked or paired with multiple Omnichannel instances.
From a migration and deployment perspective, phone numbers must be manually provisioned or ported for each organization and then paired with the corresponding workstream. For the rest of the configuration, a data migration tool can be utilized for deployments. Please refer to this article for more information: Migrate unified routing data for the voice channel | Microsoft Learn
Cost Planning for Implementing BYOC with Omnichannel Voice:
Licenses and costs shouldn't come as a surprise after kicking off the implementation. Costs should be carefully planned, whether they are per-agent licenses or based on consumption. When it comes to the Bring Your Own Carrier (BYOC) option, there are different components that will contribute to the overall cost. Understanding the pricing model and planning ahead is essential.
- Omnichannel Voice Add-On: Similar to chat and other channels, agents using Omnichannel Voice's native capabilities will need an eligible Omnichannel add-on. This is licensed on a per-agent, per-month basis.
- SBC: Costs vary depending on the SBC configuration, whether it's virtual or physical, and which certified SBC is implemented.
- Ongoing Azure Resource Consumption: For ACS and direct routing, like anything on Azure, costs are based on consumption. Understand the pricing model and plan your estimated costs using the average volume expected. Refer to this document for more details.
Known limitations:
Due to mapping as 1:1 between Omnichannel and Azure communication resource and outbound routing rule limitation (if SBC is configured on Azure Communication Resource the outbound call will always pass through SBC channel it is not yet possible to mix Direct Routing and Direct Offer for outbound calls, perhaps it’s still possible for inbound calls (adding Direct offer numbers in workstreams mixing them with Direct Routing numbers). More information: Outbound voice routing considerations.
Conclusion:
Microsoft is committed to evolving Dynamics DCCP, enriching it with more AI features and tools that make it easier for organizations to serve their customers and improve their customer service strategy. Having a native voice channel integrated into the same customer data platform is a game-changer for any call center, whether it's in terms of operations, simplicity, agent adoption, analytics, or reports.
BYOC (Bring Your Own Carrier) can unleash this potential, allowing customers to continue using their existing telecommunication providers while connecting their infrastructure to Dynamics. This also enables them to benefit from all the features and AI capabilities that Dynamics DCCP has to offer.
Additional Resources:
