Odoo & Microsoft 365 Integration: Benefits, Common Workflows, and Methods

You love the robust features of Odoo and Microsoft 365. However, have you recently got a plan to integrate both systems so they could work together even better?

Here is an integration scenario: your sales team can easily collaborate with peers on customer interactions in Microsoft Outlook with immediate access to data in Odoo CRM. Combining Odoo with Microsoft 365 creates more automated workflows, enabling you to increase efficiency and teamwork performance.

Let’s explore the values that any business can get with the integration, and how to consider applying the suitable integration approach.

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Microsoft 365 - Collaboration & Productivity Apps

Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based subscription service that offers an extensive selection of tools for collaboration and productivity that any business can quickly set up and utilise. 

If you are already familiar with Microsoft products, it provides a friendly and modern experience, allowing users to access applications anywhere with an internet connection. Because Microsoft 365 operates on a subscription model rather than a one-time payment system like traditional software licenses, you can always access the latest features and updates. 

Read more: Manage Odoo on Google Cloud - Why It’s Powerful & How to Start

If you’re running your business on Odoo and looking to connect it with Microsoft 365, let’s go through the basics of the integration.

Why Do Businesses Integrate Odoo With Microsoft 365?

Using independent productivity apps from Microsoft while maintaining your operations in Odoo separately can result in fragmented workflows. Here are 4 main reasons why Odoo Microsoft 365 is a strategic move for any business:

1. Synchronised data & enhanced collaboration

Better collaboration leads to higher business performance (Frost & Sullivan). However, if your data sets are isolated across separate systems, your business will likely encounter data inconsistency and team disconnection, leading to poorer performance. To bridge these gaps, you can leverage the integration of Odoo and Microsoft 365 which helps your business establish a smooth two-way data flow.

A lot of time will be saved with less manual work. Up-to-date data synchronisation ensures consistent document management, customer data, sales figures, inventory levels, etc. across systems. Moreover, a centralised data view is created to help your functional teams access relevant data points in, i.e. Microsoft Outlook and Odoo CRM, or Power BI and Odoo Manufacturing. This fosters quicker customer support or better decision-making on the inventory levels.

As a result, when everyone has access to the same data, communication is more effective. Teams can work together on projects efficiently without any problems and quickly exchange critical data.

2. Streamlined workflows & automation

Repetitive tasks can take up your team’s valuable time. However, through automation, businesses can increase performance by eliminating flaws, and enhancing quality and speed (McKinsey & Company). Integrating Odoo with Microsoft 365 helps you increase efficiency by establishing automated workflows.

There will be less administrative burdens. Based on preset triggers, the integration enables automated time-consuming actions, such as generating quotes based on customer data, sending follow-up emails, or creating insightful financial reports.

3. Advanced Reporting & Business Intelligence

Data is effective only when you can properly access and evaluate it. By integrating Odoo with Microsoft 365, you can leverage the advantages of Microsoft’s robust business intelligence tools.

Specifically, Power BI is a robust data visualisation and analysis tool with user-friendly interfaces that allow your teams to get insightful knowledge from Odoo data. Users can adjust key indicators, spot trends, or make data-driven decisions based on thorough reporting dashboards to optimise business performance. 

In the long term, this promotes a data-driven culture inside your company. Data-driven businesses are over 7 times more likely to retain consumers, 19 times more likely to become profitable, and 23 times more likely to outperform rivals in customer acquisition (Forbes).

4. Scalability & Flexibility

Your needs increase as your company expands. Odoo and Microsoft 365 both provide a scalable and modular approach that lets you tailor the integration to your distinctive requirements.

One of the best parts is that you won't need on-premise infrastructure that eats up your budget over time. Instead, you can utilise the cloud-based features of both Odoo and Microsoft 365. As your company grows, this contributes to financial savings and simpler scalability.

Moreover, Odoo provides industry-specific modules (i.e. Odoo MRP for manufacturers), and Microsoft 365 delivers a suite of productivity solutions useful for a wide range of business activities. This means that you own the resources required to be successful in the market.

Read more: Best Odoo 17 Improvements & What To Do Before Upgrading

4 Common Integration Workflows

Odoo and Microsoft 365 integration is more than just syncing two systems. The integration enables you to create workflows that connect multiple departments and roles inside your organisation. Here are 5 prominent integration workflows that greatly boost operational efficiency:

1. Centralise Documents

Imagine your sales team needs the latest project quotation for a client meeting. Normally, they spend a lot of time searching through internal storage or email attachments to find the most current version. However, with Odoo and Microsoft SharePoint integration, this process becomes much simpler and quicker.

In this case, you can create and save all project documents in SharePoint folders, including purchase orders, quotes, and technical manuals. Then, updates performed on SharePoint are configured to update the document in Odoo automatically. Plus, by integrating SharePoint with Odoo modules like CRM, Sales, or Purchase, you can give sales teams quick access to documents during conversations with clients.

2. Automate Lead Capture

The first couple of interactions with customers are very important, and the integration between two platforms can automate this stage. For instance, if you integrate Odoo with Microsoft Outlook, the process of lead generation and nurturing is much faster as it ensures no potential customer falls between the cracks.

In Outlook, businesses can create customised lead capture forms to collect data during the early stage of customer interaction. Here, you can configure to integrate these Outlook capture forms within Odoo CRM. The integrated workflow is when a potential client submits a form, Odoo CRM automatically generates a new lead record, saving your sales team a considerable amount of time.

3. Improve Task Management

With the connection between Odoo and Microsoft 365, managing tasks and maintaining accountability across project teams takes less time.

Let's give another example. In Odoo, users can create and assign tasks with specific variables like due dates and assignees. When integrating Odoo with Outlook calendars, these tasks will be automatically updated within the Outlook calendars of the assignees. This way, everyone can view their assignments and deadlines quickly and directly within the Outlook interface, without switching between different platforms. Any task updates or notifications will also appear in real-time, making sure everyone is on the same page.

4. Advance Business Insights Across Functions

While Odoo has solid reporting features, Microsoft Power BI elevates data analysis to a new level. These two platforms can work together to deliver more strategic insights across multiple business functions, from sales and marketing, to supply chain, project management and finance.

You can use Odoo data to create Power BI reports. Specifically, the integration allows you to utilise and interact with the Power BI workplace features within Odoo and create desired datasets. It automates the Odoo data exporting process to Power BI and ensures that your reports are always up-to-date. Moreover, you can use Power BI to visualise your synced Odoo data for in-depth analysis and gain more valuable insights during report creation.

In case you need to take control of user responsibility, you can grant access to reports based on user roles within Odoo.

Read more: Odoo WooCommerce Integration - Benefits, Workflows, & Methods

Integration Methods: Odoo Connector vs Custom Integration

How do you complete the integration of Odoo and Microsoft 365? Here, we'll compare two typical approaches: using pre-built Odoo connectors on the Odoo App Market vs hiring professionals to handle custom connections.

Choosing The Right Approach

Depending on your demands and budget, you can choose between pre-built connectors and a customised Odoo Microsoft 365 integration. Here is a brief how-to:

Select pre-built connectors if:

• You need to exchange data between Microsoft 365 and Odoo at a basic level.
• You have a tight budget and limited technical experience.
• Your company's procedures are not too complicated.

Go with experts for custom integration if:

• You need a high level of customisation due to complicated workflows.
• You have a greater variety of Microsoft 365 apps that must be integrated.
• You need a scalable approach since you expect to grow in the future.
• You value continuous assistance and professional advice.

References:

• Forbes (2023). Being Data-Driven Is Likely Your Best Bet.
• McKinsey Global Institute (2017). A Future That Works: Automation, Employment, And Productivity.
• Frost & Sullivan. Meetings Around the World: The Impact of Collaboration on Business Performance.