Industry-specific quotation and order processing

audius:Energy offers optimized workflows for quotation and order processing, including complex price and discount calculations for services and products. The industry-specific product management features are used both for sales and the field service.

The best-practice business processes and workflows for quotation preparation represent the starting point for the automated process: quotation – order – project – invoice, each element of which includes documents in the customer language. Accepted quotations are converted into orders, which serve as the basis for the power generation equipment installation activities at the customer’s site, managed using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service.

The order thus provides the basis for purchase order processing, work preparation, and installation scheduling. Possible subcontractors are now also integrated in planning of the work, and purchase orders are placed with suppliers.

Processing and evaluation of sales opportunities and leads

As an option, audius:Energy can also support business development with the CRM system. Predefined sales phases are used for lead or opportunity qualification in order to provide the best possible support for prospects and successfully close deals.

It provides an overview of promising sales opportunities, when a deal is expected to be closed, and which sales opportunities will be included in the sales forecast. Opportunity Management is complemented by analysis methods and the Miller Heiman Group’s Funnel ScoreCard® to facilitate strategic decision making.

The profitability calculation and final costing for the solar and photovoltaic systems are completed on the basis of the quotations. These include the investment costs for a system, possible grants, time periods, and other important key figures such as tariffs, degradation, energy self-consumption, or profitability.

Profitability is calculated using the net present value method. A planned profit and loss statement is also possible.

Integration of subcontractors within business processes

If subcontractors are integrated in company-specific processes during the planning of a photovoltaic system, they can be referenced at the lead or sales opportunity stage and definitely when preparing quotations and orders. These references form the basis of proactive activity management and, if required, data exchange or partner access to relevant content in the CRM system. Engineer qualification management, documentation of work performed on an installation, and the associated acceptance protocols are all relevant in this context for the smooth handling of the planning and installation work as well as for intercompany settlement.

The existence of grant approvals for a photovoltaic or solar project is an important element in photovoltaic system installation planning because this affects both the advance payments and setting of the installation dates.

Billing of products and services

To complement the Dynamics 365 Sales processes, audius:Energy provides additional, industry-specific features for the billing of products and services, enabling the automated invoicing of recurring flat charges for photovoltaic system leasing, maintenance, and customer service. The CRM system generates invoices, partial, final, and collective invoices, as well as credit memos. Invoice quantities are based on product prices or hours worked. Note that the actual hours worked on a system installation can be recorded on a mobile basis.

To complement the marketing functions of Dynamics 365 Sales, audius:Energy provides features for contact data management, customer segmentation, and the implementation of GDPR requirements.

Commission and bonus accounting

The optional integration of audius:Commission allows audius:Energy to be used for calculating commission and bonuses. Commissions and bonuses for the services of employees, external agents, consultants, or ad hoc advisors, including for structured sales organizations with multiple bonus recipients, are calculated on an ongoing basis! Periodic settlement with audius:Commission is free of error and significantly reduces the effort required to incorporate complex regulations.

Dynamics 365 Field Service is used for the planning and processing of system installations. The Field Service workflows continue the audius:Energy business processes for installation of the photovoltaic systems and include resource planning and the reservation of both technology and materials. As part of this, order data is transferred to service orders and the various steps required for system installation are defined and initiated.

Besides managing the activities leading up to the initial commissioning of a photovoltaic system, audius:Energy with Dynamics 365 Field Service can also be used for service and maintenance activities at loyal customers.

Fault, complaint, and inquiry management

audius:Energy supports a range of customer contact options, including an app, portal, phone, and e-mail – all in the one module: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Service. This gives audius:Energy a perfect overview of all customer inquiries, which can be classified and forwarded directly to the sales or service team, as required. The customer always receives feedback on the current status of their inquiry and no data is lost. Knowledge database articles can be used to provide additional information to customers for self-help purposes or make know-how available to internal employees.