A Center of Excellence (CoE) is a dedicated team or framework that drives best practices, governance, and continuous improvement for Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Power Platform adoption within an organization.
Key Objectives of a CoE
- Governance – Ensure compliance, security, and standardization.
- Best Practices – Promote consistent development and deployment methodologies.
- Enablement – Train and support users, developers, and admins.
- Innovation – Identify and implement new capabilities and automation.
- Monitoring & Optimization – Track usage, performance, and ROI.
Steps to Establish a CoE
1. Define Scope & Structure
- Determine focus areas (e.g., Dynamics 365 Sales, Field Service, Power Apps, Power Automate).
- Choose a CoE model:
- Centralized (Single team managing all D365/PP initiatives).
- Federated (Business units have their own CoEs with central oversight).
- Hybrid (Mix of centralized governance and decentralized execution).
2. Assemble the CoE Team
Core roles may include:
- CoE Lead – Oversees strategy and execution.
- Solution Architects – Design scalable solutions.
- Developers – Build and customize apps/flows.
- Admins – Manage environments, security, and compliance.
- Trainers/Champions – Drive adoption and user enablement.
- Data Specialists – Ensure data integrity and reporting.
3. Establish Governance Framework
- Environment Strategy (Dev, Test, Prod, and sandbox management).
- Security & Compliance Policies (Roles, permissions, DLP policies).
- Development Standards (ALM, solution layering, naming conventions).
- Change Management (Approval processes for new solutions).
4. Implement Microsoft’s CoE Starter Kit
Microsoft provides a CoE Starter Kit (Power Platform version available, adaptable for Dynamics 365) that includes:
- Inventory of apps/flows for visibility.
- Governance dashboards to monitor usage.
- Automated compliance workflows (e.g., app certification).
- Nurture components (training materials, community engagement).
5. Drive Adoption & Continuous Improvement
- Training & Certification Programs (e.g., Microsoft Learn, workshops).
- Internal Community & Champions Network (Power User groups).
- Feedback Loops (Surveys, user groups, analytics).
- Regular Audits & Optimization (Retire unused apps, improve performance).
Benefits of a CoE
✔ Standardized processes – Reduces silos and inconsistencies.
✔ Better ROI – Ensures solutions are scalable and well-governed.
✔ Reduced risk – Prevents shadow IT and security gaps.
✔ Faster innovation – Encourages best practices and reusable components.
Next Steps
- Get leadership buy-in (Align CoE goals with business objectives).
- Start small (Pilot with a high-impact area like Sales or Customer Service).
- Leverage Microsoft resources (CoE Starter Kit, FastTrack, Partner support).