Ryan: So have you ever felt like your workday is just, well, this relentless cycle? Copying paste.
Emma: Definitely.
Ryan: You know, you get a customer email, copy it paste into a sales order.
Emma: Yeah.
Ryan: Then hours maybe hunting for the cheapest shipping rate.
Emma: Yeah. Website after website. It’s a huge drain.
Ryan: It’s such a common frustration. And I think for those of you, you deep in Dynamics 365 Business Central, you know, these manual order entry steps, the shipping delays, they’re really familiar pain points.
Emma: They really are. It feels like information overload sometimes and it’s just, wow. Inefficient.
Ryan: Exactly.
Emma: And that’s actually what we’re diving into today. Our mission for this deep dive is to look at two new solutions that aim to tackle these exact frustrations head on. Okay, we’re talking Microsoft Sales Order Agent and Insight Works’ Order Ship Express.
Ryan: Right.
Emma: And the promise here is while they could automate the entire flow from the first quote request right through to getting that package onto the carrier’s truck.
Ryan: That sounds ambitious.
Emma: Yeah.
Ryan: And really promising. So the big question, the one from the source material we’re looking at today is, but does this mean your job is obsolete?
Emma: Million dollar question.
Ryan: Yeah, we’re pulling from Automating Sales and Shipping with Business Central AI to really get into how these tools actually work. Work, what they could mean for, you know, the modern workflow and for your role specifically.
Emma: And I think one of the most surprising things, maybe the initial aha moment here, is that the real story, it isn’t really about machines replacing people.
Ryan: Okay.
Emma: It’s more about transforming what work itself actually means. So, yeah, get ready for some insights that might just reframe how you think about automation day to day.
Ryan: All right, I’m ready. Let’s unpack this. First up, the sales order agent. What. What exactly is it? What does it do?
Emma: So the sales order agent, that’s Microsoft’s AI assistant, and it’s built specifically for capturing orders. A really key advantage is how neatly it fits into the existing workflow. So when a customer emails asking for a quote, the agent is basically watching your designated inbox.
Ryan: Actively watching, actively monitoring.
Emma: Yeah. And it’s smart enough to recognize those sales inquiries when they come in.
Ryan: How smart are we talking? Like, how good is the AI at understanding those emails? Can it figure out what someone wants even if they don’t use perf specific keywords, maybe handle informal language.
Emma: That’s A great point. It’s designed precisely for that. Understanding the intent behind the email, not just math specific words.
Ryan: Interesting.
Emma: So once it identifies an inquiry, it finds the customer in Business Central, checks your stock levels right then and generates a PDF quote automatically. Automatically, with all the key details, items, quantities, prices, even delivery dates. But it doesn’t just stop there.
Ryan: Okay, this next bit sounds really interesting. What happens after it sends that first quote? Can it actually talk back and forth with the customer? How does that work?
Emma: It can. It engages in what they call multi turn email conversations.
Ryan: Multi turn.
Emma: Yeah. So if the customer replies, maybe asking for changes or having questions, the agent actually adjusts the quote and sends back new versions. Think about it. It’s not just efficiency, it’s like creating this super responsive digital first impression. Almost like a tireless digital helper.
Ryan: A concierge kind of.
Emma: Exactly. It frees up your human team to step in where that personal touch really counts. Not just on the basic back and forth stuff.
Ryan: Okay, so it’s conversational, which is impressive. But if it’s generating quotes and emailing customers, how much control do I still have? Am I just watching this happen?
Emma: No, no, that’s absolutely crucial. And the source material is really clear on this. Users stay completely in control. Oh, well, you set up permissions, you define profiles to say exactly which tables and pages the agent can even touch.
Ryan: Right.
Emma: And maybe the most important part, you always review outgoing messages before they actually go out.
Ryan: Ah, okay. So that’s not just firing things off on its own.
Emma: Not at all. Think of it like a really diligent, very capable assistant. It does the heavy lifting, the legwork, but you give the final okay, got it. And once you approve, then it converts those quotes into orders and emails them back to the customer.
Ryan: Okay, that makes sense. So the order is created. Now the next big headache often kicks in. Right? Shipping, traditionally that’s just another black hole of manual tasks. Logging into different carrier sites, copying addresses again, comparing rates, printing labels. It eats up so much time.
Emma: A huge time sink. Absolutely.
Ryan: So is that where this order Ship Express comes into the picture?
Emma: Exactly. Right. Once that sales order is sitting nicely in Business Central Order Ship Express, which by the way, is a license free app for from insightworks.
Ryan: License free, Russ.
Emma: Yeah, it’s designed to basically eliminate all those manual shipping steps we just talked about. And one of the best things is how easy it is to get started. It plagues right into Business Central. No extra modules, no really complex setup, very accessible.
Ryan: And what about Reach? Is this mainly for, say, North American businesses or can others Use it too.
Emma: It’s actually globally available, which is a big plus. You can use Order Ship Express in a lot of countries. Okay, but there’s an important distinction here. It’s primarily for generating domestic parcels labels.
Ryan: Ah, okay, so just standard packages within the same country.
Emma: Right. If you’re dealing with international shipments or things like LTL less than truckload or FTL full truckload shipments. You know, the bigger freight stuff.
Ryan: Yeah.
Emma: Then you’d need to look at Insight Works other solution, which is called Dynamic Ship. That one has the broader carrier and freight support needed for those more complex scenarios.
Ryan: Got it. Okay, so Order Ship Express is solid for domestic parcels, but does it help with finding the best shipping rates? Because that’s always a huge factor for businesses.
Emma: Oh, absolutely. That’s a core feature. It has flexible carrier support. You can use built in accounts or connect your own negotiated rates.
Ryan: Okay.
Emma: It integrates with the major parcel carriers. So you can shop your rates in real time, print the labels, track the shipments, the whole nine yards.
Ryan: And the rate shopping is real time?
Emma: Critically, yes. Real time rate shopping. It lets you compare, say up to three carriers side by side and pick the most cost effective option for every single order.
Ryan: That’s huge.
Emma: It really is. The Insight here isn’t just, you know, saving a few dollars here and there. It’s about embedding this constant automated cost optimization into every shipment. It turns shipping, which is often just a reactive expense, into something you proactively manage, maybe even a profit lever.
Ryan: Okay, so we’ve seen what the sales order agent can do and what Order Ship Express does for shipping. How do these two actually work together? Can you walk us through how they transform the whole process? Like A Day in the Life.
Emma: Yeah, let’s imagine it So a customer emails you asking for a quote instead of you immediately stopping everything, opening your inbox, opening Business Central, copying details, or maybe just sipping your coffee.
Ryan: I like that already.
Emma: Right. The sales order agent reads that email, finds the customer checks, stocking availability all.
Ryan: In the background, and it actually creates the sales quote itself.
Emma: It does. Fills in the items, quantities, prices, even initial shipping info. Then it emails that PDF quote back to the customer.
Ryan: And if a customer replies, say they.
Emma: Want to change something, the agent handles it. It sees the reply, adjusts the quote, sends a revision. It manages that back and forth conversation we mentioned earlier.
Ryan: But I’m still checking it before it goes out. Right. It’s not totally autonomous where I might miss a crucial detail.
Emma: Exactly. You’re still in the loop for approval. The agent never sends anything without your Blessing you review it. Maybe you want to adjust a discount or add a special note. You approve it.
Ryan: Okay, then what?
Emma: Then it becomes an order. And now you shift gears to shipping. So within the sales order shipping page inside Business Central, you just choose create.
Ryan: Shipping labels right there in BC.
Emma: Right there you pick your carrier, your service level, click Get Rate or maybe directly Get Label. Order Ship Express does its thing, calculates the freight cost, the price, and boom. Downloads a PDF label for you.
Ryan: Wow, that does sound incredibly streamlined. Are there any like common hurdles, things businesses run into when they try to set this kind of automation up unexpected complexities?
Emma: That’s a fair question. I mean, while the tools are designed to be pretty user friendly, there’s always some initial setup, getting your carrier accounts connected properly, making sure your item data in Business Central is clean and accurate. That can take a bit of attention upfront.
Ryan: Sure. Data hygiene is always key.
Emma: Absolutely. But once it is configured, labels print automatically, tracking numbers get updated. In BC, customer notifications can go out. It just flows.
Ryan: And the benefit for me, the user.
Emma: For you, it means you get back to what we call high value work.
Ryan: Okay.
Emma: Instead of that repetitive data entry or sitting there waiting for slow carrier websites to load, you’re free. Free to focus on tackling exceptions. Maybe negotiating better terms with suppliers. Or perhaps upselling complimentary products to customers.
Ryan: Or maybe as the source playfully suggests.
Emma: Uh huh, yeah, maybe even taking, taking that well deserved vacation. I remember hearing from one user before tools like this. They spent hours just trying to figure out some complex new shipping rule change. Order Ship Express aims to simplify exactly those kinds of frustrating one off headaches too.
Ryan: It really makes you pause and think, doesn’t it? How much routine, almost soul crushing busywork we’ve just accepted as part of the job.
Emma: Totally.
Ryan: So okay, bringing it all together, what does this mean for businesses that adopt these tools? What are the core benefits they can realistically expect?
Emma: Well, the benefits are pretty clear I think. First, it’s speed and accuracy. Using AI for order entry drastically cuts down transcription errors. And that integrated rate shopping makes sure you’re picking the best carrier option every single time.
Ryan: Makes sense. What else?
Emma: Second, cost savings. That real time rate comparison using your own negotiated rates, it directly helps avoid overpaying for shipping consistently.
Ryan: And I have to assume this impacts the customer experience too. Faster quotes, faster shipping.
Emma: Absolutely. That’s a huge one. Customer satisfaction definitely goes up. Timely quotes, faster dispatch, better tracking info. It improves the whole buying journey for them.
Ryan: Good point.
Emma: And finally, I’d say scalability. Both the sales order agent and Order Ship Express are built to grow with your business. You can handle more orders, more volume, without necessarily having to proportionally increase your staffing for those tasks.
Ryan: Okay, so let’s circle back then back to that really central question we started with. Will they replace you? Given everything we’ve talked about, what’s the final verdict from source material?
Emma: The verdict is in truth, no. At least not anytime soon.
Ryan: Okay, why not?
Emma: Well, take the sales order agent. Yes, it automates a lot of repetitive steps, but it absolutely still needs human oversight. You’re needed for approvals, for managing the tricky exceptions it can’t handle, and maybe most importantly, for building and maintaining actual customer relationships. That’s a uniquely human skill. AI isn’t touching, right?
Ryan: Relationships, judgment calls, handling the really weird stuff.
Emma: Exactly.
Ryan: And what about Order Ship Express on the shipping side? Does it completely take over everything there?
Emma: Again, no. It massively simplifies domestic parcel shipping. Yes, but it’s not going to negotiate your carrier contracts for you.
Ryan: Good point.
Emma: Nor will it magically resolve complex address verification errors on its own. And like we said, if you’re doing international shipping or LTL FTL freight, you still need that extra layer like the Dynamic Ship app for that functionality.
Ryan: So these tools are powerful assistants, but they don’t replace the whole job function.
Emma: Precisely. They fundamentally free you from the busy work, the copy paste grind. They let you focus more on the complex problem solving, the strategic thinking, the relationship building, the stuff humans are actually best at.
Ryan: So let me try and summarize this then. The Sales Order Agent, Order Ship Express, they aren’t really here to replace you.
Emma: Correct.
Ryan: But they will replace the parts of your job that feel like just copying data from one screen to another. And frankly, that might just be the upgrade many of us have been waiting for.
Emma: It really might be. And it leads to a bigger thought, doesn’t it? If these mundane, repetitive tasks are increasingly handled by intelligent assistants, what new skills become more important? What uniquely human contributions? What strategic thinking will be paramount in this evolving workplace?
Ryan: Yeah, what creative solutions or maybe enhanced customer experiences could you focus on if you’re freed from all that busy work?
Emma: It’s definitely something to mull over.
Ryan: It really is. It’s worth considering, maybe right now, where you might identify your own busy work that’s ready for automation. Especially since tools like Order Ship Express are, you know, available right now on Microsoft App Store.
Emma: Food for thought, for sure.
