Jan 17

Written by: Cornerstone Administrator
1/17/2010 8:22 AM 

Out-of-Box Dynamics CRM provides a few fields in which you can audit a CRM record when the record is created (via the Created On and Created By fields) as well as a field edit to a record (via the Modified By and Modified On fields). Oftentimes, companies are seeking a deeper understanding of the exact fields which are being edited versus only understanding that some data element within the record has been edited. That is where the standard application and the Modified BY and Modified On fields are not sufficient.

Many companies have records which are shared within the CRM community such as Accounts and Contacts. Duplicate records are frowned upon, thus forcing CRM Users to share and edit the same record continuously. Opportunity records are also critical in the sales process and the ability to understand exactly what data values have been changed historically and by who is critical to understanding the dynamics of the sale.

Many Companies running Dynamics CRM require an auditing at the field level of certain records. This allows for the capturing of the current value, the new value entered, and the CRM User who made that change. This entire history would then be visible directly within the record where the edit is being made.
The links below can provide some insight into ways you can build your own audit tool as well as ways to purchase one from a company which has already built this functionality.

http://crmaudit.codeplex.com/

http://www.tekoppele.com/Blog/post/2009/05/22/3-FREE-Ways-to-Audit-Data-in-Microsoft-Dynamics-CRM.aspx