Hi All,
After yesterday's Q&A with the panel, I thought it would be a good idea to see if there was a possibility in digging up some more information on what's coming down the pipe for Sage CRM. I've attached the actual document, but for a quick bullet-point list... here you go:
- 2019 R1 - Released with a TBD date on Sage 100 integration. Primary focus was on more "behind the scenes" technology related to the system from more of a development and integrated perspective (specifically Sage 300 integration). In addition, they rolled out a completely modernized Self Service portal example to provide a responsive theme that provides a seamless experience with Sage CRM regardless of the device being used to access the Self Service portal. I haven't had a chance to dive very deep into the new Self Service files, but to me that is one of the more exciting features (for those who remember the Self Service portal from the 90s).
- 2019 R2 - Targeted release August 2019 (standalone / EU ERP integrations only). SwiftPage support is being phased out here, MailChimp integration is being enhanced, and we should have (if not sooner than this release) the Advanced Customization Wizard for the 2019 releases. The biggest thing I'm curious to get my hands on is the item described as "Desktop Theme - Make More Responsive". This implies that we may actually start seeing Sage CRM being usable from a mobile device. Outside of those few items, everything else within this release from the presentation is described as "in build" indicating they're actively looking to release these items. Since it's currently in development, they're not really specific what the items such as "Deliver fully featured Application Programming Interface". They reference a new API on another page, so they may be trying to demystify it.
- 2020 R1 - Targeted Release Q1 2020 - none of the items here are guaranteed, but what the development team is looking to incorporate into the build. Personally, having to tell customers interested in a native app that there isn't a very good solution from Sage CRM for that... we might get a completely redesigned/redeveloped native app. Fingers crossed. "Interactive Dashboard technology review" and the "Mail Merge" functionality insinuates that they're looking to move away from Tomcat (possibly removing a point of failure for us/support to chase). Another piece that's very curious is "Research and recommend nominated 3rd party hooks". This almost seems like they're looking to open the development side of Sage CRM to make it more user friendly with integrating to other systems other than Microsoft applications.
- 2020 R2 - anticipated release in Q3 2020 - very loose concepts with this release as it's later on down the road, but the primary focus appears to be the core features and functionality that the software brings to the table that people love and use heavily (workflow, calendar, marketing campaigns, etc).
That's my quick and dirty analysis of the document. I've attached it. Feel free to read through it as closely as you'd like and kick the discussions around. Would love to know what everyone else is thinking on the topic and also how you feel about having a road map now.
#sagecrm #crm #roadmap
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Basil Malik
Partner
WAC Solution Partners CRM
Tulsa, OK
(539)424-3071
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