Agent productivity is an essential element of service operations, where there is continuous emphasis on minimising Average Handle Time (AHT) through all feasible approaches. Within Dynamics 365, developing customised productivity tools has proven to be an effective strategy. These tools present the necessary user interface to agents via the side panel on the right.
Currently, there are two methods available for creating such a custom productivity tool:
- Custom Productivity Tools (left): Within the Customer Service admin center, you have the capability to create custom productivity tools. By utilizing straightforward configurations and specifying the desired control or custom page to be hosted, you can efficiently implement your chosen solution. This feature is designed to integrate seamlessly with other Dynamics 365 productivity tools.
- SidePanes (right): Custom productivity tools are developed using the SidePanes JavaScript API. This feature provides a dedicated sidebar interface, enabling you to host any type of UI efficiently.
Note: SidePanes also has the ability to show badges, so you can alert users through numbers.
The differences
It’s important to understand the difference between these two methods when building your own tool. Custom productivity tools are for example simple to set up but may be missing features—such as the ability to configure the title—and are mainly intended for Customer Service agents. In contrast, sidePanels offer complete control but require you to write code.
| Custom productivity tools | SidePanes | |
|---|---|---|
|
Support for type of apps |
Model-driven apps * |
Model-driven apps |
|
Specific license |
Customer Service |
PowerApps |
|
Customizable |
Limited |
Full |
|
Solution aware |
Yes |
Yes, through a web resource |
|
Language |
Configuration |
JavaScript |
* With the recent introduction of the custom multi-session experience, it is now possible to enable productivity tools within custom applications. For more details see Deliver your own multi-session experience.
Productivity tools also streamline the transition from Unified Service Desk to Copilot Service Workspace. Custom productivity tool replicate for example key USD features, including whether they are global (available in all sessions) or limited to customer sessions.
| Custom productivity toools | SidePanes | |
|---|---|---|
|
Session aware |
Out of the box |
Required development |
|
Context aware |
Requires development |
Requires development |
Make a custom productivity tool
The Customer Service admin center lets you configure productivity tools. Built-in tools are available by default, and you can add new ones via the “New” option. When setting up a tool, specify:
- Name – displayed in the side pane
- Unique name – the logical identifier
- Type – control or custom page
- Global – determines if the tool appears in every session or only in customer sessions
Develop your own side pane
When custom productivity tools can be accessed through a simple form, sidepanels rely on JavaScript for their functionality. The JavaScript is divided into two parts: the first specifies the sidepane, enabling configuration options such as title, icon, and settings for closing or resizing the panel. The second part specifies the navigation, via the standard navigateTo JavaScript API you can show different UIs.
Xrm.App.sidePanes.createPane({
title: "DevTools",
imageSrc: "WebResources/tab_cswdevtools_icon.svg",
paneId: "DevTools",
canClose: false,
hideHeader: true
}).then((pane) => {
pane.navigate({
pageType: "control",
controlName: "tab_TheAppsBakery.CSWDevToolsControl",
})
});Our choice for CSW DevTools
For the CSW DevTools, the intention was also to use the side panel, as it is both easy and quick to use. We opted to implement custom productivity tools because they allow users to enable or disable them easily according to their preferences. In contrast, using side panes requires additional coding from the consumer’s perspective. The drawback of this solution is that the tool’s title is always displayed, which isn’t visually appealing. Nevertheless, this approach has advantages over the alternatives.
