“Although many CRM technology projects were deferred or cancelled in 2009, our latest research spotlights that organizations of all sizes are now investing again to improve the customer management capabilities they’ve neglected during the past 18 months. If you are a business process leader in a large [or midsized] organization, you’re challenged to pick the best CRM solution to enable your company to capitalize on the upturn,” wrote William Band, vice president and principal analyst, Forrester Research, in the reports. “Microsoft Dynamics CRM shines by offering flexibility for large and midsized organizations. As a result, Microsoft is pursuing its strategy for penetrating the CRM market through offering buyers the ‘Power of Choice’ so that companies may choose how to deploy, how to pay, and how to use the application.”

The Forrester Wave reports evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of 19 customer relationship management (CRM) suite solutions against 516 criteria reflecting the requirements of midsized organizations and 18 CRM solutions for large organizations against 516 criteria reflecting the requirements of large organizations. These criteria included, among other factors, offering a multifunctional CRM application suite, a solution targeted to multiple industries, and a product now in general release and in wide use by customers.

Forrester research found that large and midsized organizations have many technology options to sift through. In Forrester’s evaluation of multiple CRM solutions, Microsoft Dynamics CRM was one of the solutions to which the research firm gave high marks for ease of use and relatively fast deployment times. The report further states, “Microsoft owns a SaaS solution — Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online — and buyers value the solution’s native integration with Outlook and being able to work within the familiar Microsoft technology stack. Buyers also like Microsoft Dynamics CRM’s usability, lower price and its quick time to value compared with traditional CRM applications.”

“It is an honor to be recognized as a Leader in the CRM industry that is helping customers seize new opportunities and grow their businesses,” said Brad Wilson, general manager, Microsoft Dynamics CRM. “We deliver innovation and value to companies around the world through our focus on end-user productivity, business process flexibility and agility, and the ability of our customers to leverage public and private cloud deployment models.”

The Forrester Wave™: CRM Suites for Midsized Organizations, Q2 2010 and The Forrester Wave™: CRM Suites for Large Organizations, Q2 2010 reports are available at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/itanalyst/default.mspx. More about Microsoft Dynamics CRM is available at http://www.microsoft.com/dynamics. In addition, people can follow the Microsoft Dynamics conversation daily and engage with the community at http://www.twitter.com/msdynamics and http://www.twitter.com/msdynamicscrm.

About Microsoft Dynamics

Microsoft Dynamics is a line of easy-to-use, integrated and adaptable ERP and CRM applications that enable business decision-makers to quickly respond to market shifts, take advantage of new trends, increase their competitive edge and drive business success. Microsoft Dynamics solutions are delivered through a world-class network of reselling partners providing specialized services and additional innovation to help customers excel in their industries.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Forrester Research Inc., The Forrester Wave™: CRM Suites for Midsized Organizations, Q2 2010 (June 2010) and The Forrester Wave™: CRM Suites for Large Organizations, Q2 2010 (June 2010)

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